Is your business plagued by the paper monster? Here are some tell-tale symptoms:
- You have multiple cabinets full of files dating back to the stone age.
- Your “to file” box is filled to the brim. Filing all those paper documents takes too much time. So maybe you keep putting it off, making the “to file” box ever more intimidating.
- Paper documents are scattered throughout the office. Each person has their own filing system which may contain documents that others need to access.
- You have difficulty finding the document you need when you need it, causing frustration and in some case real panic.
If you experience some or all of these symptoms, then you might want to look into going paperless! Of course, no business will ever be completely without paper documents. There will always be paper documents you’ll want to keep for legal, compliance, or other reasons. The goal behind going paperless is to keep the amount of physical paper to an absolute minimum, whilst keeping the bulk of your business documents in electronic form that is secure yet easy to access.
Key to Success
I’m going to highlight the key factors for success. To learn more specifics, consider attending the Going Paperless workshop at the ICEHOUSE. Also, feel free to contact me for more information.
Reduce the volume of incoming paper. Eliminate as many paper statements and invoices as possible. A growing number of banks and vendors offer the option of receiving their statements and invoices electronically. Do it.
Plan the workflow. Think about how you’re going to manage all those electronic documents. It helps to think of it as a process – a workflow. Creating a simple flowchart might actually be quite useful, not only to help you think things through, but also to communicate the process to others. The key is to keep the workflow as simple as possible. Questions to consider include:
- What are the various paper inputs?
- How are you going to convert paper documents to electronic?
- How are you going to organise your electronic documents?
- Where are you going to store them? Is it secure?
- How are you going to find an electronic document quickly and easily?
- How are you going to back up your electronic documents.
Sounds complicated. But if you go about it right, it’ll actually reduce your workload.
Go with PDF. The de facto standard for electronic documents is PDF, short for Portable Document Format. You’ll want to scan your paper documents into this format. Be sure you convert them into searchable PDFs that can be indexed. This makes document retrieval much, much easier.
Choose the right tools. This goes hand in hand with planning the workflow. Scanners come in many forms: office printer/scanners, desktop scanners, even mobile apps for smart phones and tablets. Software is another important consideration. There are some great software tools for scanning, filing and retrieving that don’t cost a fortune. Some even offer automatic indexing and filing – a great time saver.
Back it up. Storing your digital documents in a secure online file service gives you the ability to access them whenever and wherever. Plus, you don’t have to worry about a fire or earthquake destroying all that valuable information. That said, it’s always a good idea to have a secondary backup for your electronic documents. A reputable online backup service is your best bet.
Case Study
Taming the paper monster is not as hard as it sounds. Learn how an Auckland accounting firm made the journey to becoming a paperless office:
http://generateaccounting.co.nz/the-paperless-office-a-case-study
For More Information
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