The paperless office, promised since the first desktop computers started appearing, has yet to become a reality for most companies. Despite the predominant use of computers, a good portion of most day-to-day work is still paper-based. Many employees still want to print documents for careful study or to bring to meetings, a practice that works against a truly paperless office. For now, the perfect paperless office system remains an elusive goal.
Despite these challenges, you can drastically reduce the amount of paper documents your business depends on by choosing a document management system. The term "document management" (DM) covers a range of systems for managing paper and electronic files. When working toward a paperless office, a more specific term is document imaging systems. These solutions include tools to help you convert paper records into electronic files.
One of the biggest benefits of getting rid of your paper files is the cost savings. A system that lets employees find and work with documents without ever leaving their desks can instantly slash costs while freeing them to invest time in business development, innovation, expansion, or customer service.
Document management provides additional cost savings by eliminating paper records. Converting records rooms into usable office space allows you to make much better use of expensive real estate. You may even be able to eliminate warehousing costs entirely.
Plus, with certain industry regulations, some companies have been forced to adopt document management by laws that govern the safekeeping of data. These include the financial industry and HIPAA in the medical field, among others. In these instances, document management systems are the best way to initiate an automatic audit trail, ensuring compliance with these strict security and record-keeping rules.
A few other benefits include:
· Increased security
· Central document repository, collating data from all business processes
· Greater ability to cost-effectively handle organizational growth
· Better disaster recovery protection · Environmental responsibility and associated cost savings
· Remote access for your important documents
Implementing paperless software doesn't mean your old paper records become irrelevant. By converting your paper documents to digital files and embedding them with keywords, you and your employees dramatically increase the scope of your business knowledge by simplifying search and retrieval. This ability allows you to factor past performance into real-time reporting and provide customer service in a fraction of the time and expense.
When dealing with older documents, only scan existing paper records if they're used. This approach lets you get started much more quickly. And you can always scan older files in the future if you decide you need to.
For some businesses, access to all their paper files is essential. Give Tri-Copy a call today to help with all your document management needs. We are here to help you determine what the best solutions are for you and your business.
