Quick Question: What conferences should I attend?

It feels like every week or two I receive an email promoting a conference to attend. With limited budget and a desire to attend conferences centered around issues related to technical services and resource management, I reached out to the TS and OBS-SIS listservs for recommendations. Keep reading to discover your next favorite conference outside of the AALL Annual Meeting.

Stay local

• Check out your local chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries for their annual meeting. Chapters tend to have more programs relevant to TS and OBS librarians.
• Look for regional TS-based workshops or conferences. If you're a Northern California resident, check out the Northern California Technical Processes Group (NCTPG)
• Your local ALA chapter may also have an annual conference with a technical services or library systems track.

ILS Conferences

• Innovative Users Group (IUG)
• Regional Innovative user groups also host their own conferences.
• ExLibris Users of North America (ELUNA) 
• Regional ExLibris user groups also host their own conferences.
• Another ExLibris resource to check out is the Alma Law Library Special Interest Group. This group meets annually at ELUNA, and also has an active listserv.

E-Resource Management Conferences

• North American Serials Group (NASIG)
• Focuses on serials and electronic resources management.
• Budget friendly: this conference is less expensive than a lot of other conferences - yay!
• Many of our colleagues recommend this annual conference, so you can count on meeting some TS/OBS-SIS folks!
• Electronic Resources and Libraries (ER&L)
• Held annually in March in Austin, Texas and online.
• The conference is organized into tracks/subtopics, so it's easy to see if there is an area of interest to you.

Other great recommendations

• Charleston Conference: Issues in book and serial acquisitions
• Held every year in Charleston, S.C., the Charleston Conference is devoted to technical services, electronic resources, serials, etc.
• This conference is recommended by many of our colleagues.
• Computers in Libraries 
• Held annually in Arlington, Virginia
• Focus on emerging and leading-edge technology. Great place to network with other information professionals from a variety of library backgrounds.
• Acquisitions Institute at Timberline Lodge 
• Geared towards acquisitions and collection development librarians
• Single-track conference with limited enrollment.
• Society of American Archivists (SAA)
• Joint annual meeting of the Council of State Archivists and the Society of American Archivists 
• Special Libraries Association (SLA)
• Focused on special libraries and information professionals. 
• Explores trends in knowledge and information management.

Is your favorite conference missing? Leave your recommendations in a comment below!