Fail4Lib 2019
Failure is the “f” word: the dreaded taboo that every developer, project manager, and organizational leader fears. Our natural inclination is to flee failure, and, when we can’t avoid it, to bury it away. But failure has intrinsic value and is an essential step on the path to professional and organizational success. And since it’s inevitable, we ought to learn how to face failure, how to talk about it as professionals, and how to grow from it. Fail4Lib, now in its 7th year, is the perennial Code4Lib preconference dedicated to discussing and coming to terms with the failures that we all encounter in our professional lives. It is a safe space for us to explore failure, to talk about our own experiences with failure, and to encourage enlightened risk taking. The goal of Fail4Lib is for participants – and their organizations – to get better at failing gracefully, so that when we do fail, we do so in a way that moves us forward. This half-day preconference will consist of case studies, round-table discussions, and, for those interested in sharing, lightning talks on failures we’ve dealt with in our own work. Both newcomers and Fail4Lib veterans are welcome.
