Purpose – The paper aims to focus on the issues relating to the concepts of knowledge management (KM) and the learning organization and discusses the relationship between these concepts and the issues of power and control. It looks at Coopey’s (1998) critical review of the “Foucauldian gloom” with regard to the learning organization and helps to assess whether the concept is a dream or a nightmare for the employees and the organizations as a whole. While both concepts have many positive attributes and have helped to transform many organizations, the issues of power, control, trust and empowerment have been overlooked and disregarded. This paper will attempt to answer some of these questions. Design/methodology/approach – This paper presents an analysis of literature in the field of KM and learning organizations and its relationship with the concepts of power, control and trust. Findings – This paper shows that one of the main features of the management of organizational culture is to comprehend and effectively deal with the perceived connection involving knowledge, learning and power in organizations. It notes that while some writers are disproving of the learning perception in research on organizations, they also obscure issues of politics and power in organizations and do not focus on the more important question of whose interests are being provided. To spread democracy and liberation and create a democratic utopia in the learning organization requires more focus on the issue of power in the concepts of the learning organization and KM. Originality/value – This paper will bring together research which links learning, knowledge and power. It also builds on the literature in learning and KM and offers essential information to human resource practitioners.

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Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to focus on training in support of leadership development at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, main and branch libraries. Design/methodology/approach -The paper is based on an interview with a campus librarian and desk research. Findings -Like any other institution in the world, the Mona Library has challenges. Shirking budgetary allocations, recruiting, and retaining competent staff and providing efficient service for its ever demanding clientele, it must find creative ways to face and solve these challenges. Originality/value -The paper discusses training strategies of a university library.

This paper describes the experience of mentoring at a graduate level and the broader benefits of the relationship to the participants. Interpretation of the experience was achieved through conducting semi-structured interviews, generating patterns and then discusssing and analysing the findings from the experience. Five MPhil/PhD students and two supervisors participated in the study. Seven semi-structured interviews were used to explore the experiences of participants—two of whom were supervisors, while five were graduate students. The data were analyzed by identifying themes. The two main themes that emerged out of the analysis were: attributes of mentoring relationships and outcome of mentoring relationships. The mentees described the relationship as supportive in their academic pursuits and their personal lives. Mentors and mentees also recognised that the relationship was fulfilling and favourable but acknowledged that although there were challenges, they did not negatively affect the outcome of the relationship.

The purpose of this paper is to provide guidance or template to libraries and also other different types of institutions as to how they can complete, update or write their disaster and emergency manuals to include a section which specifically addresses roles, duties and responsibilities (RDRs). This research shares valuable information as writing RDRs can be challenging and time consuming. The findings indicate that most disaster and emergency manuals are incomplete if RDRs are not included and this was evident from the vast number of documents and literature reviewed. Success in any attempt to have a complete disaster and emergency management process would require a section that focuses specifically on RDRs as this allows for better preparedness, training and continuity planning. This paper provides practical guidance as it is relevant when completing, updating or writing disaster and emergency manuals irrespective of the type of institution. This paper contains new/additional information from a number of sources into one about the RDRs for members of a disaster committee in varying institutions.