Mode of information processing

In recent times, many organizations in Nigeria have been awakened with the enormous drive to go paperless, however the conversion to an absolute paperless environment has been an illusion in Nigeria as many individuals lack confidence in such systems. This paper examines the mode of processing information by 309 staffs and students of the University of Benin, verifies the level of difficulties encountered by the use of paperless or manual mode of processing information and compare the feasible time difference derived from adopting a paperless office environment with a traditional paper-based environment while carrying out office job functions that relates to paper activities, with the believe that this time reserves can be effectively utilized in other operation processes associated with the services provided. Results showed that despite the time gain in using automated systems as against using hard copy manuals for processing information, 71% of the respondents still use hard copy manuals solely for information processing partly because of the cost of using automated systems, a cause for concern for 43% of the respondents. These findings have partially disclosed why the conversion to an absolute paperless environment in Nigeria has been an illusion.