| The paperless office has been talked about for a long | | | | sometimes inadequate and localised. The resistance |
| time, yet never seems to even start to become a | | | | towards introducing and operating a paperless |
| reality in almost any sector of business. Look around | | | | document storage and retrieval system is often down |
| any office environment and you would be forgiven for | | | | to a simple lack of coordination within the business |
| thinking that the opposite of the paperless office is | | | | itself, coupled with a lack of responsibility - is it the |
| evolving, with ever increasing stacks of printed reports | | | | overburdened IT manager's job, the office manager's |
| and greater need for filing and document storage than | | | | job, the director responsible for admin's job, or the 'Mr |
| ever before. Most companies, and their individual | | | | Nobody' who gets lumbered with those tasks no one |
| employees, still hold the opinion that copies of | | | | else has time or incentive to undertake? Yet a great |
| documents still need to be retained 'on file' to see and | | | | deal of wasted time and money continues to drain |
| read and a continued mind-set of mistrust of digital | | | | from the business resources while this task remains |
| storage prevails. This is assisted by many government | | | | unaddressed. |
| departments inflicting legal requirements for specific | | | | A straightforward approach to addressing the |
| accounting and administrative documents being | | | | introduction of a paperless office can have the whole |
| retained and available for inspection for periods of up | | | | process introduced in little time with comparatively |
| to six years beyond their production. | | | | small set up costs, quickly recouped by the savings |
| All of this document production and storage is | | | | generated from reduced paper consumption, reduced |
| occurring in a time when almost everything we | | | | storage space and wasted employee time. In terms of |
| generate comes from a digital system, eg. word | | | | personnel, one person should be appointed the task of |
| processing, accounting systems, digital copiers, etc. - | | | | overseeing the implementation of the system and |
| and most of these documents are already stored in | | | | ensuring that the (probably existing) equipment facilities |
| digital file format on the system that created them | | | | are correctly networked together into the central |
| originally (Word files, spreadsheets, photographs, | | | | business computer network. A reliable and efficient |
| accounting systems, etc). Yet there is still a great | | | | document storage and retrieval software system |
| reluctance to take the final step and commit these | | | | should be sourced and installed onto the business's |
| paper files into a concise digital filing system and | | | | network and set up ready for use by everyone who |
| reduce the amount of environmentally damaging paper | | | | handles documents as a part of their daily routine. |
| consumed, as well as reducing the expense | | | | Having created this hardware and software |
| committed to vast amounts of wasted space given | | | | environment, the task of transferring/installing existing |
| over to document storage. Much of the resistance to | | | | files and documents (historical documents already |
| change stems from old and somewhat flawed | | | | stored elsewhere) should be undertaken prior to the |
| technology being made available before it's limitations | | | | central document filing and retrieval system becoming |
| were determined. Those who tried digital document | | | | 'live' (although this could be done retrospectively over a |
| storage in its infancy had poor experiences, with | | | | period of time if necessary). The final stage is to roll |
| Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and poor | | | | out the system to all employees from a predetermined |
| scanning facilities producing less than accurate results | | | | date, allowing for any training/instruction being |
| in the stored documents; bad characters, poor | | | | implemented beforehand. |
| formatting, etc. The previously poor experiences, | | | | The software for digital document storage and |
| coupled with localised, instead of centralised, file | | | | retrieval is the key to it's success. Scanning, Archive |
| access has created a resistance to change that still | | | | and Retrieval systems have been viewed by some |
| prevails today. | | | | businesses as a 'dark art' or at least with some doubt |
| Try the exercise of breaking down the requirements | | | | and suspicion in the past, where poor experiences of |
| for a digital, therefore paperless, document storage | | | | older and less stable systems have caused problems |
| and management system. The majority of businesses | | | | with document retrieval. By combining the facilities of |
| will store correspondence, reports and other items | | | | the office digital copier/printer/scanner systems (often |
| produced on a computer-based word/presentation | | | | referred to as Business Hubs due to their networking |
| numeric software program, accounting and auditing | | | | capabilities), with the networked computer system a |
| documents produced by a computer-based system, | | | | good quality software digital document and retrieval |
| email and fax documents transmitted on most | | | | program will allow you to store and find that illusive |
| occasions via a computer or digital software - and all | | | | "needle in a haystack". A quality system will |
| of these have one thing in common: they are already | | | | incorporate fast scanning speeds, excellent search and |
| stored in digital format on the system that was used | | | | OCR (Optical Character Recognition) tolerance, |
| to create them. Additionally, photographs are either | | | | automatic document indexing, fast search and retrieval |
| transferred from a digital camera/phone/download | | | | facility with efficient and easy to use Boolean search |
| email attachment or scanned (with very good results) | | | | commands (Google style searching). One such system |
| into a digital format onto the company's computer | | | | is PowerRetrieve, available through Business By |
| network, so these too are already stored in a digital | | | | Technology Ltd., UK, along with fully trained and |
| format. Other documentation, generally received from | | | | experienced consultants and IT advisors. |
| external sources (customers, suppliers, etc.), will not | | | | Three definable supplier areas are clear for the |
| have an existing digital file format in your business's | | | | introduction of a paperless office environment: the |
| computer - these can be scanned into the system and | | | | networked computer system, the digital office copiers |
| digitally stored with great accuracy using the advanced | | | | printers/scanners, and the document storage and |
| software that is now available, and retrieved with | | | | retrieval software. Each of these areas have their |
| accuracy when needed for further reference. So | | | | own specialist advisors who can be called upon for |
| almost 100% of the documentation that your business | | | | advice and assistance, but some supplier companies, |
| uses every day can be stored in a digital document | | | | primarily from the office copier/printer sector, now |
| storage and retrieval system; eliminating the need for | | | | have specialist trained IT advisors who can coordinate |
| stacks and files of papers; cutting the need for | | | | the introduction of a paperless office system from |
| expensive storage space; reducing wasted employee | | | | inception to completion. A specialist IT advisor from |
| time searching for those elusive mis-filed documents. | | | | one of these companies is of great assistance when |
| So why are businesses resisting the paperless office? | | | | working alongside the internal person charged with |
| In addition to any previous poor experiences with early | | | | responsibility for introducing the paperless office |
| technology, the primary reason seems to be a lack of | | | | system, from the early planning stages through to final |
| coordinated facilities. Most companies have a | | | | implementation. The paperless office is within the grasp |
| networked computer system, many have digital copier | | | | of every business, however large or small, it can |
| and printer systems and most have scanning facilities. | | | | create a more efficient working environment and |
| However, the file storage systems are fragmented | | | | immediately recognisable cost savings from |
| and often personalised, the copier/printer facilities are | | | | implementation. |
| not correctly networked and scanning facilities are | | | | |
