‘Open relationships, de-facto marriages, or shotgun weddings?’: the convergence and integration of libraries and computing/information technology services within Australian universities

A complex change management process is currently underway in many Australian universities. It involves the convergence and/or integration of library, computing and IT services. The process has profound implications for reference and information services and their clients, as evidenced by the recent increase in library literature both for and against integration. This paper identifies the issues driving convergence in universities, and the challenges this represents, investigates the impacts of full integration on university libraries and their clients, and recommends strategies for the successful management of convergence and integration involving established reference and information services teams.

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