Project Management in Libraries, Archives and Museums: Working with Government and Other External Partners

Citation

Lee Eden, B. (2011), "Project Management in Libraries, Archives and Museums: Working with Government and Other External Partners", Collection Building, Vol. 30 No. 3, pp. 141-141. https://doi.org/10.1108/01604951111147018

Having recently chaired a University of California system‐wide task force on next generation technical services, and been a member of numerous other task forces, it is very apparent to me just how important it is to understand project management and have a project manager to help guide and direct the overall process and structure of large endeavors. This book provides a detailed road map for novices of project management in information organizations, especially managers and administrators, with step‐by‐step instructions and numerous illustrations and figures.

There are ten chapters. Chapter 1 defines the terms “project” and “program” and lists various types of projects. Chapter 2 discusses initiating a project, how to monitor progress, and what assumptions and risks managers must be comfortable with. Chapter 3 looks at partnerships, partnership policies, pros and cons, and working across cultures and sectors. Chapter 4 examines risk management techniques, legal issues, and responses to risk. Chapter 5 lays out how to manage human resources on a project, making decisions, and the challenges of team building and dynamics. Chapter 6 discusses time management, money, suppliers, and monitoring progress. Chapter 7 looks at the evaluation and review of a project. Chapter 8 focuses on quality management systems, how to implement them, and their challenges. Chapter 9 examines the sustainability of projects, along with planning, equity, revenue generation, and quality. Finally, Chapter 10 explores the use of information and communication technology within projects. There is a short list of useful resources, a glossary of project management terms and an index.

There are many books on project management, many of them so detailed and wordy that they are of little help to the novice project manager. This book is not only geared towards those in information organizations, but it is concise, to the point, and focused directly on understandable terminology and appropriate charts and figures to assist anyone attempting to manage and direct a project.