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Project Management for Information Professionals PDF

220 Pages·2016·1.977 MB·English
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C HANDOS I P S NFORMATION ROFESSIONAL ERIES Series Editor: Ruth Rikowski (email: [email protected]) Chandos’newseriesofbooksisaimedatthebusyinformationprofessional.They havebeenspeciallycommissionedtoprovidethereaderwithanauthoritativeview of current thinking. They are designed to provide easy-to-read and (most impor- tantly)practicalcoverageoftopicsthatareofinteresttolibrariansandotherinfor- mationprofessionals.Ifyouwouldlikeafulllistingofcurrentandforthcomingtitles, pleasevisitwww.chandospublishing.com. Newauthors:wearealwayspleasedtoreceiveideasfornewtitles;ifyouwould like to write a book for Chandos, please contact Dr Glyn Jones on g.jones.2@ elsevier.com or telephone þ44 (0) 1865 843000. Project Management for Information Professionals MARGOT NOTE Amsterdam(cid:129)Boston(cid:129)Cambridge(cid:129)Heidelberg London(cid:129)NewYork(cid:129)Oxford(cid:129)Paris(cid:129)SanDiego SanFrancisco(cid:129)Singapore(cid:129)Sydney(cid:129)Tokyo ChandosPublishingisanimprintofElsevier Chandos PublishingisanimprintofElsevier 225Wyman Street,Waltham,MA02451,USA LangfordLane, Kidlington,OX51GB,UK Copyright©2016byM.Note.Published byElsevierLtd.Allrights reserved. Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproducedortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeans, electronicormechanical,includingphotocopying,recording,oranyinformationstorage andretrievalsystem,withoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher.Detailsonhowto seekpermission,furtherinformationaboutthePublisher’spermissionspoliciesandour arrangementswithorganizationssuchastheCopyrightClearanceCenterandthe CopyrightLicensingAgency,canbefoundatourwebsite:www.elsevier.com/permissions. Thisbookandtheindividualcontributionscontained initareprotectedundercopyright bythePublisher (otherthan asmaybenotedherein). Notices Knowledge andbestpractice inthisfieldareconstantly changing.Asnewresearch andexperiencebroadenourunderstanding, changes inresearch methods,professional practices,ormedicaltreatment maybecomenecessary. Practitioners andresearchers mustalways relyontheirownexperienceand knowledgein evaluating andusing anyinformation, methods,compounds, orexperiments described herein.Inusing suchinformation ormethodstheyshouldbemindfulof theirownsafety andthesafetyofothers,including partiesfor whomtheyhaveaprofessional responsibility. Tothefullestextent ofthelaw,neitherthePublisher northeauthors, contributors, or editors,assume anyliabilityfor anyinjuryand/or damagetopersons orproperty asa matterof productsliability,negligence orotherwise, orfromany useoroperation of anymethods,products, instructions, orideascontained inthematerial herein. ISBN:978-0-08-100127-1 (print) ISBN:978-0-08-100133-2 (online) BritishLibraryCataloguing-in-Publication Data Acataloguerecordforthisbookisavailable fromtheBritishLibrary LibraryofCongressControl Number: 2015946210 Forinformation onall Chandos Publishingpublications visitourwebsiteathttp://store.elsevier.com/ ABOUT THE AUTHOR Margot Note has spent her career working in the cultural heritage sector, includingcolleges,libraries,andarchives.Shehasleadorhasparticipatedin awiderangeofprojects,includingdatabaseconversions,digitizationefforts, web application creations, and collaborations with American Express, Artstor,Google,andUNESCO.SheholdsaMastersinHistoryfromSarah Lawrence College, a Masters in Library and Information Science, and a Post-Master’sCertificateinArchivesandRecordsManagement,bothfrom Drexel University. She is the Director of Archives and Information Man- agement at World Monuments Fund, an international heritage conservation organization. The author can be contacted via the publisher. vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Books, like projects, are rarely completed in solitude. Many people have contributed to the creation of this publication. Thanks to the Florio, Leis, andNotefamilies.IwouldliketothankthestaffofthePelhamBaybranch of the New York Public Library for keeping their hold shelf full of project managementbooksfor me,weekafter week.Ihave muchappreciation for Larry Blake, who generously shared his project management experience withmethroughoutthecourseofwritingthisbook.Thankyoumostofall to my partner, Bill Florio, for being supportive of me during the writing process. This book is dedicated to the memory of my father, Charles C. Note (1945–2015). ix INTRODUCTION Project Management for Information Professionals is a resource for people who have not been trained formally in project management principles, yet have found themselves involved in projects. They could be working on a recataloging endeavor at their library, directing their colleagues in a digi- tization effort in their archives, or establishing a new content management system at their museum. Colleagues may have sought them out because of their leadership abilities. They may have earned their assignments because they are dependable, good at organizing their work, and skilled at influ- encing others. Given increasing amounts of responsibility over time, they get things done in changing information environments. Projects require collaboration between departments and across enter- prises. Sometimes they involve traversing boundariesdprofessional, organizational, geographical, or technological. This dynamic creates a need for information professionals to work in partnership, communicate effectively, and appreciate the best practices of project management. Informationprofessionalsoftenaccomplishprojectsalongsidetheirregular duties, and find they need to develop innovative skills to balance their workloads. The opportunity to take responsibility for a project offers personal and career development and the prospect of achieving lasting change and impact. Often a library, archives or museum must undertake a project that is outsideitsnormaloperations,butisessentialforittofulfillitsstrategicgoals. All change in organizations happens through projects. Entrenching a project management mindset in the organization’s culture is the way to make this happen. Project-basedwork inarchives, libraries, andmuseums is on therise for several reasons. Project management has the potential to be the métier of information professionals. The principles, structures, and processes of projectmanagementareanalogoustolibraryandinformation science;both are logical, methodical, measurable, and specific (Massis, 2010). There has been an increase in technology-based work, such as the implementationofintegratedlibrarysystems,digitalrepositories,andopen- sourceapplications.Asinformationcentersbecomepartnersinlarger,more complex projects within their communities, there is likely to be a greater xi xii Introduction reliance on project management methodologies to reach favorable out- comes (Wamsley, 2009). Kinkus (2007) adds: Not only does the progression of technology seem to be introducing more opportunitiesforproject-basedworkinlibraries,buttheincreasedcomplexity causedbyaproject’sneedforexpertisefrommultipledepartmentsleads toan increasedneedforprojectmanagementskillsinmodernlibrarianjobs(p.357). Archivesandmuseumshavesurmountedcontemporarychallengeswith project management techniques as well. Projects are integral to efforts to respond to a rapidly changing envi- ronment. In the current climate of diminished funding, information pro- fessionals need to maximize available resources and minimize risks in their projects.Theyencounterchallengesinresourceformats,diversepatrons,and evolving technology platforms and interfaces. Much of the work of pro- fessionalsemployedinarchives,libraries,andmuseumsinvolvesprojectsthat cross departments. Additionally, today’s workforce values the skill of being abletomanageprojectteammemberswithoutformalauthority.Increasing demand for technology implementation in library, archives, and museum operationsandexpandeduserserviceshasoccurredatthesametimethatmost budgetsandstaffsizeshavedecreased.Inabusinessenvironmentthatrequires doing more with less, information professionals who master project man- agementdemonstratetheirworthbygettingthingsdoneundertheseexigent conditions.Thisiswhereprojectmanagementcomesintoplay. LITERATURE REVIEW Project management is an essential part of the work of information pro- fessionals, although it is only just starting to be recognized. Chambers and Perrow (1998) surveyed librarians in the United Kingdom and discovered that27%usedspecificprojectmanagementtechniques,includingschedules, Ganttcharts,andnetworkdiagrams.Theyfoundthat3%oftherespondents used formal project management methodologies. This may suggest that information professionals are beginning to see the value of using practical project management techniques. In their surveyof web project management in academic libraries,Fagan and Keach(2011) found therepeated useof project management practices, but without proper job titles, recognition, or methodologies. They write: Thefunctionofprojectmanagementisstilloftenonlyonepartofahybridjob and is not often included in job descriptions. Some project management techniques are used frequently, but the most formal practices are not (p. 1). Introduction xiii However, the results of their survey showed significant use of specific procedures: Morethan90%ofrespondents“frequently”or“sometimes”documentproject requirements and specifications, and more than 80% archive documents for future project teams, identify milestones, and submit project status reports. Thesefindingsareencouraging,astheseactivitiessupportgoodorganizational communication about projects (p. 19). Not surprisingly, they found that practices focusing on description and documentationalign withinformationprofessionals’traditionalstrengthsin preserving knowledge. As Schachter (2004) explains, information professionals “don’t often call ourselves project managers, but the fact that we do so much project management. is increasingly being acknowledged and promoted as a core skill set of librarianship” (p. 10). Lai (2005) investigated the needed educational background and expertise for knowledge management pro- fessionals, many of whom hold library and information science (LIS) degrees. In reviewing job postings, she found project management expertisewasoneofthetopthreeskillsrequired;shenoteditsoccurrence in 48.2% of 27 full-time listings from 2000 to 2001. Kinkus (2007) analyzed library job advertisements and found an increase from 4.1% to 11.2% in jobs requiring project management skills from 1993 to 2003. She writes, “Based on surveys of both librarian job ads and MLIS curricula, it is clear that project management in libraries is here to stay” (p.352).MathewsandPardue(2009)investigatedlibrarianadvertisements and noted that 29.5% specified project management skills. In a similar survey of more than 300 job advertisements from 1999 to 2007, Choi and Rasmussen (2009) found 37.93% of LIS positions focused on projects. While information professionals frequently lead, coordinate, and participate in many projects, most LIS programs overlook project man- agement training. Winston and Hoffman (2005) published an analysis of library school curricula for evidence of project management instruction. Contrary to the need for project management skills in the profession, they discovered that only 3.7% of the 56 programs investigated offered project management courses. Similarly, Mackenzie and Smith (2009) found that of the 24 course syllabi from 17 ALA-accredited graduate library programs, only 12.5% included project management as one of the topics taught in their management courses. xiv Introduction In a study focused on jobs, curricula, and programs in analyzing the education of future “‘eScience Professionals’ who extend librarianship into solving large scale information management problems for researchers and engineers,” Stanton et al. (2011) write: The extenttowhichproject managementskillsseemed tofigureprominently in all of the students, internships suggested that project management ought to be a required course for anyone seeking to become an eScience professional (pp. 79, 89). At the other end of the professional spectrum, art librarianship also requires project management mastery: In all environments project management is a popular tool for accomplishing specific goals. In the visual resources field these tasks may include digitizing, organizing, and providing access for specific collections. The popularity of digitizationprojectsandtheincreasednumberoffundingsourceshaveresultedina largenumberoftheseactivitiesbeingundertakeninallvisualresourcesenviron- ments.Inaddition,institutionshavealsorecognizedthevalueofdigitalaccessto collections and as such are increasingly supporting such endeavors. As a result, projectmanagementhasbecomeanecessaryskill(Iyer,2009). These studies suggest that project management is often required for information professionals in the workplace, although it is not being taught enough in graduate programs. Althoughformaleducationhasnotcaughtupwithprojectmanagement needs, LIS resources devoted to project management have increased. For example, articles, workshops, and books such as this one have added to the collectivewisdomofthefield.Thissupportsthebeliefthatcollaborationand managerial ability, two keystones of project management, are significant to the development of information professionals (Brasley, 2008). Black (2005) comments, “There is little training within the museum field for managing majorprojectsthroughtocompletiondmostlypeoplehavetolearnonthe job” (p.224).Information professionals are using professional development opportunitiestoadvanceskillsabsentingraduateschool.Inthefuture,allLIS curricula will provide project management courses, allowing students to participateinandleadprojectsbeforetheyentertheworkingworld. The professional literature describes several cases of libraries using project management methodologies. For example, in 2008 the libraries at the University of Arizona formally adopted a project planning and man- aging process overseen by a portfolio management group, which is a sub- committee of the library leadership cabinet. This group ensures projects meetthelibraries’strategicgoalsandpriorities(FeeneyandSult,2011).The Introduction xv group“isresponsibleforensuringthatprogramsandprojectsarestrategicin nature, aligned with Libraries’ goals, and that resources are allocated to the highest-priorityprogramsandprojects”(StoffleandCuillier,2011,p.155). Universities in the United States, Ireland, England, and Australia have also reported cases of effective use of project management methodologies (Horwath, 2012). Mostinformationprofessionalsbalancetechnologywithservingpeople, which makes them ideal candidates to be project managers. Additionally, they are suited for project management due to their expertise in planning, supervision, and analysis. Wamsley (2009) notes that information pro- fessionals implement services, upgrade systems, and build community partnerships, and that “all of these activities involve project work and the need for library staff to have [project management] knowledge and skills” (p. 5). For the information professional, the key to success in a changing environment is to develop the new skills that the workplace demands. Above all, information professionals must actively prioritize a commitment to continuous professional development. The information industry is growing fast, and the profession is experiencing rapid change. Project management can assist in developing much-needed skills to compete and thrive in this setting. WHY I WROTE THIS BOOK In my experience with working on projects in nonprofits, libraries, and archives, I noticed a pattern. When I directed a project in which I was the primary worker, I was organized, within budget, and on time. I sensed whenIcouldsolveproblemsonmyownandwhenIshouldconsultsenior executives. I envisioned the workflow and processes it would take to deliver results. These projects were always successful. However, as my career advanced I got involved in bigger projects: eitherleadingthemmyselforworkingasamemberofateam.Now,things were different. I had to handle diverse personalities, competing priorities and schedules, various seniority levels, and organizational politics. The project results were often satisfactory, but occasionally they were not. The process was sometimes unpleasant. I wondered if there was a better way. Out of curiosity and a need for self-improvement, I began to study project management literature. I found that most current research focused on project management in the corporate sector and did not address the

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