Heila Pienaar

Using the Balanced Scorecard to Facilitate Strategic Management at an Academic Information Service

This article reports on the implementation of the Balanced Scorecard model for facilitating strategic management at the Academic Information Service (academic library) of the University of Pretoria, South Africa. Robert Kaplan and David Norton developed the concept of the Balanced Scorecard in the early 1990s for motivating and measuring business performance. This management methodology is seen as an excellent vehicle for implementing organisational transformation measures in the Academic Information Service. The article starts by giving a short theoretical introduction to the concept of the Balanced Scorecard, followed by an outline of the implementation of the Scorecard on both the strategic and operational levels. It concludes by examining the ways in which the Balanced Scorecard is currently being used to facilitate the strategic management process at the Academic Information Service.

Development of a Library 2.0 service model for an African library

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the development of a Library 2.0 service model for an African library.Design/methodology/approach – The paper focuses on the academic library at the University of Pretoria (UP), South Africa.Findings – The UP is well on its way to becoming a Library 2/0 library.Originality/value – This case study may pave the way for other academic libraries to integrate Library 2.0 within their service offering to the benefit of all.

Organisational transformation at an academic information service

The process of organisational transformation at the Academic Information Service (academic library) of the University of Pretoria, South Africa, is illustrated in a challenging and innovative way. Aspects of the new sciences, for example complexity theory and quantum mechanics, are related to aspects of organisational life, for example creative organisational structures and team‐based relationships.

Towards Open Scholarship at the University of Pretoria

World-wide the research paradigm is in the process of expanding into e-research and open scholarship. This implies new ways of collaboration, dissemination and reuse of research results, specifically via the Web. In the South African context the implication of e-research has been investigated at high level, and this resulted in the SARIS report (South African Research Information Services Report), according to which it is envisaged that South Africa, as a country, should position itself in the forefront of this new paradigm. This implies that individual research institutions should take the necessary steps to implement such strategies, collaborate amongst one another and lobby Government to support such initiatives.