1 Majid, S., Chang, Y.K., Foo, S., Mokhtar, I. A., Theng, Y.L., & Zhang, X. (2013). Strengthening information literacy competencies through incorporating personal information management skill. In S. Kurbanoglu et al. (Eds). Proceedings of the European Conference on Information Literacy, ECIL 2013, Communications in Computer and Information Science, Springer International Publishing, Switzerland, (397), 331-337. Strengthening Information Literacy Competencies through Incorporating Personal Information Management Skills Shaheen Majid 1 , Yun-Ke Chang 1 , Schubert Foo 1 , Intan Azura Mokhtar 2 , Yin-Leng Theng 1 & Xue Zhang 3 1 Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Email: asmajid@ntu.edu.sg 2 National Institute of Education Singapore, Email: intanazura.mokhtar@nie.edu.sg 3 Nanyang Technological University Singapore, Email: ZH0002UE@e.ntu.edu.sg Abstract: Information Literacy (IL) and Personal Information Management (PIM) are two closely related and overlapping concepts. However, most of the existing IL models and standards do not put adequate emphasis on relevant PIM skills. This paper provides an overview of different PIM techniques and discusses their relationship with IL competencies. Proper integration of PIM techniques and tools into IL skills is likely to further strengthen competency level of an information literate person, resulting in saving time, effort and resources. This integration can also help overcome the problems of information overload and information fragmentation. This paper argues that information literacy training programs need to expand their scope by incorporating appropriate PIM skills to provide a more comprehensive skill set to their information users. Keywords: Information Literacy, Personal Information Management, Information Overload, Information Fragmentation, IL Training 1 Introduction Various information literacy (IL) models and standards have been developed by different agencies to provide a comprehensive framework for IL education. Although many of these standards are highly similar with overlapping scope and coverage, they provide certain unique perspectives and interpretations of IL activities. A review of existing IL standards indicates a gap or inadequate emphasis on the management of gathered information. For example, the Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education developed by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) covers skills related to students’ ability to identify their information needs, access, evaluate, synthesize, and ethical use of the gathered information [1]. Although it mentions a skill to ‘incorporate selected information into one’s knowledge base’, its actual emphasis is on information summarization, synthesis, and repackaging. Similarly, in the Seven Pillars of Information Skills, proposed by the UK Standing Committee for National and Universities Libraries (SCONUL), one of the pillars is on ‘manage’ information [2]. Once again, this pillar does not actually cover the proper management of the collected information rather its emphasis is on the ethical use of information, use of bibliographic tools, and social responsibility to help others with the needed information. The emergence and popularity of electronic information sources has empowered information users to easily identify, select, retrieve and download information from multiple sources. However, in the absence of appropriate skills, the management of retrieved documents can become a nightmare for these users. That is why, in addition to standard IL skills, an information literate individual should be in a position to effectively undertake certain PIM related activities. It is because ‘information literacy’ and ‘personal information management’ are two closely related and overlapping concepts and in the absence of one the other cannot achieve its full benefits.