7 - Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research

outlook towards all the components of the system ranging from input to the final
output
5. Business Skills
Business skills have acquired greater significance because of the increasing emphasis
on the evolution of self-sustaining profit generating information centers.
6.2. Strategies
Change strategy can’t be defined in a singular fashion rather it has to be adopted as a
mixture of strategy sets keeping an eye on the ultimate grand vision (5). Following factors
determine the choice of the strategies:
• Degree of Resistance - Strong resistance argues for a coupling of power-coercive
and environmental-adaptive strategies. Weak resistance or concurrence argues for
a combination of Empirical-Rational and normative-reductive strategies.
• Target Population - Large populations argue for a mixture of strategy sets to be
adopted
• The Stakes - High stakes again demand a mixture of strategies.
• The Time Frame - Short time frames require a power-coercive strategy.
• Expertise - Availability of desired expertise gives the management ample of
confidence to a mixture of strategies
• Dependency - If the organization is dependent on its people, management's ability
to command or demand is limited. Conversely, if people are dependent upon the
organization, their ability to oppose or resist is limited.
Dennis Sparks, Executive Director of the National Staff Development Council, offers
these 13 tips for managing the complex and difficult change process (Sparks, 1993) [6],
these tips can be applied suitably in the case of managing the change from a paper-based
library to a digital-library.
1. Educate the leaders of change.
2. Use a "systems" approach to ensure that all aspects of the organization are
considered when planning and implementing change.
3. Use a team approach that involves many stakeholders in the change process.
4. Share power with everybody to encourage the implementation of the change
efforts.
5. Make plans, develop plans, but know that they will have to be adapted to change,
as needs change.
6. Realize that there is a tension between establishing readiness for change and the
need to get people implementing new approaches quickly. While getting people
intellectually ready for change is something to be considered, it should not take so
much time and effort that people lose interest and motivation.
7. Provide considerable amounts of training and staff development for those involved.
8. Choose innovative practices, picking approaches that have been used or researched
can help the implementation of those approaches.
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