Do you feel overwhelmed by the amount of paper that is used in your office on a daily basis? You may believe you’ll never be done with paper and that being paperless for your business isn’t necessary.
But it’s 2017, and going paperless isn’t such a huge deal. Many apps and gadgets make the transition simple and if you put a tiny bit of effort into it, you’ll be able to enjoy all the advantages of a paperless company.
EVALUATE YOUR CURRENT SITUATION
First things first, perform a comprehensive assessment of the paper that comes and goes through your office and perform adjustments. In every office, there is a huge amount of unnecessary paper that just lies around. You can:
- Get off any unnecessary mailing lists
- Pay your bills electronically
- Reuse any paper and recycle what you can’t use
Getting rid of a single piece of paper may not seem crucial, however, every little step in the right direction matters.
To make any real progress, you must be hardnosed. It might seem truly necessary to hold onto that bill or a note, but that’s not true.
There is an easy rule to guide you when you’re throwing stuff away: when in doubt, throw it out.
A GOOD SCANNER IS YOUR BEST FRIEND
Once you’ve organized everything, you will have to put all the relevant leftover papers into electronic version, meaning you’ll need a good scanner. Today’s scanners aren’t pricey and they don’t take up much room. There are scanners which come with planning apps and digital filing cabinets.
Another critical step is to digitalize your signature. If you are operating any type of business, many times you have to sign numerous documents and papers that come through your office.
Sign your signature clearly and scan it. You’ll have a digital version of your signature so you don’t have to print things out and sign them.
MAKE THE BEST OF AVAILABLE APPS
You will have to consider how to handle your documentation. Cloud document management platforms let you share documents with other staff members, give your approval, set up reminders, and much more.
If you opt for a cloud-based solution, you’ll be able to access all your files from any device (with internet access) whether you’re at the office or not.
Don’t be scared to use more than one app. Good use of available technology will have you more advanced than just managing your documents.
Apps let you:
- Be creative and stay on course
- Collaborate simpler and with less paper
- Plan and organize
- Network
- Manage e-mails
MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A SOLID BACKUP
The good thing about paper is that it was tangible. Even if you lost a file, you were most likely able to find it with a comprehensive search.
Regrettably, this doesn’t happen with electronic documentation. If your hard drive dies, it dies. Therefore, make sure that everything that is crucial is backed up.
This also means you should ask your cloud service provider how protected your data is and what is their recovery policy if something goes amiss. Moreover, ask if recovery is included in the cost.
DIGITAL NOTEPADS
You and your team won’t be able to write down notes by hand. No more bringing paper and pens to meetings. Instead, you can use tablets and notebooks.
If buying tablets for each staff member is too expensive for you, appoint an individual in all meetings to take notes and distribute them to every staff member.
GOING PAPERLESS IS A TEAM EFFORT
One thing that should be stated is that going paperless is not only about using apps and getting the necessary gadgets. It is about altering the work culture and a solid team effort. Everyone in the team will have to make changes.
Contact RedWave Technology Group, LLC to learn how we can help your business make the transition to a paper free environment.