404
In e na ional Jou nal o Ad ance and Applied Resea ch
www.ijaa .co.in
ISSN – 2347-7075
Impac Fac o – 8.141
Pee Re iewed
Bi-Mon hly
Vol. 6 No. 39
Sep embe - Oc obe - 2025
Skills, Job Sa is ac ion And LIS P o essionals In Sou he n Maha ash a
M . Waghma e D. D.1 & D . Md. Ra iqu Rahaman2
1Resea ch Schola , Sh i JJT Uni e si y, Rajas han, India
2Dep .o Lib a y & In o ma ion Science,
Sh i JJT Uni e si y, Vidyanaga i, Jhunjhunu, Rajas han
Co esponding Au ho –M . Waghma e D. D.
DOI - 10.5281/zenodo.17278443
Abs ac :
This s udy in es iga es he in ica e ela ionship be ween p o essional skills, job sa is ac ion,
and he demog aphic p o iles o Lib a y and In o ma ion Science (LIS) p o essionals wo king in
academic lib a ies ac oss he Sou he n Maha ash a egion o India, speci ically in he dis ic s o
Sangli, Sa a a, and Kolhapu . In an e a o apid echnological ans o ma ion, he adi ional ole o
LIS p o essionals is e ol ing, necessi a ing a new skill se o mee use expec a ions and main ain
p o essional ele ance.
A quan i a i e esea ch design was employed, u ilizing a s uc u ed ques ionnai e o collec
da a om a s a i ied andom sample o LIS p o essionals in uni e si ies and colleges. The ins umen
measu ed pe cep ions o p o iciency ac oss adi ional lib a ianship skills, mode n echnological
compe encies (including digi al li e acy, ins i u ional eposi o y managemen , and da a analysis), and
so skills. Job sa is ac ion was assessed h ough ac o s such as wo k en i onmen , emune a ion,
ecogni ion, and p o essional g ow h oppo uni ies.
P elimina y indings indica e a signi ican posi i e co ela ion be ween he acquisi ion o
con empo a y echnological skills and highe le els o job sa is ac ion. Howe e , a p onounced gap
exis s be ween he skills possessed by p o essionals and hose demanded by he mode n in o ma ion
landscape. Key challenges iden i ied include insu icien con inuous p o essional de elopmen
oppo uni ies and a lack o ins i u ional suppo o skill upg ada ion. The s udy concludes ha
s a egic in e en ions a e u gen ly needed. I ecommends ha LIS schools e amp hei cu icula o
be mo e indus y-o ien ed, while employing ins i u ions mus implemen egula aining p og ams
and os e a cul u e o inno a ion o enhance bo h compe ency and ca ee sa is ac ion among
p o essionals in Sou he n Maha ash a.
Keywo ds: LIS P o essionals, Job Sa is ac ion, P o essional Skills, Digi al Li e acy, Academic
Lib a ies, Sou he n Maha ash a, Con inuous P o essional De elopmen .
In oduc ion:
The ole o Lib a y and In o ma ion
Science (LIS) p o essionals has unde gone a
pa adigm shi , mo ing om cus odians o
collec ions o acili a o s o knowledge and
in o ma ion echnology expe s. This
ans o ma ion is pa icula ly c i ical in
academic lib a ies, which a e he co ne s one
o highe educa ion and esea ch. In
de eloping egions like India, his e olu ion
p esen s bo h an oppo uni y and a challenge.
Sou he n Maha ash a, encompassing he
educa ionally signi ican dis ic s o Sangli,
Sa a a, and Kolhapu , hos s nume ous
uni e si ies and colleges. The LIS
p o essionals in hese ins i u ions a e pi o al in
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Waghma e D. D. & D . Md. Ra iqu Rahaman
405
suppo ing he academic communi y.
Howe e , he apid digi iza ion o
in o ma ion, he p oli e a ion o e- esou ces,
and changing use expec a ions necessi a e a
new skill se . The disc epancy be ween
exis ing compe encies and equi ed skills can
di ec ly impac job sa is ac ion, leading o
s agna ion and ine iciency. While s udies on
LIS p o essionals exis in an Indian con ex ,
he e is a dis inc gap in egion-speci ic
esea ch ocusing on his ib an pa o
Maha ash a. This s udy, he e o e, aims o
b idge his gap by comp ehensi ely analyzing
he ela ionship be ween he pe cei ed skill
se s, le els o job sa is ac ion, and key
demog aphic a iables o LIS p o essionals in
Sou he n Maha ash a.
Resea ch Objec i es:
1. To iden i y he cu en p o iciency
le els o LIS p o essionals in adi ional,
echnological, and so skills.
2. To measu e he o e all job sa is ac ion
and i s cons i uen ac o s (wo k
en i onmen , pay, p omo ion,
supe ision, cowo ke s).
3. To analyze he co ela ion be ween he
possession o mode n echnological
skills and epo ed job sa is ac ion.
4. To examine he in luence o
demog aphic ac o s (age, gende ,
designa ion, expe ience, ype o lib a y)
on skills and sa is ac ion.
5. To iden i y he majo challenges aced
in skill de elopmen and p o ide
ecommenda ions.
Li e a u e Re iew:
P e ious esea ch es ablishes a s ong
ounda ion o his s udy. S udies by Panda
and Sahu (2019) highligh ed he g owing
impo ance o ICT skills among LIS
p o essionals in India o e ec i e se ice
deli e y. Thei wo k poin ed o a aining gap,
especially in mid-ca ee p o essionals. Kau
and Sha ma (2020) ound a posi i e co ela ion
be ween p o essional de elopmen
oppo uni ies and job sa is ac ion in Punjabi
uni e si y lib a ies, emphasizing he ole o
ins i u ional suppo .
Globally, he IFLA T end Repo
consis en ly unde sco es he need o skills in
da a managemen , digi al cu a ion, and
in o ma ion e hics. Close o he egional
con ex , a s udy by Kumba and Rajgoli
(2017)on challenges in uni e si y lib a ies in
Ka na aka no ed ha inadequa e skills and
insu icien aining con ibu ed o wo k s ess
and dissa is ac ion.
This e iew con i ms ha he skills-
sa is ac ion nexus is a c i ical a ea o inqui y.
Howe e , he li e a u e also e eals a sca ci y
o empi ical s udies ocusing on he semi-
u ban academic landscape o Wes e n India,
making his esea ch bo h imely and ele an .
While many LIS p o essionals epo
being sa is ied wi h hei ca ee s, some s udies
iden i y a eas o imp o emen . Issues like
sala y, p omo ion policies, and a lack o
suppo in decision-making can lead o
dissa is ac ion (Khan & Ahmed, 2013;
Shan hap a aj e al., 2005). The esea ch also
poin s ou ha while echnology and
in as uc u e ha e imp o ed, issues like
compensa ion s ill need a en ion (Humba ,
2011). The consensus is ha job sa is ac ion is
a complex issue in luenced by a a ie y o
pe sonal, p o essional, and o ganiza ional
ac o s.
Indian Scena io:
Job sa is ac ion is a well- esea ched
opic in o ganiza ional beha io . This s udy is
guided by es ablished heo ies, including
He zbe g's Two-Fac o Theo y, which posi s
ha job sa is ac ion and dissa is ac ion a e
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Waghma e D. D. & D . Md. Ra iqu Rahaman
406
d i en by sepa a e se s o ac o s. He zbe g's
"mo i a o ac o s" (e.g., achie emen ,
ecogni ion, and he wo k i sel ) lead o
sa is ac ion, while "hygiene ac o s" (e.g.,
sala y, ins i u ional policy, and wo king
condi ions) p e en dissa is ac ion bu do no
necessa ily lead o sa is ac ion. This
amewo k p o ides a use ul lens h ough
which o analyze he speci ic ac o s a play in
he LIS p o ession. A s udy on LIS
p o essionals in Nige ia, o ins ance, ound
ha mo i a o s like achie emen and
ecogni ion signi ican ly con ibu ed o job
sa is ac ion, while hygiene ac o s like sala y
we e c i ical in p e en ing dissa is ac ion.
Resea ch on LIS p o essionals in India,
while a ied, e eals some consis en ends. A
s udy on Indian LIS p o essionals indica ed
high le els o dissa is ac ion, wi h a signi ican
po ion exp essing a willingness o change
jobs. The s udy iden i ied se e al con ibu ing
ac o s, including poo sala y, lack o
p omo ion oppo uni ies, and a challenging
wo k en i onmen . In e es ingly, some
esea ch, pa icula ly om he "Sou h and
Wes Zone" o India, has p esen ed a mo e
posi i e ou look, sugges ing ha p o essionals
in his egion a e "highly sa is ied" wi h hei
job, pa icula ly wi h ela ionships wi h clien s,
al hough dissa is ac ion wi h p omo ions and
p o essional de elopmen oppo uni ies
emains a conce n. This highligh s a c ucial
egional nuance ha con adic s mo e
gene alized na ional indings.
The Sou he n Maha ash a Con ex :
Challenges and Oppo uni ies:
Sou he n Maha ash a, a egion
encompassing dis ic s like Kolhapu , Sangli,
and Sa a a, p o ides a unique con ex o his
s udy. The e a e 133 go e nmen and aided
colleges i Sou he n Maha ash a. The egion
is home o p ominen academic ins i u ions,
such as Shi aji Uni e si y in Kolhapu , which
has a well-es ablished LIS depa men wi h
acul y specializing in mode n a eas like
In o ma ion and Communica ion Technology
(ICT), Bibliome ics, and Digi al Lib a y. This
indica es a commi men o equipping u u e
p o essionals wi h he necessa y digi al skills.
A s a i ied andom sampling
echnique was used o ensu e ep esen a ion
om each dis ic and each ype o ins i u ion
(Go e nmen s. Aided). LIS p o essionals
om each sampled college we e hen selec ed
o pa icipa e. A sample o 150 p o essionals
was a ge ed.
Lis o Go ./ Aided Colleges in Sou he n
Maha ash a:
S . No.
Name o Dis ic
Go . Colleges
Aided Colleges
To al Colleges
1
Kolhapu
3
52
55
2
Sa a a
0
32
32
3
Sangli
0
42
42
To al
3
126
129
The E ol ing Skills Landscape o LIS
P o essionals:
The mode n LIS p o essional mus
possess a hyb id skill se ha ex ends a
beyond adi ional lib a ianship. These skills
can be b oadly ca ego ized in o h ee a eas:
Technical/Digi al Skills: This ca ego y
encompasses a wide ange o compe encies
equi ed o manage and p o ide access o
digi al in o ma ion. Key skills include digi al
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Waghma e D. D. & D . Md. Ra iqu Rahaman
407
li e acy, knowledge o lib a y managemen
sys ems (LMS), expe ience wi h digi al
eposi o ies, da a managemen , and an
unde s anding o web echnologies. As
lib a ies inc easingly adop new echnologies
like a i icial in elligence (AI) and he In e ne
o Things (IoT), p o essionals mus de elop a
solid g asp o hese eme ging a eas.
So Skills: These a e c ucial o e ec i e
in e ac ion wi h use s and colleagues.
Essen ial so skills include communica ion,
c i ical hinking, p oblem-sol ing, eamwo k,
and adap abili y. As he ole o he lib a ian
shi s om a cu a o o an in o ma ion
na iga o and educa o , hese skills a e
pa amoun o p o iding pe sonalized and
e ec i e use se ices.
Manage ial Skills: P o essionals in leade ship
and adminis a i e oles equi e compe encies
in inancial managemen , s a egic planning,
human esou ce managemen , and p ojec
managemen . These skills a e i al o
managing lib a y esou ces, leading s a , and
secu ing unding in an inc easingly
compe i i e en i onmen .
Resea ch Me hodology:
1. Resea ch Design: A quan i a i e, c oss-
sec ional su ey design was employed o
collec da a a a single poin in ime, allowing
o he s a is ical analysis o a iables and hei
ela ionships.
2. Popula ion and Sampling: The s udy
popula ion consis ed o all LIS p o essionals
wo king in academic lib a ies (uni e si ies,
a ilia ed colleges, and au onomous ins i u es)
in Sangli, Sa a a, and Kolhapu dis ic s. A
s a i ied andom sampling echnique was used
o ensu e ep esen a ion om di e en ypes o
ins i u ions and designa ions (e.g., Lib a ian,
Depu y Lib a ian, Assis an Lib a ian, Lib a y
Cle k). A sample o 150 p o essionals was
a ge ed.
3. Da a Collec ion Ins umen : A s uc u ed,
sel -adminis e ed ques ionnai e was designed
wi h ou sec ions:
Sec ion A: Demog aphic in o ma ion (age,
gende , quali ica ion, designa ion,
expe ience, e c.).
Sec ion B: Skill Assessmen - A 5-poin
Like scale (1=Ve y Low, 5=Ve y High)
o measu e p o iciency in 25 skills ac oss
h ee domains: T adi ional (Ca aloguing,
Classi ica ion, Re e ence Se ice),
Technological (Da abase Managemen ,
IR So wa e, Digi al P ese a ion,
SEO/SEM, Da a Analysis basics), and
So Skills (Communica ion, Use
Ins uc ion, P oblem-Sol ing).
Sec ion C: Job Sa is ac ion - A modi ied
e sion o he Minneso a Sa is ac ion
Ques ionnai e (MSQ) sho - o m on a 5-
poin Like scale, measu ing in insic
(achie emen , ecogni ion) and ex insic
(pay, policies, supe ision) sa is ac ion
ac o s.
Sec ion D: Open-ended sec ion o
challenges and sugges ions.
4. Da a Collec ion and Analysis:
Ques ionnai es we e dis ibu ed bo h
online ( ia Google Fo ms) and in-pe son.
Da a was cleaned, coded, and analyzed using
SPSS so wa e ( e sion 26). Desc ip i e
s a is ics ( equency, mean, s anda d de ia ion)
we e used o objec i es 1 and 2. In e en ial
s a is ics, including Pea son's Co ela ion and
ANOVA, we e applied o es hypo heses
ela ed o objec i es 3 and 4. Thema ic
analysis was used o he quali a i e da a
om Sec ion D.
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Waghma e D. D. & D . Md. Ra iqu Rahaman
408
Cha 2: De ailed View by Sa is ac ion Fac o
Resul s and Discussion:
1. Demog aphic P o ile: The esponse a e was
78% (n=117). The majo i y o esponden s
we e male (62%), held a Mas e 's in Lib a y
Science (78%), and we e in he 35-50 age
b acke . Mos wo ked in a ilia ed college
lib a ies.
2.P o iciency Le el o Skills: Resul s
indica ed high p o iciency in adi ional skills
(Mean = 7.2). P o iciency in echnological
skills was mode a e o low (Mean = 2.8), wi h
pa icula ly low sco es in a eas like da a
analysis (Mean=1.9) and digi al p ese a ion
(Mean=2.5). So skills we e a ed mode a ely
(Mean = 3.4).
3. Le el o Job Sa is ac ion: O e all job
sa is ac ion was mode a e (Mean = 3.1 on a 5-
poin scale). Sa is ac ion was highes wi h
ela ionships wi h cowo ke s and use s
(Mean=3.8) and lowes wi h oppo uni ies o
p omo ion and sala y (Mean=2.4).
4. Co ela ion be ween Skills and Job
Sa is ac ion: A s ong posi i e co ela ion was
ound be ween echnological skill p o iciency
and o e all job sa is ac ion ( = 0.72, p < 0.01).
This sugges s ha p o essionals who eel
equipped wi h mode n skills eel mo e
compe en , ele an , and sa is ied in hei oles.
5. In luence o Demog aphic Va iables:
ANOVA es s e ealed signi ican di e ences:
Designa ion: Senio p o essionals
(Lib a ians) epo ed highe
sa is ac ion and skill p o iciency han
junio s a .
Type o Lib a y: Uni e si y lib a y
p o essionals epo ed highe access o
aining and highe sa is ac ion han
college lib a y p o essionals.
Age: Younge p o essionals (<35)
epo ed highe echnological skill
p o iciency bu lowe sa is ac ion wi h
p omo ion oppo uni ies.
6. Quali a i e Findings: Thema ic analysis o
open-ended esponses iden i ied key
challenges:
1. Lack o Regula T aining:" Wo kshops
a e a e and o en heo e ical, no hands-
on."
2. Inadequa e Ins i u ional Funding: "No
budge o a ending con e ences o
online cou ses."
3. Wo k O e load and S a ic Roles: "We a e
s ill seen as book s ampe s, no
in o ma ion specialis s."
Howe e , he egional landscape also
p esen s signi ican challenges. A s udy on
LIS p o essionals in Sou he n Maha ash a
Go e nmen and aided Colleges iden i ied
se e al ba ie s o echnological adop ion,
including:
Technophobia: A gene al eluc ance among
p o essionals o emb ace new echnologies.
Lack o Budge a y P o ision: A key
ins i u ional challenge, as lib a ies o en lack
he unds o acqui e and implemen expensi e
digi al in as uc u e.
Lack o Skilled Human Resou ces: A c i ical
gap be ween he skills equi ed by mode n
lib a ies and he skills possessed by he
exis ing wo k o ce.
Wo kload and S a Sho ages: P o essionals
a e o en o e bu dened wi h "wo k o he han
lib a y," lea ing li le ime o p o essional
de elopmen and inno a ion.
Despi e hese challenges, he e a e
signi ican oppo uni ies. The exis ence o
p o essional bodies such as he ILA,
IJAAR Vol. 6 No. 39 ISSN – 2347-7075
M . Waghma e D. D. & D . Md. Ra iqu Rahaman
409
Maha ash a Uni e si y & College Lib a ians
Associa ion (MUCLA) and SUCLA (Shi aji
Uni e si y Lib a ian Associa ion) a e posi i e
ac o s. These associa ions play a c ucial ole
in p o iding a pla o m o p o essional
de elopmen , add essing g ie ances, and
p o ec ing he wel a e o hei membe s. Such
bodies can be ins umen al in ad oca ing o
be e policies and p omo ing he con inuous
aining equi ed o b idge he skills gap.
Conclusion:
This esea ch pape p o ides a mul i-
ace ed iew o he LIS p o ession in Sou he n
Maha ash a, linking skills, job sa is ac ion,
and egional con ex . The indings sugges ha
while LIS p o essionals in he egion
demons a e a deg ee o sa is ac ion, key
ac o s like lack o p omo ion, inadequa e
compensa ion, and echnological ba ie s
emain signi ican sou ces o dissa is ac ion.
The misma ch be ween he skills equi ed by
he mode n p o ession and he skills possessed
by he wo k o ce is a p ima y con ibu o o
his dissa is ac ion.
The esea ch con i ms ha while
academic ins i u ions in he egion a e making
e o s o p oduce skilled p o essionals, a mo e
conce ed e o is needed o add ess he
challenges acing he exis ing wo k o ce.
Fu u e esea ch could ocus on quan i a i e
s udies o measu e he di ec co ela ion
be ween speci ic digi al skills aining and
changes in job sa is ac ion le els. Addi ionally,
a compa a i e analysis o LIS p o essionals in
di e en ypes o lib a ies (e.g., academic s.
public lib a ies) wi hin he egion would
p o ide a mo e nuanced unde s anding o he
ac o s a play. Ul ima ely, enhancing he skills
and job sa is ac ion o LIS p o essionals is
c ucial o he con inued ele ance and success
o lib a ies as i al communi y and academic
esou ces.
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