To go paperless, businesses need high-quality document scanners, powerful scanning software, and a set of best practices

In the digital age, businesses that go paperless have many advantages over their analog competitors. Paper documents take up space and cost money to print. They’re easy to lose and hard to share. If you damage a piece of paper, the information on it may be gone forever.

Digital documents are another story. Files on a cloud server don’t take up any office space, and your staff can access them from anywhere. These files don’t get lost easily, and employees can share them instantly. Between access restrictions, password protection, and encryption, digital documents also tend to be more secure than physical ones.

Going paperless can help your business thrive, but you’ll need the right hardware and a set of best practices to make the process as smooth as possible. This guide covers how to go paperless and all the benefits you can expect along the way.

What does it mean to go paperless?

In a business setting, going paperless means replacing paper documents with digital files whenever possible. A fully paperless workflow uses no printed materials, keeping the process entirely digital. You can still jot notes and do other small, temporary tasks with paper. However, in a paperless workplace, digital is the rule and paper is the exception.

Depending on what your business does, this might mean:

• Communicating by email, chat apps, or text rather than traditional postage
• Keeping records in a digital database rather than a filing cabinet
• Asking clients to fill out online forms rather than physical paperwork
• Referencing documents on laptops or tablets rather than printing them out
• Digitizing older information by scanning and uploading it

Benefits of going paperless

Paperless offices can help businesses run more efficiently. Creating, storing, and sharing digital documents is much faster than relying on paper-based processes. More reasons to go paperless include:

1. Improved efficiency: Creating, storing, and destroying paper documents requires time and resources, from printing paperwork to rummaging through filing cabinets. These processes are also prone to mistakes, such as misfiling or losing documents. Going paperless reduces retrieval times, enables teams to send and receive documents faster, and minimizes the potential for mistakes in sorting and filing.
2. Cost savings: In addition to staying stocked with enough reams of paper to keep operations humming, businesses must buy filing cabinets or other storage systems, provide room for storage, and ensure that workers understand storage and disposal processes. Shifting to a paperless system can lower costs for your business while reducing reliance on an expensive resource.
3. Enhanced collaboration: Paperless workplaces allow teams to transfer necessary information across the globe in an instant. Employees can request insight from key collaborators and get feedback in minutes rather than days. Supervisors can provide approval without the need to send critical documentation through physical mail systems, where they can get delayed or lost.
4. Streamlined workflows: With paperless work, offices can make data retrieval seamless. All the data workers need is at their fingertips. Taking in new data can be done with electronic forms. That data then moves instantly to a centralized database.
5. Reduced environmental impact: Offices are one of the most significant sources of paper generation and waste. While paper use has declined since the early 2000s, businesses are responsible for using nearly four million tons yearly. By switching to a paperless office, businesses can contribute to the overall decline of paper use and reduce their environmental impact.
6. Increased data security: Instead of physical safeguards for rooms full of filing cabinets, businesses can protect records with folder permissions, audit logs, and encryption protocols. Digital files are generally easier to track and harder to lose than physical ones.
7. Robust archiving: Archiving on-site cuts into valuable square footage. Archiving offsite makes retrieval a pain. Digital archives ensure instant access and indefinite storage for records. That helps maintain compliance with security and regulatory standards.

Challenges of going paperless

While modern businesses have a variety of incentives to go paperless, the process won’t happen on its own. Transitioning to a paperless office requires the right tools and training:

• Digitizing existing records and workflows: Starting a digital workflow is relatively simple, but digitizing an existing library can seem impossible. Consider investing in a business scanner. These devices can potentially scan thousands of pages per day and use optical character recognition (OCR) to turn them into searchable text documents. You can also use electronic forms and services such as DocuSign to collect information from clients.
• Meeting security standards: Keeping physical records secure is straightforward, but locking down digital documents requires new procedures and technology. Every industry has its own rules around protecting data, and the Federal Trade Commission can provide a solid starting point for meeting those standards. Typical measures include password-protecting sensitive folders, encrypting data, and limiting employee access.
• Training employees: Workers will likely need help adjusting to their new workflows. Teach them how to use their new tools appropriately for potent downstream effects on efficiency and data security.

How to go paperless

Going paperless can help you operate more efficiently. There are many tools your business can take advantage of to undergo a digital transformation and keep things running smoothly:

1. Map digital solutions to paper workflows: Examine your document management plan for paper entry points. Apply digital solutions wherever possible. Scan necessary papers immediately. Store or destroy physical copies. Use downtime to scan portions of your paper backlog. Create new document lifecycle maps. Use templates and document automation in your document management system (DMS) to ensure they're followed.
2. Incorporate digital document sharing: Cloud storage and a DMS make file sharing easy and instantaneous. That accelerates collaboration and productivity within the organization. So does simultaneous editing. Sharing functions can also extend to partners and clients. That speeds up other aspects of the business. It can even convince your stakeholders to go paperless themselves.
3. Maintain digital organization: When designing your organizational plan, use an intuitive structure. Consider starting at higher-level projects and nesting folders of increasing specificity. Use tags and metadata such as date of creation, associated project, client names, and more to index your files and power search. To keep data safe, limit user permissions and implement data encryption. Finally, train employees on the system.

What do you need for a paperless workplace?

If you want to build a paperless business, you'll need the right tools for the job. That means ways to convert physical paper to digital files and the technology to handle digital files, including storage, editing, and archiving. These solutions must restrict access to only the employees who need it in order to keep data secure.

1. Business document scanner:Your business likely takes in a large volume of physical paperwork. These documents need to make their way into digital storage. A dedicated document scanner serves as your first line of defense against incoming papers. If you receive a lot of physical documents each day, you may need a high-volume scanner.
2. Powerful scanning software: Scanning software should index and tag documents to make them searchable. It should also convert digital image files to editable text documents so they are easier to find and use. A good scanning program should not require printing and re-scanning documents at any point.
3. Cloud storage: As digital documents grow in number, so does the storage capacity required to house them. Cloud storage provides a spacious, flexible, affordable, and secure alternative. Services such as Google Drive and Dropbox can securely store large quantities of documents online.
4. Automation tools: When documents must move through several stages (writing, editing, revision, approval, and so on), each presents a chance for inefficiency. A workflow automation platform can expedite the process. Project templates can automatically cascade due dates. Collaborators can receive instant notification when prior tasks are complete. These tools and more can shrink project timelines.
5. Online forms: Paper forms work well for gathering info from customers, clients, or patients, but transposing physical paper into a digital workflow creates unnecessary drag. Instead, consider using digital forms. Many digital form software solutions use no-code, drag-and-drop controls. These make it easy to create dynamic forms that can take in more than text.
6. E-signature tools: Signatures are a critical indication of acknowledgment and consent. By using a digital substitute, your business can more quickly gather signatures for contracts and other agreements. Some popular options include Adobe Acrobat Sign and DocuSign.

Which industries have gone paperless?

Paperless offices are no longer a futuristic idea. They’re how many business verticals are already conducting their work. Are you looking to catch up or even set yourself ahead of the curve? Here are some examples of industries helping to define paperless office strategies:

1. Finance: Documentation is required for compliant and reliable finance work. However, paperwork can slow down processes and add potential liabilities. Paperless solutions let CPAs and many other finance professionals work smarter. They also make onboarding new clients and employees easier.
2. Law: Moving files to digital systems helps smaller law offices compete with larger firms thanks to the potential savings and flexibility inherent in paperless offices. Finding the information you need to represent your client is much faster and easier in a fully digital system.
3. Manufacturing: Digital delivery tracking can save time on invoices. Factories with paperless accounting can send and receive payments faster. Paperless also allows manufacturers to make their processes better. Efficiency and automation are at the heart of modern manufacturing, and paperless supports that work.

How does going paperless help data validation?

Healthcare is another industry where going paperless can streamline workflows and protect sensitive data. As one specific example, government regulations require healthcare businesses to perform data validation. That means ensuring your equipment, software, and other parts of the workflow meet certain safety and consistency standards. With an analog approach, this process eats up worker productivity and company resources. The risk of human error is also present at every step and increases as the project scales.

Going paperless makes validation easier for medical organizations, thanks to:

• Instant collaboration: Validation requires sending the same documents and data back and forth between teams. Moving physical documents can take a lot of time. Digital documents can be created and shared instantaneously. They're also easily organized. With metadata, keywords, and tags, they're even searchable. That saves time.
• Automated reporting: Validating with paper requires finding the right data, recording it correctly, sharing it, and getting signatures of approval. Each step is a chance for human error. Automation allows you to pull relevant data without human input. It also lets you process documents through their lifecycle promptly.
• Audit preparedness: When auditors inspect your business, they expect you'll have the necessary materials available. With paper, that's not always a given. And if finding those materials takes too long, your business may not be compliant with the proper regulations. That means fines. With paperless validation, retrieving materials takes little time or effort. Many systems even generate automatic audit trails. These can make audits easier to field.

What are paperless transactions?

In the last three decades, businesses and customers alike have embraced online payments and paperless billing. Being able to log on to a site and submit payment information was just the first step. Modern consumers expect to be able to pay from the convenience of their personal devices. Paperless transactions benefit both sides, making payments faster and easier to track.

Some examples of paperless transactions include:

• Online utility payments
• Automated credit card invoicing and payment
• In-person payment via Apple Pay, Google Wallet, or other mobile solutions

Why customers like paperless transactions

For customers, paperless transactions could be faster, simpler, and safer than exchanging cash or checks:

• Speed and ease: Payment via physical mail can be painfully slow compared to paperless. Customers often prefer to get a bill in their inbox, open a link, and pay it all in a minute. Plus, their email records and confirmation number prove the transaction occurred.
• Personalization: Going paperless lets customers choose their payment option in a way that’s already been set up for ease of use on both sides of the transaction. They may use credit cards, direct pay via bank, or even dedicated services such as PayPal, all via a familiar interface.
• Better security: Checks normally come with increased exposure to fraud risk due to tampering or copying, and cash is easy to lose. Built-in security options for paperless transactions can help ensure customers know exactly where their money is going.

How to implement a paperless billing system

Many checkbooks have begun gathering dust in recent years. Instead, both consumers and businesses have begun to favor the convenience and security of paperless billing and invoicing. Paperless billing, like other paperless payments, is fast, intuitive, and auditable. These features can make life easier for people on both ends of the transaction.

To transition to a paperless billing system:

1. Make a timeline. Depending on the size of your business, six months may be a realistic estimate.
2. Create a workflow. Talk to your employees to see what tools and processes they need for digital payments. Also consider your backlog of physical paperwork.
3. Choose your equipment. Research high-quality scanners and scanning software, then choose one that fits your business needs and budget.
4. Create hybrid policies for paper-using partners. Have plans in place to deal with clients who haven’t yet gone fully digital.
5. Institute a transition period and evaluate your progress. Encourage both your employees and your customers to switch to paperless processes. Listen to their pain points and find solutions to one problem at a time.

What is paperless filing?

A paperless filing system is how businesses can receive, organize, and store digital documents instead of physical paperwork. If your company receives new paperwork on a regular basis, a paperless filing system can be the backbone of a full paperless transition. As soon as you receive new paper documents, you can digitize them, have scanning software automatically name and sort the files, and store everything in a cloud server for your employees to access at-will.

Before you set up a paperless filing system, there are a few prerequisites to consider:

• Legal compliance: Depending on where your business is located, you may be required to offer paper checks as a payment option. Make sure to check your local and state laws, as well as any other regions your employees work out of, before making a change.
• Employee portal: Creating an employee self-service (ESS) portal will allow workers to input and update their own payment information. This will allow employees to receive compensation with minimal delay and overhead. Many of these portals also provide essential tax documents.
• Direct deposit: The next step is to ensure your paperless office can deposit funds into employee bank accounts. Your solution should use information from verified timecards to disburse appropriate payment. You can pay employees who don’t have bank accounts with dedicated payment cards, much like gift cards.

Benefits of paperless filing and payroll

Going paperless for your internal filing, especially in your payroll department, can help information flow more efficiently at your business. Some benefits of paperless filing include:

• Material cost savings: Paper is an expensive resource. With paperless filing, you won’t have to buy as much of it. You can also spend less on other materials, as you’ll need fewer paper clips, file folders, staplers, staples, and filing cabinets. Printer maintenance, ink cartridges, and other expenses tied to printers should also go down over time.
• Physical space savings: Filing cabinets take up valuable office space, and office space costs money. Shifting to a paperless filing system allows you to move those stored items to the cloud. With the free space, you could install more desks or provide employees with amenities that boost morale. No matter how you use it, the revamped space will probably contribute more to productivity than the filing cabinets did.
• Expedited information lookup: Time spent rifling through physical papers quickly adds up. On the other hand, instantly finding the correct document or the right information can power faster work. Unlike physical paperwork, digital documents can have descriptive file names and searchable text, which help employees find the info they need with just a few keystrokes.
• Instant remote document sharing: Unlike physical documents, which employees have to walk across offices or mail to other cities, digital files are always available online. Workers can share documents in seconds via email or messaging apps. This is especially helpful if your business has multiple locations, remote workers, or external collaborators.
• Enhanced data security: A paperless system can be both safer and more convenient than the traditional “filing cabinets behind locked doors” setup. Passwords and access restrictions prevent unauthorized users from gaining access to sensitive paperless documents.Data encryption protects sensitive files from misuse. These features also help keep businesses compliant with industry standards and applicable laws and regulations.
• Protection from damage: Physical documents are easy to damage or destroy, from everyday coffee spills to natural disasters, such as fires and floods. Digital files, particularly those in cloud servers, are difficult to destroy and easy to restore from backups.
• Reduced environmental impact: In addition to creating pollution and waste, The pulp and paper industry is the largest consumer of water in Western countries. By switching to paperless filing systems, businesses can reduce their reliance on paper and do their part for a more sustainable future.

Our recommendation: RICOH fi-8170

To go paperless, the first thing your business should look into is a high-quality document scanner. We recommend the RICOH fi-8170. This device can scan up to 70 double-sided pages per minute, with a 100-sheet automatic document feeder (ADF) to keep the process flowing smoothly. Multi-feed detection means that you can scan documents of different sizes, while a manual feed mode lets you scan thicker documents, such as IDs. At 11.8 x 6.7 x 6.4 inches and 8.8 pounds, the fi-8170 fits easily into most office spaces.

For more information on how your business can go paperless, get in touch with our experts today.

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