Library Management for the Digital Age

Reviews / Votes

This book would be an excellent resource for library school students as well as a good refresher for library managers and directors. It contains useful case studies and a comparison of paradigms. The author illustrates the difference between past management methods and those that will apply to libraries in the future. It also shows that more leadership skills need to be incorporated into library management training and that the path for new librarians to become the next managers and leaders of the profession is always growing more complex. Flexibility is very important as new services continue to pop up and old services are dropped. Switching from old paradigms to newer, constantly changing paradigms is never easy, but this source provides help through a variety of comparisons of old and new, highlighting budgeting, policies, communication, facilities, human resources, customer services, emergency management, and many other issues vital to the management of a library. In addition, planning, administering, and assessing services for both physical and virtual libraries are covered. * American Reference Books Annual * With Library Management for the Digital Age: A New Paradigm, Julie Todaro adds to her impressive bibliography of monographs that deal with management, staffing, and training in 21st-century libraries. Writing with a variety of audiences in mind, Todaro makes the case that library administration has entered a different age that is defined by a variety of new requirements that deviate so significantly from previous practices as to constitute a new paradigm of leadership. The book is organized around the most substantial issues that managers, new and old, are likely to encounter. . . .Library Management for the Digital Age is useful for those new to library administration as well as those established in the profession who are grappling with the changes that the digital age continues to force on libraries.While the book is a dense treatment of its subject, the pick-and-choose organizational system makes it a handy reference for those hoping to address specific areas of library management through either individual reading or focused group discussion. With its emphasis on distinguishing between past and present managerial characteristics, Todaro's contribution is unique in the field of library management in charting a finely granulated map of the new landscape of library administration in the second decade of the 21st century. Its usefulness extends beyond process to encapsulate a snapshot of where the larger profession is and, above all, where it might be going as evidenced by the well differentiated and myriad management techniques it offers. * Technical Services Quarterly * Library Management for the Digital Age: A New Paradigm will make experienced managers rethink the traditional role of management within new and emerging organizational structures and technology. New managers will benefit from a fresh perspective on strategic planning with a focus on efficiency, accountability and problem solving. Those who teach management for non-profit organizations will be able to reflect on and communicate new paradigms within historic and pragmatic contexts and examples. In total the book provokes the reader to consider and challenge old models for learning how to manage and to embrace innovative strategies and techniques for examining and dealing with contemporary management issues. -- Edwin-Michael Cortez, Professor and Director, School of Information Sciences, University of Tennessee Julie Todaro offers new insights to perennial issues through systematic thinking. Through case studies, scenarios and many examples, she illuminates the complexity of "new management" for "new librarians" transitioning to tomorrow's leaders. Foundations for rich classroom discussion are provided together with scaffolding for deeper understanding. -- Ken Haycock, Research Professor of Management and Organization & Director of Graduate Programs in Library and Information Management, University of Southern California This is the most thorough discussion of management issues that I have read. This textbook addresses management skills and techniques needed in 21st century libraries and information centers. The strength of the manuscript is in the structure. The comparison of new and recommended management skills and methods with classic techniques and traditions is excellent. -- Yvonne J. Chandler, Associate Professor and Director, Legal Information Program, University of North Texas College of Information