Management Theories and Contemporary Issues in Managing Libraries in Nigeria

In today's contemporary times, the management of libraries has gone beyond the traditional way of "doing things" due to the changing nature of the business environment. Most libraries are driven by sophisticated information technologies (IT) such that various tasks and activities are undertaken in different ways. These technologies facilitate faster processing and transfer of information from one point to the other within and across libraries. It has also improved management practice and functions such as planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling. Despite the positive influence of IT in today's libraries, managing them in recent times may be quite challenging due to organizational and environmental factors that would be unveiled in this paper. Some of these factors include globalization, changing business environment, competition, changing customer needs and preferences and work place diversity, among others. Here, Afolayan talks about the contemporary issues confronting the management of libraries in Nigeria. She also discusses specific management theories in terms of their relevance and importance in the management of libraries. Furthermore, she delves into other areas which include the concept of management, general functions of management, the concept of management theories, and relevance of specific management theories to libraries in Nigeria.