Project Management: Tools and Techniques for Today's ILS Professional

Citation

Turner, R. (2006), "Project Management: Tools and Techniques for Today's ILS Professional", New Library World, Vol. 107 No. 3/4, pp. 164-165. https://doi.org/10.1108/03074800610654943

The range of management skills required by information and library professionals today is often underestimated, undervalued and under‐resourced, so this new Facet handbook on project management is very welcome. This book will be of use to those working as solo librarians who have to be jack of all trades and master of all, as well as those working in specialised departments of larger institutions. Project management is a valuable tool for change management which is an integral part of all library and information services.

Project work can range from the small and simple to major and complex developments that involve multi‐professional teams. Barbara Allan has tried to address all of these and the elements involved therein. She is a senior lecturer in student learning and management learning at hull University Business School, but just as importantly has been involved in a wide range of projects herself.

The book is well laid out, which is appropriate for a book on project management! The introduction clearly states the aim of the book as to “provide a practical guide to library and information workers who are involved in project work either as a project manager or as a member of a project team”. It is based on the author's experience as a project manager, her experience as a consultant and trainer, feedback from courses on project work, visits to a wide range of library and information services and professional networks.

Examples of projects are listed as possibly including: moving a library; developing a new information service; creating a new intranet site; digitising a collection; merging two libraries; building and moving into a new learning resource centre; restructuring an information service; developing a new marketing campaign; re‐cataloguing a collection; producing a common training programme; developing a web‐based information skills course; carrying out research in an innovative area. All of these examples will take place with limited resources, such as staff, time and finance.

Projects can be grouped into strategic or operational projects; simple or complex projects; local or distributed projects; “hard” or “soft” outcomes; fixed or changing environment. Project management is defined as “using a range of management skills and techniques to successfully carry out a project”. Allan also looks at the reasons why projects go wrong, including lack of a senior management sponsor; lack of a steering committee; the wrong project manager; lack of dedicated team effort; lack of co‐ordination. An aim of this book is to avoid common problems such as these.

Part 2 of the book (Part 1 is strangely the introduction) is about the project life cycle, systems and processes. This starts with project analysis, including defining the project, identifying and working with different groups of people, management structures, the all‐important communication, risk analysis, legal issues, finance and an outcome of producing a project brief. Throughout this and a later chapter there are excellent practical case studies and summaries, which make this often fairly detailed subject matter more lucid.

From analysis, the book goes on to explore planning the project, including thorough research, schedules, staffing, finances, identifying potential problems and then producing and communicating a project plan. Logically, the following chapters look at implementation and then evaluation and dissemination. There are separate sections looking at the important issue of financing of the project, and also the use of ICT to support the project.

The third part of the book investigates projects and people. The people side of the project looks at the fundamental requirements for project workers, managing the team, working across different cultures, organisations and even countries, the concept of virtual teams and managing the people side of change.

A further chapter is concerned with working in partnerships, including the benefits and challenges that entails. Project managers need to spend time establishing and maintaining these partnerships and ensuring that such practices as contracts, working practices and documentation are sustained and adhered to. An ensuing chapter explores the experiences of project workers, including contracted employees. This section concludes with the point that project work may be used as a vehicle for personal career development.

The final chapter of the book looks at project management skills and training. Project management, it is argued, is now a core activity for many library and information professionals, so that practicing professionals need the opportunity to develop their knowledge and skills, while graduates form library schools should have been trained in basic project management tools and techniques.

The index is quite short but covered the major themes. The layout of the book is so clear and logical that it is easy to dip into. Each chapter has a good introduction and summary, along with some key references. The figures in each chapter are very interesting and help to clearly illustrate the text with practical examples and summaries of points, making the book both easy to dip into and read continuously. A very brief bibliography of project and change management resources is included in the appendices, and a more detailed bibliography might have been useful.

However, this book is very welcome as it provides a practical approach to project management as a part of change management. Some management textbooks on project management are often very theoretical and it is difficult for the information professional to draw practical lessons from them, but Barbara Allan has managed to overcome this by producing a thorough and practical management tool, written by an experienced and obviously successful professional. It is essential reading for anyone working in the profession who will be involved in change at some stage in their working life – and that is basically every library and information service manager.