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Unit 14: Change and Quality Management

3. People skills: People skills are nothing but the ability to manage people in the groups, one Notes
that are part of the change and those that are bringing about the change.
4. System skills: These include a set of skill required for designing of a new system or
bringing out balanced renovations in existing systems. One should be able to have a
balanced outlook towards all the components of the system ranging from input to the
final output.
5. Business skills: Business skills have acquired greater significance because of the increasing
emphasis on the evolution of self-sustaining profit generating information centers.

14.1.6 Strategies
Change strategy can’t be defined in a singular fashion rather it has to be adopted as a mixture
of strategy sets keeping an eye on the ultimate grand vision (5). Following factors determine
the choice of the strategies:
• Degree of resistance: Strong resistance argues for a coupling of power-coercive and environmental-
adaptive strategies. Weak resistance or concurrence argues for a combination of Empirical-
Rational and normative-reductive strategies.
• Target population: Large populations argue for a mixture of strategy sets to be adopted
• The stakes: High stakes again demand a mixture of strategies.

• The time frame: Short time frames require a power-coercive strategy.
• Expertise: Availability of desired expertise gives the management ample of confidence to
a mixture of strategies
• Dependency: If the organization is dependent on its people, management’s ability to
command or demand is limited. Conversely, if people are dependent upon the organization,
their ability to oppose or resist is limited.

14.2 Library Automation and Networking

We live in an increasingly globalized and interconnected world. Barriers in trade, commerce,
banking, industry, science, technology, education, etc., are breaking down and will continue
to become more and more borderless with time. Globalization also means increased dependency
on one other in various domains. Globalization also has increased competition; consumers of
all kinds now, more than ever before, have a number of choices. Globalization is in a sense
synonymous with networking. Computers, telecommunications infrastructure and the Internet
are not only essential but indispensable in the world we live in today. The library and information
world has traditionally been borderless long before others. However, the Internet and the
worldwide web have pushed libraries to be even more interdependent than before, because of
the bewildering array of sources and providers of information from which they draw their
information. Equally, libraries are now facing competition from other players. The place of
libraries as centres for the acquisition, description, organization, preservation and access to
information has been challenged and subject portals, digital libraries and open access repositories.
These services use new methods to acquire, analyze, display and organize information and are
undoubtedly a threat to the traditional role of libraries and librarians.

How libraries can get an edge over competing services and continue to be relevant, different,
wanted and useful has engaged the attention of many library professionals. Even before the
advent of the Internet and the web, libraries sought to automate and network with each other

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