A paperless office stores most documents in digital form, reducing paper usage and increasing efficiency. Digitized documents are easily accessible and up-to-date, benefiting industries such as healthcare. However, old habits and the human factor pose obstacles to the paperless office. Digitization can also have environmental benefits, and companies can rededicate space previously used for document storage.
A paperless office is a work environment that operates with most or all of its documents in digital form, stored electronically and easily accessible. It is based on the idea that many of the previously paper-based functions of traditional offices have been digitised. As computers became ubiquitous in the Western workplace, opinion leaders began envisioning a workplace where conducting business digitally would not only streamline the business process, but also largely eliminate the need for paper.
The idea behind the paperless office is that, in most cases and in most industries, documents should not be printed. Contracts, for example, can be created in an office, emailed to parties and signed electronically, with each party provided a certified copy of the signed document. Blueprints can be archived and accessed online, with construction progress tracked digitally. Restaurants can streamline their operations and minimize errors by digitizing their food ordering systems. Most businesses conduct at least some of their financial transactions electronically.
Besides simply reducing the volume of paper in the workplace, a significant benefit of digitizing documents is that the latest version is instantly available to everyone. Access to accurate and up-to-date information is especially crucial in healthcare, where patient records have traditionally been kept in paper files in various locations. The potential for error is significant when it depends on such files. Some patients, however, carry their pertinent medical data on a digital storage device which is updated each time they visit a healthcare provider. These devices, mirrored by records held in a central database, make an important contribution to reducing health care workers’ dependence on paper and vulnerability to paper-related problems.
Compared with digitized records, paper has many drawbacks. Paper documents require a significant amount of personnel time to manage: creating documents, then storing and retrieving them. Correspondence adds another layer of time and money to card management. Paper documents also need to be archived, either alphabetically or by creation date, and the only way to recover a paper document is to know how it was archived. Furthermore, managers are keenly aware that a bad document is often a lost document.
One of the most significant obstacles to the paperless office is the human factor, i.e. most companies have traditionally been paper-oriented and it is difficult to change old habits. For example, many electronic documents are often simply printed and archived as a routine matter. Additionally, the increasing sophistication and capability of printers and copiers makes it possible to print quality documents previously only available from commercial printers, but at a fraction of their cost. This led to a worldwide press frenzy; From the time the paperless office was first articulated until 2000, global output of paper documents of all kinds is estimated to have doubled. Since then, however, output has stabilized and subsequently started to decline.
Implementing paperless offices could produce desirable environmental benefits. Paper production contributes to both deforestation and pollution, as well as the production of greenhouse gases which are said to exacerbate global warming. Furthermore, the inks used in the production of the documents themselves may contain harmful components which, by volume, also have a negative impact on the environment.
Many archives can be digitized, and companies implementing paperless programs include scanning of existing paper documents as part of those programs. Many companies have found that they have archived many paper documents that they don’t need, such as copies of monthly statements sent to customers. In addition to reducing the volume of paper documents stored, organizations that have undergone digitization programs have been able to rededicate space for purposes other than document storage.
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