What is the Free Management Library(sm)?

What is the Purpose of the Library?

The Library provides easy-to-access, clutter-free, comprehensive resources regarding the leadership and management of yourself, other individuals, groups and organizations. Content is relevant to the vast majority of people, whether they are in large or small for-profit or nonprofit organizations. Over the past 15 years, the Library has grown to be one of the world's largest well-organized collections of these types of resources.

The Library has been averaging approximately 1,500,000 pageviews per month over the past 12 months. Many of its topics consistently rank in the top ten results from Google searches.

How Users Learn from the Free Management Library -- Its Unique Niche

Vast Amount of Information in the Library

There are approximately 650 topics in the Library, spanning 5,000 links. Topics include the most important practices to start, develop, operate, evaluate and resolve problems in for-profit and nonprofit organizations. Each topic has additionally recommended books and related Library topics.

Learn From Layout of Topics and Subtopics

We aim to enlighten users, not only from their reading the various articles in the Library, but also from their understanding of the arrangement of the information in the Library. For example, users can quickly learn a great deal about topics just by looking at each topic's subtopics and how they are arranged together. This is true for topics, such as Boards of Directors, Employee Performance Management, Finances, Leadership, Marketing, Organizations, Organizational Change and Development, Staffing, Strategic Planning and also Training and Development.

Holistic Assessments for Users to Identify Which Library Topics to Use

We also enhance learning for users by providing various holistic diagnostic tools that help them to perceive the critical activities that must occur in high-performing organizations and groups. These tools help users to conduct quick, practical assessments, the results of which help users select the most appropriate Library topics to use. See the link "Use Diagnostics" in the upper, right-hand corner of each page.

Library Topics Span Introductory to Advanced in Nature

We also enhance learning for users by providing Library topics that span the range from basic to complex, making the Library useful not only to members of organizations, but also to students, researchers, consultants and writers. We recognize that this focus leaves some frustrated that there are not even more advanced, state-of-the-art topics and leaves others frustrated that there are not even more basic topics. Hopefully, the many links to additional resources can meet those types of needs. The classical view of management is that it involves the activities of planning, organizing, leading and coordinating resources. Many people believe that leading and managing are different activities. The content in the Library is designed to be useful to a variety of people with different views about leadership and management.

Library Topics Pertain to For-Profits and Nonprofits

Many resources for nonprofits tend to be nonprofit-specific, that is, they are primarily about fundraising, volunteers, public policy, advocating, etc. Actually, most of the activities conducted in nonprofits are the same as those in for-profits. The differences between organizations have more to do with their size than the nature of their services -- small for-profits are more like small nonprofits than large for-profits. Similarly, large nonprofits are more like large for-profits than small nonprofits. We make the Library useful to both for-profits and nonprofits, recognizing the vast similarities, as well as differences, between both types of organizations.

Materials Not Included in Library

There are certain types of content that, while seemingly relevant to most people regarding general leadership and management, are not really relevant to the vast majority of people. Examples are listings of specific companies, industry information, maps, investment information and listings of schools.

As much as possible, Library administrators attempt to focus content on easy-to-apply, general information that will be of use to anyone when managing themselves, other individuals, groups and organizations.

Users Contribute Resources to the Library and Why

The Library is itself a free community resource to be shared and contributed to by users and authors across the world.

Links and other resources contributed to the Library remain the property of the authors of that information.

Benefits to contributors include that their resources, and consequently the authors, get tremendous exposure across the world. The Library gets 1,000s of users each day. At the time of this writing, users from up to 80 countries are using the Library.

Who Provides the Library?

Authenticity Consulting, LLC, provides the Library. Learn more here.

Acknowledgements

Authenticity Consulting, LLC, expresses deep appreciation for the support of The Management Assistance Program (MAP) for Nonprofits of St. Paul, Minnesota, for its Web hosting of this Library from 1996 to 2005 and for its continued support during that time!

Authenticity also expresses appreciation to the Virginia McKnight Binger Fund, which contributed funds for much of the original development and administration of the Library.

Authenticity also expresses appreciation to the United Church of Religious Science. Although Authenticity has no direct affiliation with the Church, the Church made a significant contribution, which, in part, funded the redesign of the Library in 2006.

Authenticity also expresses appreciation to Kim Niles, web developer, whose skills and patience with us produced many of the new features in the Library. See NilesRiver.com.

Authenticity also expresses appreciation to the many people and organizations that have contributed – and are contributing – links to free resources regarding the many topics in the Library.

Thanks to you all!