2000 CD#59.1 The Impact of Outsourcing and Privatization on Library Services and Management

Abstract

A commissioned study on the impact of outsourcing and privatization on library services and management from Texas Woman's University School of Library and Information Studies. The study focused on outsourcing, noting that the definition of privatization adopted by the Outsourcing Task Force "rendered the establishment of operational definitions impossible." The study team found "no evidence that outsourcing per se represents a threat to library governance, or to the role of the library in protecting the First Amendment rights of the public...[and] "no evidence that outsourcing per se has had a negative impact on library services and management...Instances where problems have arisen subsequent to decisions to outsource aspects of library operations and functions appear to be attributable to inadequate planning, poor contracting processes, or ineffective management of contracts." The report incorporated advice to libraries considering outsourcing.