Dr. I V Malhan Professor & Head Department of Library Science University of Jammu Jammu India

1. Developing Corporate Culture in the Indian University Libraries; Problems and Challenges of Change Management Dr. I V Malhan Professor & Head Department of Library Science University of Jammu Jammu India

2. Higher Education Institutions in India • Are influenced by the globalization of Higher Education • Facing growing competition • Experiencing external pressures of market forces • Pursuing the objective of quality and need based education • Undergoing changes and competing like business enterprises

3. Because of these factors, the Universities are undergoing metamorphosis and so do their libraries Their libraries are • Restructuring their facilities • Remodelling their functions for effectiveness and efficiency • Reengineering their operations • Reinventing their services • Ameliorating their resources

4. University libraries however are facing problems such as • Requirement of additional financial resources for modernization • Competition with alternative information communication channels • Increasing number of users because of expansion of universities and their functions

5. Contd. • Growing service demands and different types of demands • Continuing education and retraining of their staff • Develop multimedia collections and facilitate other possible channels for instant access to information

6. The ongoing changes in libraries are accelerated by the developments in IT and fueled by the Internet. The technology in fact has helped the libraries • For compact storage of information • Speedy processing of information • Quick retrieval of information • Instant communication of information

7. Technology has provided opportunities and means for libraries for • Improving efficiency of their in-house operations • Develop OPACs • Instantly access the remote information resources • More effectively publicize their resources and services through the web Contd.

8. Contd. • Digitize their collections and make these accessible through the Internet • Facilitated more effective delivery of information overcoming the barriers of space and time • Network the standalone libraries • Instantly access remote information sources • Facilitated choices of buying access or buying a source

9. Technology at the same time has also empowered the information user communities and offered them greater choices • Users can themselves access a large number of information sources • Enormous number of open access information resources are available to them directly on their Internet connected computers Contd.

10. Contd. • Even personal viewpoints, ideas and concern can be reached through blogs • There is no dearth of information and no scarcity of information channels. If any limitation exists that is time available with individual user and capacity to use and assimilate information Contd.

11. Contd. • Users now often measure the value of information received against the time spent • Users having common subject interests can quickly exchange information through mailing lists

12. Challenges for the University Libraries are • To constantly add value to their services • To intimately relate information with the work processes and work performance requirements of the university

13. Contd. • Pay greater individual attention to users and map out their information routes for facilitating them to achieve their individual goals and objectives • Evolve to the next level of service to provide knowledge based prescriptions to solve users’ problems

14. Contd. • Make effective profitable use of available open access information resources and knowledge management tools • Jointly evaluate information and create need based virtual library networks • Organize the virtual libraries into most user friendly information architecture

15. Contd. • Constantly track information sources to find ideas for the benefit of their users • Move a step ahead in their services to relate worthwhile information with other relevant information and thus repackage and provide information • Constantly search means for greater user help and convenience

16. Contd. • Customize information as per users’ requirements • Invent new information products, innovate new information services and develop new knowledge management tools • Work for users’ capacity building for making most effective and profitable use of available information resources

17. Keeping in view the problems, opportunities and emerging challenges, the university libraries are almost developing corporate culture as they are • Developing their mission statements and defining their objectives Contd.

18. Contd. • Finding means for cutting costs and eliminating redundant costs and redeploying their sources for cost effectiveness • Developing strategic alliances with other libraries to develop collections and enhance services • Privatization is just happening for some of the services such as reprography and the Internet access

19. Contd. • To achieve time targets some university libraries are just getting their work done through outsourcing e. g. retroconversion of card catalogue, introduction of the RFID technology • Making efforts for fund raising, providing fee based services and marketing their information products

20. Contd. • Dismantling rigid hierarchical management structures in favour of spatial management • Trying to achieve international certifications and six sigma performance • Paying greater attention and ensuring more care for their customers

21. Contd. • Keeping strategies in place to deal with the changes in the external environment as well as internal functioning of the universities and adapting accordingly

22. In the modernization of university libraries and introduction of new work culture the greatest challenge is management of change. However rigid management principles cannot be laid down for managing change becauseContd.

23. Contd. • There are variations because of their functioning in diverse cultural settings • Level of financial support also varies • Variations in the level of interest of the university leadership • Variations in availability of information resources and facilities

24. However some helpful strategies for change management are:

25. Strategy I: Administrative Level • Firm commitment on the part of university leadership to develop and sustain a state of the art university library system • Constitution of staff teams for modernization and change management by the university libraries

26. Contd. • Setting up of a monitoring committee for facilitating change • Personal visits of the university leader to monitor and review the process of change do help • Change process is smoothened when the library employees are willing to actively participate

27. Strategy II: Staff Level • Continuing education and training of library personnel in handling new work technologies e. g. Training process has largely helped in the introduction of ICT in Indian university libraries. When the staff is trained new methods and technologies of handling information, the latter automatically get integrated in their work culture.

28. Strategy III: Users Level • When users are exposed and familiarized to new methods of information accessing by imparting information literacy, they demand information access to such information channels and technologies. As university libraries now plan and execute customer need focused services, they introduce changes to provide greater service and convenience in favour of user communities.

29. Strategy IV: Facilitating change as part of organizational development Change process can also be facilitated as part of overall development, modernization and changes introduced in the university

30. Strategy V: Management of change through organization’s culture and organization’s behaviour. This involves change in ways things are done.

31. Strategy VI: Evaluation and Quality grading of library resources and services • The process of evaluation and quality grading of the university library motivate the staff to simply work towards the goal of a better grade for their library and hence set the process of change for the better.

32. Case Study of the University of Jammu After environmental scanning and SWOT analysis the major problem identified for change management at the University of Jammu was: • Low motivational level of library staff Contd.

33. The reasons identified was low motivational level were • Lack of promotional avenues • Lack of adequate recognition and reward system • Long wait for higher salary scales

34. Realizing this problem the university authorities took step for • Promotion and better salary scales for frontline employees • Initiated steps for time bound promotions of junior employees

35. These steps substantially helped to set the process of • Organizational change in the library • Cleared bottlenecks for change • Helped to develop a better work culture and further

36. As a part of organizational development and university level changes the factors which helped the university to manage change for the better are • Visit of the NAAC Committee for university’s accreditation rank • Subsequently visit of ISO committee for ISO certification • Library visits of the leader of the university and on spot decisions for improvement of the library

37. Contd. The university got the ISO certification and the users got access to most modern RFID enabled university library.

38. THANK YOU imalhan_47@rediffmail.com http://www.jammuuniversity.in