Conventions Tools and Technologies of Information Management In a Networked Environment

Beginning from 21st century the world has become information communication technology environment, marked by various features such as access to large quantity of information; speedy changes in technology tools; and the ability to work in partnership and make individual contributions on an exceptional magnitude. This revolution affects virtually all aspect of human life: how man works, how he thinks, how he relates with his environments. Professional ethic and convention; tools employ in our day to today activities are all affected with these new technologies. Library and Information managements is critically affected with information communication technology insurgency.

For Library and Information professionals to be effective, valuable, and relevant nowadays, they must be able to demonstrate a wide range of functional and critical thinking skills related to information, communication, and technology: now that they work in a networked environment.

This paper provides an overview of what is expected of information managers – the librarians –cataloguer in a networked information environment- a setting that is characterized by massive information technology tools.

Function of Information Professionals Networked Environment

What information professionals do in the networked environment remains the same. They must still work with record creators, publishers to build the collection; manage the organization of the materials, their preparation for use, and their preservation; and they must work with the public and other users to provide access to the collections. -None of that changes in the networked environment

However, how information professionals do their jobs change in networked environment. Many techniques used for paper records will not apply to digital works. Boxes make sense for transferring paper records organized in folders, but file transfer programs are more appropriate for digital records. Paper records can be stored on shelves in a room of stacks, but digital files will be kept on servers. Face-to-face reference service in secure reading rooms may change to online assistance for patrons accessing collections from around the world. Every activity in the physical world has a parallel in the virtual environment.

Information professionals have been actively engaged in designing and implementing technology in their personal and professional lives and thus are aware of the crucial issues facing the profession. However, despite the fact that most information professionals now recognize the importance of working with digital materials, many are unsure what to do; how to it and lacks required skills to do it.

Many hesitate because they do not know what they need to know, and the knowledge and skills required by information professionals depend a great deal upon the availability of other technical expertise in the organization and willingness to collaborate across professions on their work. Do information professionals need to be able to write programs, design databases, or administer networks? Do they need to know HTML or XML, or any of a host of related acronyms (CSS, XSLT, and DTD to name a few)?

Skills Required of Information Professionals in Electronic Environment

Closer look at the existing skills of Information professionals reveals that for facing the challenges of today and tomorrow, they not only need to acquire wider range of skills but also need to keep themselves up-to-date.

The need of maintaining and preserving those essential skills that have always made librarians respected in their communities. They need to retain their flexible working skills, their openness to new ideas and their personal attention and caring approach to user needs. New environment demands that Informational professionals must remain flexible and adaptable for the change.

Realizing the fast upcoming advancements, Sridhar in 2000 predicted that Information Professionals must have technical skills, IT skills and managerial skills as the world is in transition.

It is thus summarized that, in this networked information environment, Information professionals need Generic Skills; Managerial Skills and Professional Skills

GENERIC SKILLS

• Communication skill

• Flexibility

• Adaptability

• Assertiveness

• Self-confidence

• Creativity

• Innovation

• Analytical skills

• Problem solving

• Decision making

• Service attitude

• Customer relationship

• Improving one’s learning and experience

• Presentation skills

• Stress management

• Time management

• Interpersonal Group skills

• Working with difficult People


MANAGERIAL SKILLS

• Local and global thinking

• Planning and organizational skills

• Finance management skills

• Fund raising

• Skillful use of financial resources

• Accounting and auditing skills

• anaging change

• Team building

• Decision making

• Leadership

• Negotiation skills

• Consumer management skills

• User need analysis

• Information seeking behavior analysis

• Project management

• People management

• Stress management

• Time management

• Resource management


PROFESSIONAL SKILLS


• Information technology skills

• Hardware/ software and networking Skills

• MS-Office suite

• Presentation software’s e.g. power point etc.

• Library automation

• Database creation

• Internet e.g. E- Mail management, Intricacies of internet

• search tools

• Intranet skill

• Scanning techniques

• Networking skills

• On-line searchengines

• On-line databases search

• Desktop publishing

• Content development

• Digitization

• Web based services

• Virtual learning

• Information literacy

• Technical professional skills

• Information resource management

• E- serial management

• Metadata standards e.g. Dublin core,

• MARC, TEI2, XML etc.

• Standards e.g. Z39.504

• System development

• Knowledge management5

• Traditional skills

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-an extract from a paper presented  by Ayodele J. Alonge at the 32^nd Annual Cataloguing, Classification and Indexing Seminar/Workshop  of Nigerian Library Association (NLA)