What the Library and Information Professional Can Learn from the Information Technology and Project Management Knowledge Areas

There are various forces driving change in the knowledge and skills areas for information professionals: 1) technologies, 2) changing environments, and 3) the changing role of information technology management. These forces affect all levels of information technology-based professionals--those responsible for information processing and those responsible for information services. This paper discusses and reviews the pertinent literature that deals with the competencies needed of information technology (IT) professionals, covering both general and project management knowledge and skills. Discussion follows relating this review to the library and information studies (LIS) field. The analysis leads to a composite picture, presented in a classification framework, of the competencies and skills needed of the new LIS professional.