A task performed by Librarians and Media Collections Specialists
Review and evaluate materials, using book reviews, catalogs, faculty recommendations, and current holdings to select and order print, audio-visual, and electronic resources.
Technically, much of it, experts rate AI capability 4/5, but workers don't want it automated (desire 2.63/5). It's an Automation Red Light: proceed with care.
Do you want this task automated?
How much the people who do this task want AI to take it over (avg of 8 workers).
How capable experts rate current AI at this task (avg of 2 experts).
How much human involvement should stay?
The Human Agency Scale (H1–H5) captures how much human direction workers think this task should keep.
Why workers feel the way they do
- It's repetitive50%
- Frees up time for higher-value work38%
- Helps handle larger scale38%
- It's stressful13%
How to automate this
Doable with technology, but keep a person clearly in charge.
Judgment, review & checks
Automate the checks, keep the decision with a person.
- 1Write down the rules and checklists you follow to review and evaluate materials, using book reviews, catalogs, faculty recommendations, and current holdings, then encode them so routine cases are flagged automatically.
- 2Add validation rules to catch errors before they reach you.
- 3Let AI pre-screen and surface the exceptions, you decide the hard ones.
Tools that can help
Know a better way, or spot an error?
Share how you automate this in real life, or correct the data. Reviewed before publishing.
This is 1 of 9 tasks studied for Librarians and Media Collections Specialists, where workers want 33% of tasks automated.
More Librarians and Media Collections Specialists tasks
- Respond to customer complaints, taking action as necessary.Green Light
- Arrange for interlibrary loans of materials not available in a particular library.Green Light
- Develop, maintain, and troubleshoot information access aids, such as databases, annotated bibliographies, Web…Green Light
- Keep up-to-date records of circulation and materials, maintain inventory, and correct cataloging errors.Low Priority
- Search standard reference materials, including online sources and the Internet, to answer patrons' reference…Red Light
- Compile lists of books, periodicals, articles, and audio-visual materials on particular subjects.Low Priority
Other Red Light tasks
- Perform systems analysis and programming tasks to maintain and control the use of computer systems software a…Computer Programmers
- Access computerized financial information to answer general questions as well as those related to specific ac…Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks
- Modify computer security files to incorporate new software, correct errors, or change individual access statu…Information Security Analysts
- Explain products or services and prices, and answer questions from customers.Telemarketers
- Analyze clinical or survey data, using statistical approaches such as longitudinal analysis, mixed-effect mod…Biostatisticians
- Develop or implement procedures for ongoing Web site revision.Web Developers