Use of collaborative tools for knowledge sharing among librarians in selected universities in Nigeria

Sharing of knowledge among workers is of great essence and requires avenues of making it possible in the midst of poor infrastructure, low motivation, lower budget constraints and data security. This study looked at use of collaborative tools for knowledge sharing among librarians in selected universities in Nigeria. Descriptive survey research design was used. Population of 169 librarians from the universities was used. Self-structured questionnaire was the instrument used for data collection in the study. Sample size was 118 determined by Krejcie and Morgan (1970), while data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Findings of the study revealed that collaborative tools aid knowledge capture and provide variety of alternatives to users. The result showed also that Microsoft One Drive, Google Drive, Microsoft Teams, Google Workspace, Google doc, Asana, and Trello are among the collaborative tools available for use. In addition, the study revealed that for dividends, library staff use collaborative tools to increase their knowledge retention, improve efficiency, enhance teamwork and communication as well as reduce cost and improve productivity. The study showed that budget constraints, poor infrastructure, low motivation, data security and resistance to change by staff are some challenges which confront collaborative tools use. The study recommend that library staff should embrace collaborative tools for efficiency and productivity through seminars and upgrades in learning and university management to accommodate purchase of needed collaborative tools in their budget for quality delivery.