Mission impossible? The future of “paperless” library operations

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss the current state of the “paperless office” and explore how likely it is that libraries will be administered by librarians in paperless offices in the near future.Design/methodology/approachThis paper surveys the literature on forecasts for the paperless office to determine whether library operations and offices could be as paperless as some of their collections might be in the near future.FindingsThe paperless office was once seen as inevitable, but is looking less far less likely given how we access and organize documents, how we read and understand information, and how we analyze what we read online and in print. Nonetheless, certain routine library operations would lend themselves almost immediately to paperless storage and retrieval processes and systems.Research limitations/implicationsMore research is required on records management systems in libraries with a view to establishing largely paperless operations in the future. Implications for future research involve the establishment of processes and the testing of systems which would most easily lend themselves to standard library operations.Practical implicationsRecent research on reading and cognitive function indicates that there are certain practical implications involved in doing away with paper entirely. Nonetheless, certain routine library functions could be made paperless operations once practical considerations such as the choice of systems, establishment of work flow, policies and processes have been realized.Originality/valueThe paper makes the case for more research and exploration of the viability of paperless or near‐paperless library operations.