Automation and its impact on the job satisfaction among the staff of the Margaret Thatcher Library, Moi University

Abstract

Presents the findings of a study which examined the impact of automation on the job satisfaction among library staff of the Margaret Thatcher Library (MTL), Moi University, Kenya. With the exception of the university librarian, his deputy and the systems librarian who were interviewed face to face, questionnaires were distributed to all other library staff. An 80 percent response rate resulted and data were coded and analysed. It was established that there were myriad problems within the library regarding training and access to automated systems of interest. However, MTL staff members viewed automation as enrichment and a source of satisfaction to their jobs. For automation to boost the staff members’ job satisfaction, concrete plans for consistent structured in‐house training, free access to the available software, additional systems staff, and centralised databases, among others, must be implemented.