Incredibly, companies are still storing important documents in cardboard boxes…

Organisations are constantly faced with unprecedented volume and velocity of information. They however continue to depend on inefficient paper-based and manual processes to manage documents and data. With a never-ending onslaught of data and information, keeping track of ever-increasing documents can quickly become overwhelming. It has become increasingly more important for companies to execute processes nimbly and on demand and this can be achieved through digitising of a company’s very important resource: its paper records.

Documents, records, and reports are vital to the daily operation and financial survival of every business. It is very important to safeguard them from theft, fire, severe weather, sprinkler damage, mould and mildew or any other type of hazard that might occur in the workplace. Protecting business records ensures the information they contain is available anytime it is needed and also speeds up recovery from an unplanned disruption. This can be achieved through the digitisation and indexing of sensitive and important paper.

In the digital age in which we currently operate, paper is indeed a temporary medium for information. Large quantities of paper are expensive to maintain, difficult to store and fraught with risk from deterioration, loss and other hazards. Globally, companies are digitising their documents as a savvy decision to reduce costs, improve security and to protect the environment.

From invoices to contracts, paper and digital documents enter an organisation and has to be routed somewhere once they do. Unfortunately, for an organisation dependent on manual processes, getting documents from various points is difficult. Bottlenecks arise and the whole process becomes time-consuming. Once the document is finally stored in a repository, retrieving same also takes far longer than it should. Additionally, there is tremendous opportunity for error when you manually file, route, and store a paper document in a physical file cabinet or in large boxes. Once your paper is digitised, an electronic document management system makes it faster and easier to automate your processes and eliminate paper through each stage of the document-management life cycle.

Five very important reasons for companies to include digitisation as part of their Business Continuity Plan (BCP) in 2019:

1) Secure Document Storage

Scanning offers improved security for your sensitive documents. Scanned documents can be securely stored in an online document management system, with security access at a user or role level. These documents can be easily shared with users in multiple offices and locations, providing secure, flexible access. Along with secure access, digitalise documents can provide:

• a full electronic audit trail with a detailed user access history

• automatic back-ups

• the choice of on-premise storage, remote storage and/or cloud storage

2) Increases Office Space

Document scanning reduces the volume of paper to be filed, thus eliminating the need for filing cabinets. This allows companies to recapture floor space for growth and reduce clutter.

3) Improves Customer Service and Operational Efficiency

Searching paper documents is time-consuming. It takes about 18 minutes on average to search for a paper document which can affect the response time to your customer. Digital documents can be found quickly and easily using a simple keyword search. Specialised Software can apply structures that match your industry and can be customised to meet your company’s specific needs, making document location more efficient.

4) Protection of the Environment

Scanning documents can help any organisations in its move to become more environmentally friendly. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the average office worker goes through 10,000 sheets of paper per year. Reducing paper use from one office would provide an environmental benefit equivalent to a 0.75-acre pine forest absorbing carbon for a year. The use of less paper and toner are not only good for the environment but also reduces business costs.

5) Reduces Costs

Storing and maintaining records is an expensive business: For example, a four-drawer cabinet takes up 9 square feet of office space and costs your company approximately US$1,500 per year to maintain (cost per sq ft, employee time spent maintaining files, etc). A company with 10 four-drawer file cabinets will spend US$15,000 per year to store and maintain those files. There are also costs for misfiled and lost documents and even greater cost to re-create the lost document.

It is very important that companies in Jamaica and within the region take seriously the need to improve their operational efficiency by managing and protecting their very important resource: their information! Companies remain extremely vulnerable by having large boxes of paper stored in non-fire-proof warehouses and in filing cabinets without any electronic back-up.