Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Winter 2015
Department
Libraries
Abstract
In the 21st century, the idea of utilizing technology to increase efficiency is nothing new. However, many librarians and archivists lack specialized training in computer programming, file management, and other advanced technological skills. Instead, our professional training focused on more traditional aspects of librarianship like the reference interview, collection development, and subject analysis. Although these remain important components of serving our users, learning new ways to streamline workflows can free up time we spend on automatable tasks and allow us more time to concentrate on specialized aspects of our work that only we as trained archivists and librarians can accomplish. Regardless of institutional resources, simple techniques can make a significant impact on processes and productivity. This article provides examples of how archivists successfully integrated automation techniques into their collection management workflows and illustrates the impact these techniques can have regardless of institutional resources.
Original Publication Information
This article was originally published in Kentucky Libraries, volume 79, number 1, Winter 2015.
ThinkIR Citation
Fox, Heather and Dorpinghaus, Sarah, "Time is on my side : harnessing the power of automation for efficient archival workflows." (2015). Faculty Scholarship. 14.
https://ir.library.louisville.edu/faculty/14
