MANAGEMENT COMPETENCIES OF ACADEMIC LIBRARIANS AT

Abstract

Librarians do not generally regard themselves as mangers even though their actual job content negates this claim. In a survey study conducted on a group of middle management librarians at the University of the Witwatersrand, to discover which of the thirty selected generic and LIS specific management skills were required by the group in their daily work, it was concluded that the majority of the group felt that their jobs required them to perform most of the thirty skills presented. The group were further asked to comment on their level of confidence in applying these skills in order to gauge the usefulness of any training received at LIS professional qualification level. The group were then asked to express opinion on the value of further training and even when the levels of ability indicated a high level of confidence in many of the management competencies, most of the candidates indicated that further training would help them to improve their job performance