Document Management

When a company wants to go paperless and begins to scan the contents of their filing cabinets into a document management system many are surprised to find many files previously thought to be lost.

When it comes to document storage, filing cabinets are simple things with no brain. We’re provided a drawer and a key and the rest of the work is left up to us. There’s no advice on where to put documents, we’re not told exactly where certain documents can be found, documents aren’t automatically routed to the right people in workflow, and our key certainly can’t be taken away to stop our access to the files.

Filing cabinets have gained the reputation as the office “Bermuda Triangle” of lost documents. Over the years multiple people in the office file, misplace and not return documents to the filing cabinets. As people organize to their own standards and methods, documents are inevitably filed in the wrong places and the next time a file is needed, it can’t be found.

ARMA—the national association of Records Managers and the independent authority on Records Information Management (RIM) has made public their Generally Accepted Recordkeeping Principles (GARP). As ARMA says in their preamble, “As a key resource in the operation of any organization, records must be created, organized, secured, maintained, and used in a way that effectively supports the activity of that organization.”

Are you interested in going paperless? Do you want to see how document efficiency can help your office go green? If your business is interested in the concepts behind records management, or is looking to implement document management software, this website is a great way to start obtaining information.

Are You Asking Yourself…

• How much am I really spending on desktop, workgroup, internal production print, and outside print services?
• How do our total document expenses compare to those of our key competitors?
• What factors contribute to these costs?
• How much money can we save and how?
• How much of an investment in time and money is needed to assess my document costs?
• Does this require a detailed on-site audit?

Challenges

• Getting to the true cost of documents across your organization
• Cost reductions
• Determining peer performance & benchmarking
• Developing an enterprise document strategy
• Increasing efficiency & optimization

Introduction & Objectives
The proliferation of output devices such as printers, copiers, fax machines, and scanners has significantly contributed to the dramatic increase in document output volume and cost over the years. While the majority of today’s organizations acknowledge the potential savings from better document management, many still lack the understanding and expertise to address the problem. Third-party providers including office equipment manufacturers, document outsourcing firms, and independent service providers are offering assessment services that focus on identifying costs and inefficiencies around document output.

Document and content management involves the transformation of paper files into a digital format. A document management system can cover areas such as security, disaster recovery, collaboration, and printer management.

If an organization develops and maintains its content and documents effectively, the information that is in your system can save your company time and money. If not handled properly, however, content and documents can decrease your company’s productivity.

The migration from paper to pixels has changed more than a few companies. The task can involve major changes to workflow and transform your company into the best it can be. Digging through old documents and records can be a long and exhausting process. With a document management system, all of these troubles can be taken care of and your business can become much more organized.

The average office worker spends up to half of their workday searching for simple information! No wonder it’s hard to increase production. A digital document storage system will not only increase worker productivity, but also reduce company costs.

Lost documents create ripples of inefficiency throughout any organization. Although small and medium sized organizations are often hit harder than large corporations, the effect is devastating across the board. In paper-based environments, digital document storage is a great alternative. These systems provide an easy-to-use, secure document storage alternative to ultimately boost productivity and reduce operating expenses.

In 1975 a Business Week article discussed how the personal computer revolution would ultimately lead to a paperless office.  In 2009, thirty-four years later, the information contained in paper form has changed, but businesses are increasingly inundated with paper records.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reports:

· The average office worker goes through 10,000 sheets of copy paper a year.

· Each employee in a typical business office generates 1.5 lbs of waste paper per day.

· Reducing paper production by a ton saves the equivalent of 4,100 kWh of energy and 7,000 gallons of water.

Every aspect of the paper storage process adversely impacts a business’ budget and the environment as a whole.  These financial drawbacks of paper storage include the purchase of paper, personnel resources spent filing and finding documents, increase of square footage for physical file storage and recovery from flood or fire damage.

I was recently browsing the internet when I came across a website claiming it could tell me exactly how much my life was worth as a human being.  Intrigued, I filled out a survey that asked questions about my physical, mental, lifestyle and personality factors.  Once completed it broke down every aspect of my answers and gave me an exact number of my life’s worth—$2,327,896 to be exact. 

I began wondering, if there is a method to determine something as intangible as the price of a human life, certainly any other object could be also be weighed and measured.  Businesses everywhere know the value of a document, but how much is it really worth?  While the question remains of why researchers would find interest in determining the life worth of a piece of paper, I did find an answer.  Research has shown that over a document’s lifetime the cost of handling, storing and shipping a single paper document can easily reach up to $30.

First, there is the cost of the paper itself, just a few cents to begin with, but we’re only getting started.  Then there is the cost of storage.  This can include anything from file folders, file cabinets and storage boxes to the extra office storage space you have to rent.

Any business whether it’s healthcare facilities, legal firms, financial services or educational institutions, has to deal with an inordinate amount of documents.  When digging through a dusty file cabinet for a case study or client information, at the back of any file clerk or assistant’s mind is the question “Isn’t there a better way?”

Anyone who deals with paper on a regular basis has dreamed of having their paper information on their computer.  Now that the price of hardware space has decreased, the possibility of integrating an electronic document management system is more appealing than ever. 

Some people may ask why most businesses are beginning to implement an electronic document management system when hard copy documents have driven businesses for years? 

These electronic systems provide searchable access to scanned information, create a disaster recovery plan and ensure government regulatory compliance.  All these things enable better business decisions and smoother customer service interactions. 

Many businesses are under the incorrect assumption that paper documents are somehow free.  The fact is that the cost of managing paper documents may be more expensive than digital management alternatives.

The Cost of Paper Filing

Consider an average three-drawer filing cabinet.  You have the cost of the actual cabinet, the cost of the folders, the cost of the paper prints and copies, and the cost of renting a space to keep the cabinet.  Then you have to take in consideration the time it takes to copy, categorize and file documents in paper folders.  Every time you need information you’ll have to physically search for the documents that could easily have been misfiled or misplaced.

Scan to email is one of the most convenient forms of scanning today and can provide the greatest efficiency improvement in any organization.  Your customers are progressively expecting to receive documentation via email. You can effectively meet this critical business requirement through the use of devices like multifunction systems (MFPs).

MFPs feature high speed scanning that allows documents to be converted to common digital formats like PDF, .jpeg or .tiff formats.  These files can be sent to email addresses  or directed to a network folder.