Management techniques applied to the operation of information services

Confucius, that ancient Chinese sage who has been held responsible for so many pseudo‐philosophical statements, was asked by one of his disciples what was the first thing he would do if he were appointed head of government. ‘I would rectify the use of terms’ replied Confucius. The disciple then enquired what such an action had to do with government, and received the answer ‘If words are not used correctly then speech becomes tied in knots, and business comes to a standstill.’ Confucius may have been stating the extreme case but nevertheless it is perhaps as well to define terms, so let us begin with the verb ‘to manage’. The Oxford English Dictionary states that it derives from the Latin manus (a hand) and it can mean ‘to train a horse in its paces; to make an object serve one's purpose; to control the course of affairs by one's own actions; to administer; to husband; to treat a person with indulgence; to cause persons to submit to one's control; to bring about one's wishes by artifice and flattery; and to contrive to get along or pull through’.