Soft systems analysis and the management of libraries, information services and resource centres

• Main Author: Underwood, Peter G (Author)
• Format: Book
• Language: English
• Published: London Library Association Pub. 1996
• Subjects: Organizational change > Management; Information services > Administration; Library administration
• Online Access: Click Here to View Status and Holdings.

 Soft systems techniques can be used by managers at all levels to analyse the needs of individuals or groups of people working in, or affected by, what goes on in an organization. The technique has developed as an alternative to more reductionist 'hard' approaches which tend not to take account of the social and political dimensions of issues and have led to the implementation of systems that have failed to meet the needs of users. In this introduction to the soft systems approach, Professor Underwood suggests ways in which this type of analysis offers advantages when used in the context of libraries, information services and resource centres. Soft systems take into account the subjective element in problem-solving and are of especial value in the new Internet-driven information situation, where traditional information boundaries are being challenged. At a time when the information world has been undergoing fundamental technological and social changes, the need to find techniques to promote greater understanding of this change has become an important challenge for information managers. Soft systems analysis offers the practitioner, the consultant and the student an in-depth view of the application of soft systems analysis as a tool for exploring the potential for change in organizations.