Managing Outsourcing in Library and Information Services

Citation

Pymm, B. (2006), "Managing Outsourcing in Library and Information Services", Collection Building, Vol. 25 No. 2, pp. 66-67. https://doi.org/10.1108/01604950610658892

This topic is one that virtually all professionals will have to address at some stage during their careers. The pressures on organizations to be cost effective in their service delivery is no new phenomenon, and governments of all persuasions are keen for publicly‐funded bodies to provide more for less. And one way they see of achieving this is to outsource some or all of the library's functions to a commercial enterprise. Whether the reality of taking this step measures up to the expectation is another matter altogether.

In this book two very experienced LIS practitioners provide an easy‐to‐read primer that covers everything to do with outsourcing. Key areas covered include the need to undertake an information audit before any decisions are made and a chapter on how to outsource – identifying suppliers, timelines, etc. Then a major section on developing the agreement and ensuring both parties adhere to its conditions. Suggestions on how to ensure users and staff have a positive approach to the process follow, with a chapter on communication strategies for dealing with outsourcing which the authors note is “often a traumatic event in an organisation's history.” Finally, a comprehensive bibliography provides a large range of additional readings, few of which, unfortunately, appear to be available online.

This is an extremely useful book which, while very much oriented to the UK situation, is suitable for almost any professional concerned with becoming more informed on the outsourcing debate. Numerous examples are quoted and checklists provided in order to assist in handling an outsourcing venture. The book comes from a viewpoint that, essentially, outsourcing is a positive option that just needs to be managed in an effective manner in order to provide benefits to all. It may be a coincidence that one of the authors manages her own information services consultancy, while the other works for the UK Home Office, where he is “Head of Profession for librarians and information scientists” – your guess is as good as mine! But it does make me wonder whether their approach is informed by their existing positions. After all, there is an alternative view, expressed in a substantial body of literature, that suggests outsourcing may look attractive in the short term but have substantial adverse impacts in the longer term. In defense of the authors, they do refer to some of this literature in their bibliography.

All in all, this is highly recommended for library and information providers across the whole range of the profession. It provides an excellent and easy‐to‐read coverage of the subject with good practical advice. I would, however, suggest that readers also refer to some of the literature that debates more fully the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing, in order to gain another perspective to this question of the corporate takeover of our public services. (Readers may be interested in a balanced report published by the NSW Parliamentary Library in 1997, available at: www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/publications.nsf/0/EF5487324EB405 57CA256ECF000A1FE5)

Bob Pymm

Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, Australia