Paper reduction the first step to paper elimination

While paperless operations may be a distant goal, the reduction of paper consumption is clearly driving many business practices today. According to the Times-Standard, some businesses may not be ready to attempt the complete elimination of paper in their offices, but reducing paperwork can go a long way for any company looking to cut costs and help protect the environment.

In order to attempt paper reduction, businesses will need to invest in the right technology. Document management and conversion services will allow a business to cut the amount of paperwork they generate and deal with on a regular basis, and can help a company progress further down the road to true paperless operations. Solutions like BYOD, the cloud and other technologies are also pushing more businesses to embrace mobility and remote access to data and applications – something that is only possible when that information is in digital formats, not paper ones.

While the "need" for paperless options may be overstated, the benefits of them are not. More companies can increase productivity and eliminate common workplace chaos, such as paper jams, multiple people needing the same file at once or misplaced paperwork. And eliminating paperwork gets rid of the cost of printing, storing and managing hundreds of sheets of paper a day.

For businesses, however, the main advantage of paperless initiatives is organization. With the right information management solution, data will be easier to find, sort through and move around, increasing efficiency and enhancing compliance. These goals can help any business, regardless of a desire to go paperless, make operations more productive.