LIT-SIS Strategic Plan 2025–2027 : Innovate. Educate. Elevate. The 2025-207 Goals

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By Michael Robak, Chair, LIT-SIS Strategic Planning Committee
(Committee Members: Patricia Barbone, Will Monroe, Susan Azyndar, Teresa Myers, and Victor Chavez)

AALL LIT-SIS Strategic Plan (2025–2027)

GOAL 1: Ensure Operational Excellence and Organizational Continuity

Objectives

  • Build durable, adaptable systems that support sustained SIS operations.
  • Institutionalize knowledge sharing and project continuity.
  • Enhance coordination across SIS groups to maximize collaboration and reduce duplication.

Strategies

  1. Implement a shared digital knowledge base (e.g., Confluence, SharePoint) to house committee toolkits, reports, and procedural templates.
  2. Develop a digital governance dashboard for tracking strategic initiatives, committee milestones, and operational metrics.
  3. Standardize project management practices across committees using tools like Trello, Notion, or Asana to improve transparency and onboarding.
  4. Provide training for all committee chairs on digital collaboration platforms, workflow tools, and change management.
  5. Establish formal liaison roles to the Teaching Legal Technology Caucus and AI Caucus to improve cross-initiative synergy and intelligence sharing.
  6. Cross-map goals with other SIS strategic plans annually to identify shared priorities and streamline overlapping initiatives.

GOAL 2: Advance Tech-Centric Legal Education and Training

Objectives

  • Equip members with critical knowledge of emerging legal technologies (e.g., GenAI, blockchain, data analytics, legal design).
  • Facilitate skill-building for evolving legal research and instructional landscapes.
  • Develop scalable, credentialed training opportunities for members at all experience levels.

Strategies

  1. Design an “Emerging Legal Tech Curriculum” featuring modular, self-paced learning tracks (e.g., GenAI, LLMs, NLP, legal chatbots, digital ethics).
  2. Launch a digital badging or micro-credentialing system to certify member competencies and showcase professional growth.
  3. Create an AI Sandbox Environment that offers guided exercises, tool demos, and sample use cases for hands-on learning.
  4. Host an annual “Legal Tech Lab Week”, with workshops, mini hackathons, and legal tech sprints co-sponsored by academia and legal tech vendors.
  5. Partner with legal tech companies, startups, and universities to co-develop content, run demonstrations, and offer guest lectures.
  6. Pilot an AI Shadowing Program with participating firms, courts, and tech developers to provide real-world exposure for members.

GOAL 3: Foster a Future-Ready, Inclusive Professional Community

Objectives

  • Build a vibrant network of tech-forward legal information professionals.
  • Promote mentorship, inclusive access to innovation, and sustained member engagement.
  • Support equitable technology literacy across all library types and professional backgrounds.

Strategies

  1. Expand the mentorship program to include a dedicated Tech Fellows cohort working on short-term innovation pilots and projects.
  2. Launch a DEI + Tech Access Initiative to assess and remove barriers to technology training and participation.
  3. Implement a personalized, AI-powered member engagement portal to support skill-matching, event recommendations, and learning paths.
  4. Host informal, peer-led “Tech Cafés” monthly to encourage networking, idea exchange, and casual knowledge transfer.
  5. Develop a rotating “AI Learning Circle” series, fostering small-group exploration of real-world legal AI use cases and tools.
  6. Establish an “AI Buddy Program” pairing tech-savvy mentors with members looking to develop new tech competencies.

GOAL 4: Promote a Culture of Innovation and Knowledge Sharing

Objectives

  • Enable members to lead innovation initiatives within their institutions.
  • Create a shared repository of practical resources, playbooks, and success stories.
  • Celebrate and amplify member contributions to tech-forward legal practice.

Strategies

  1. Develop a collaborative, open-source Legal Tech Toolkit with templates, checklists, sandboxes, and decision-making guides.
  2. Collect and publish member-authored case studies and implementation playbooks showcasing law library-led tech initiatives.
  3. Launch an “Innovator-in-Residence” program to spotlight trailblazing members each year through sponsored projects and public speaking.
  4. Produce a digital publication or podcast series featuring thought leaders, member voices, and practitioner insights.
  5. Create an AI Use Case Repository, allowing members to contribute and comment on real-world AI implementations in libraries.
  6. Facilitate quarterly “Innovation Roundtables” to crowdsource emerging challenges, solutions, and ideas.

GOAL 5: Strengthen Strategic Partnerships and Amplify External Influence

Objectives

  • Forge strategic alliances with forward-thinking organizations in legal tech and education.
  • Position LIT-SIS as a national thought leader on legal information innovation and AI ethics.
  • Advocate for inclusive, responsible technology development and adoption in the legal field.

Strategies

  1. Collaborate with organizations like CodeX, Legal Hackers, LSC, and CALI on shared innovation challenges and access-to-justice initiatives.
  2. Secure SIS representation at leading legal tech and education conferences (e.g., ClioCon, ILTA, FutureLaw, EDUCAUSE).
  3. Contribute to white papers, working groups, and public policy roundtables on AI, legal tech ethics, and digital equity.
  4. Host an annual “AI for Access to Justice” Summit to spotlight how legal information professionals are bridging technology gaps in underserved communities.
  5. Develop a standardized AI Policy Toolkit to help institutions create governance documents for responsible AI use.