Management and the 21 st Century Library

1. Management and the 21st Century Library Ústav informačních studií a knihovnictví Univerzita Karlova v Praze Barbara B. Moran University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Information and Library Science With Support from the Fulbright Scholar Program 13.3.06

2. The Library • Is one of the oldest types of institutions • Is in the midst of rapid change • The changes mirror those going on in other institutions and in society as a whole

3. Three Waves of Social Change The Age of Agriculture The Age of Industrialization The Age of Information

4. Most modern libraries are“hybrid” libraries They must move beyond their traditional role as custodians of books and integrate new methods of storage and transmission of information into an already existing structure. +

5. Modern Libraries Link users Information Today’s users expect more from libraries than ever before

6. Trends in Library Management Today’s Presentation will focus on: • Strategic Planning • Organizational Structures • Staffing • Budgets • Change Management

7. The Importance of Planning • Planning Bridges the Gap Between Where We Are Now and Where We Want to Be

8. Futuristic Aspects of Planning Are Troublesome Because we live in a turbulent environment it is hard to make long-term plans

9. Strategic Thinking • provides a plan of action for resource allocation • affects performance and financial success Strategic thinking is an outgrowth of the open systems approach to organizations. It is now felt that you cannot successful manage an organization without paying attention to the environment.

10. The Strategic Management Process Set Mission, Objectives, and Strategies Analyze the Environment Identify Opportunities and Threats Analyze Resources Identify Strengths and Weaknesses Reassess Mission and Objectives Formulate Strategies Implement Strategies Evaluate Results

11. Environmental Scanning Analyzing the Environment Competitive Intelligence

12. Strengths Threats Weaknesses SWOT Analysis Opportunities

13. SWOT Analysis • Strengths: • What are your advantages? • What do you do well? • Weaknesses: • What could be improved? • What is done badly? • What should be avoided?

14. Opportunities Where are the good opportunities available to you? Are there trends that look promising? Threats What obstacles do you face? What is your competition doing? Is changing technology threatening your position?

15. Organization’s Opportunities Identifying Opportunities Organization’s Resources Opportunities in the Environment

16. Libraries have competitors so: • They are becoming more user oriented • Are “borrowing” ideas from other organizations such as bookstores • Are looking for value added opportunities • Are finding ways to market their services • Trying to improve services by measures such as benchmarking and LibQUAL

17. Tools for Putting Strategy into Action Environment Organization Leadership  Persuasion  Motivation  Culture/values Structural Design  Organization Chart  Teams  Centralization/decentralization  Facilities, task design Performance Human Resources  Recruitment/selection  Transfers/promotions/training  Layoffs/recalls Strategy Information and Control Systems  Pay, reward system  Budget allocations  Information systems  Rules/procedures Source: Adapted from Jay R. Galbraith and Robert K. Kazanjian, strategy Implementation: Structure, Systems and Process, 2d ed. (St. Paul, Minn.: West, 1986), 115, Used with permission.

18. What Happens After Strategies Are Formulated? Implementation Evaluation

19. Contingency Planning Attempts to plan for the unexpected

20. Trends in Organizational Structure • Most libraries still hierarchies but with more communication between sections • New departments to fill new responsibilities • Some libraries using teams of workers • New structures to reflect user orientation

21. New Organizational Forms New OLD • Rigid Hierarchy • Fixed Duties • Many Rules • Formal Communication • Centralized Decisions • Taller Structures • Collaboration • Adaptable Duties • Fewer Rules • Informal Communication • Decentralized Decisions • Flatter Structures

22. Team Approach Most Popular New Way to Organize

23. Team Organization Disadvantages of teams • Dual loyalties and conflict • Time and resources spent on meetings • Fewer opportunities for traditional career advancement Advantages of Teams • Reduced barriers among departments • Quicker response time • Better morale • Reduced administrative overhead

24. Staffing Issues • Libraries are more automated than ever before but still are labor intensive organizations • The staff is the library’s most important resource • What characteristics do new hybrid librarians need?

25. The New “Hybrid” Librarians Need to: • Have traditional library skills including a commitment to service • Be technologically savvy • Be flexible and able to cope with changes • Be able to work cooperatively • Be life long learners

26. New trends in staffing libraries • More flexible jobs and work patterns • Coping with a diverse workforce • Need for staff development

27. New Ways to Structure Positions • Job sharing • Flexible hours • Job rotation • Telecommuting • Outsourcing

28. The Challenges of a Diverse Workforce • Need new skills in managing workers from different cultural, linguistic, and national backgrounds

29. Need for Staff Development • Recruitment and retention (and salaries to match skills) • All Librarians need to be life-long learners • Where can they get additional training? • Career ladders and means for progression within an organization

30. Budgets and Finance • Budgets are almost always too small • We all seek ways to provide better services more economically • Because most libraries are publicly funded we are accountable to the taxpayers

31. Cost of all types of library material continues to rise

32. Libraries are coping with budget shortfalls by: • Entering cooperative partnerships to cut costs • Looking for innovative ways to provide access to periodical literature • Giving up some services to implement others • Looking for champions and allies in the budgeting process and in fund raising

33. Cooperative agreements and consortia • TRLN • NCLIVE

34. New approaches to scholarly publications such as • JSTOR • SPARC • Open Access

35. It is sometimes necessary to cut services to remain effective • What are you doing that doesn’t have to be done?

36. Cultivate Champions for Libraries • Politics of Management • Create strategic alliances • Cultivate sponsors and donors

37. Librarians as Change Managers • The cycle of change is never-ending so librarians need to accustom themselves to it • Librarians need to handle change effectively to survive and thrive in today’s environment • The future for libraries can be an exciting and challenging one for those libraries that are both able and open to change.

38. Děkuji za pozornost!