Managing Change And People In Libraries

Managing Change and People in Libraries is designed to help library staff find options and compromises to personnel and management problems associated with the constant changes faced in libraries today. This text looks at theories of management, how people and processes change the stresses faced, how to analyze problems, find directions for change to be used and learn how to change negatives into positives in the workplace. The book is designed to help readers find direction and purpose in working practice. Theories explained through real life examples Alternatives developed out of facts Common principles of behaviour applied to management changes

Aims to show librarians how to manage change by applying innovative management principles to the unique needs of libraries. It is a guide to breaking down change into a logical sequence of events - and then managing it to the most beneficial outcome.

Managing Change in Academic Libraries helps academic librarians plan, implement, and manage changes to the fundamental structure of their organizations. It shows readers that in academic libraries the two driving forces behind most change are economics and technology. Declines in funding for education and in the purchasing power of libraries have made it impossible to maintain the status quo, let alone realize growth, in traditional information services and collection development. Add to this downward trend in library economics, the explosion of new information technology and its potential for radically altering communications and knowledge management, and one has the ingredients for some amazing changes in libraries. To help manage these many changes, chapters in Managing Change in Academic Libraries approach change with a mixture of radical and rational ideas. Readers learn academic librarians’views on dealing with change as they read about: an environmental scan which identifies both internal and external forces that are increasing the amount and scope of change in academic libraries technological change and its impact in academic libraries the academic library director’s role as an agent of change how two large library systems managed to change in some very fundamental ways when faced with serious economic and political challenges difficult personnel issues faced by academic libraries as they move into new organizational structures and adopt new management styles the future of traditional reference services in light of rapid developments in computing and networking how to change bibliographic control to better serve the changing expectations and needs of user communities conducting a restructuring study and recommendations for organizational change in a large research library system Each chapter shows academic librarians how they can respond imaginatively and nimbly to economic, political, and technological change that envelopes their professional work life. Academic librarians will refer to Managing Change in Academic Libraries again and again as a survival tool as they meet with challenging and unpredictable changes.

In times of rapid change, it is easy for managers to become so absorbed by daily demands and decisions that they lose perspective on the change process as a whole. A practical approach to managing the change process.

In the face of rapid change and an ever-widening constellation of challenges, it’s crucial for library leaders to pull back to the question of “why?” Plotting a sustainable way forward depends upon recommitting ourselves to our underlying values, such as customer service and community-building, while fostering the improvements that change makes possible. With passion, patience, and fortitude, libraries can stride confidently into the future. In this book, noted speakers and consultants Bignoli and Stara speak directly to library directors, managers, administrators, and technology staff, offering concrete guidance on setting or resetting strategic priorities. Taking an interconnected and specific approach to planning for and strengthening the library environment as a whole, their book discusses why libraries should embrace change as a fundamental part of library life; explores how to harness rapid change to provide more responsive, user-centered library service; addresses the ways in which libraries straddle the physical and the digital, in areas such as service provision and collections, illuminating how they overlap and can be improved using similar philosophies; presents both a comprehensive overview of library technologies as well as related team and change management advice, all grounded in user experience principles; shows how the concepts of sustainability and flexibility apply to physical space planning and design, from furniture selection and arrangement to infrastructure; and provides sound guidance on project management, problem solving, preparing for future challenges, personal reflection and self-care, and other leadership topics.

This book explores recent trends in human resource management practices and presents options for their application within the special context of libraries, especially academic and research libraries. It lays out a set of the most pressing HR management issues facing senior library leaders in the context of continuous organisational change in the 21st century and offers library practitioners effective tips for people management. A practical ‘how-to’ book that provides realistic and proven solutions to real-world challenges Provides examples from organizations to highlight concepts and their applications Summary of key points at the end of each chapter, as well as specific tips in three areas: A – Attention (things to pay attention to); R – Results (initiatives that help to achieve desired results) and T – Techniques (ways to apply the concepts presented.

"Institutions of higher education and academic libraries are not the traditional organizations they once were. They are subject to a variety of forces, including shifting and changing populations, technological changes, public demands for affordability and accountability, and changing approaches to research and learning. Academic libraries can no longer establish their excellence and ground their missions, visions, and strategic directions using the old means and methods. Leading Change in Academic Libraries is a collection of 20 change stories authored by academic librarians from different types of four-year institutions. Librarians tell the story firsthand of how they managed major change in processes, functions, services, programs, or overall organizations using John Kotter's Eight-Stage Process of Creating Major Change as a framework for examining change at their institutions, measuring their successes and areas for improvement, and determining progress. In five sections--strategic planning, reorganization, culture change, new roles, and technological change--chapters discuss tackling common challenges such as fear, anxiety, change fatigue, complacency, unexpected changes of leadership, vacancies, and resistance; look at the results of their tactics; and provide effective practices they found. Each section ends with a thorough analysis of the stories within and the most effective tips for leading that kind of change. Leading Change in Academic Libraries can help you establish flexible, nimble, and collaborative decision-making processes, and facilitate the transition from legacy collections-based libraries to forward-looking service-based libraries"--from the ALA website.

Offers advice to administrators of libraries of all sizes to dealing with succession planning and other aspects of change, detailing how to spot potential leaders, encourage professional growth, motivate employees, and develop high-quality performers.