Introduction

In this section we examine the main issues related to efficient management of an information service organisation. We will consciously adopt a strategic approach because of global recognition and practice of ‘strategic management’ not only in information services but also in the commercial sector. Strategic management has been seen as enabling information service organizations to influence external forces in accordance

with their chosen objectives and initiate new activities conducive to their market needs rather than adjust or respond to those imposed on them.27 According to Hayes, strategic management is “…the part of management of organization that emphasizes the relationship to external environments, evaluates the current status and the effect of future changes in them, and determines the most appropriate organizational response”.28 As a method of making decisions relative to between five to ten years, strategic management is based on continuous process of making entrepreneurial decisions and with the greatest knowledge of future consequences, systematically organising the efforts to carry out these decisions against the expectations through organised, systematic feedback. It is therefore oriented towards long-range institutional goals and objectives by identifying them, creating a political consensus concerning them, establishing priorities among them, determining the necessary resources and creating environment within which these resources can be marshalled.29

The library is an organic combination of people, collections and buildings, whose purpose is to assist users in the process of transforming information into knowledge and applying it in their specific situations. Bryson has stressed that the purpose of information services, be they libraries, corporate records, global information networks or information systems is to facilitate access or disseminating information to assist people and organizations predict the future and facilitate decision making.30 This decision-making can be in relation to a range of issues such as business investment, national planning, research proposals or conclusions, or those of a student making an argument for a stand he has taken in an academic discourse.

The components of a university library consist of a number of factors. In the first place there are inputs such as staffing, collections and accommodation. secondly, we can talk of processes such as collection development, organisation and management and thirdly, are

27 Drucker, Peter: Top Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices. – Chicago: Harper and Row, 1974.

- p. 25

28 Hayes, Robert M. : Strategic Management for Academic Libraries: A Handbook. – London: Greenwood, 1993. – p. 3

29 Ibid.

outputs such as reference services, usage of finding tools, document delivery services and continuous training of users through direct contact and finally ongoing feedback from stakeholders.31 All these components contribute in different ways and proportions to ensure that the ultimate goal of the library, that of providing fruitful interaction between information seekers and the information resources is achieved with maximum effectiveness and efficiency.

The fact that the ultimate goal of the university library is to support learning, teaching and research in the university has many implications. In the first place the library collection ought to support every curriculum and research activity going on in the university and also include a good representation of major subjects that are not in the curriculum. Secondly, the collection must be organised in a manner that facilitates easy access to their contents and the access privileges must be as generous as possible.

Thirdly, it is important that patrons be informed about library resources and services available and be given skills of using these resources. Fourthly the library building should be designed to facilitate the anticipated functions and finally, a competent staff is required to give direction and vitality to the service endeavour. This underlines the fact that the development of library and information services in university education is a multifaceted and complex process that involves strategic planning, identification and acquisition of information, the management of information materials, the design and implementation of automated systems, building of efficient staff teams and the overall management of economic and sustainable library and information services.32

Today information services are operating in new environments that impact on the consumers of information. A number of forces of change have been seen to influence the management of information services at the present and are likely to be felt even more in the future. These factors include:

30 Bryson, Jo: Effective Library and Information Centre Management. - Aldershot, Hampshire: Gower, 1995. - p.13

31 Raseroka, Kay: The Role of University Libraries. – Accra: African Association of Universities, 1999. - p.

2 32 Morris, B: Arbeitshilfen für Spezialbibliotheken, Band 11: Erste Schritte im Management. – Berlin: DBI, 1999. - p. 17-20

i. Both speed and extent of change which will require information services organizations to change and adapt quickly,

ii. The increasing trend towards intelligent organizations that utilise information and its supporting technologies for competitive advantage,

iii. An overriding demand for quality information services in terms of service, timeliness and economy,

iv. Increasing customer focus that calls for tailoring of information services to meet clearly defined and individual customer needs, and

v. Increasing electronic access through networks hence the need for librarians to have appropriate skills to handle and make available information electronically.³³

These challenges require new leadership skills and competencies so as to ensure that the information needs of the organization or community are met in the new information environment.