The benefits of a paper-free office
Working paper-free was incredibly handy during lockdown and has become a real trend ever since. The significant benefits are impossible to ignore: Cutting down on wasting valuable resources, therefore working more sustainably, providing greater transparency for your customers and improving your customer service are just a few. As you might have already guessed, this blog is about going paper-free.
Quick and easy access to documents
Searching in real-life archives and trying to decipher someone’s barely readable scribble that’s already starting to fade is going to be a thing of the past in paperless offices. With a central digital database, such as a cloud service, every employee can access the documents and information they need anytime on several different devices – the folders they are looking for are just a few clicks away. Even if there’s no internet access available, files can be saved on the device that’s being used and are then automatically uploaded as soon as the device is connected to the internet again.
Increasing efficiency
Digitising the processes in your company doesn’t only save you time and money, but also makes you more efficient: No need to print and scan documents anymore, to think of a folder structure, only to realise that your colleague randomly put the sheet you were looking for in the first folder they could find, therefore successfully ruining your system and making you spend hours looking for the document in the wrong place instead of spending that time standing around the coffee machine and gossiping. Slightly drifting off here… Anyway: Digital tools also help to save time on administrative tasks. Time your employees might need elsewhere. Also, collaborating with colleagues gets easier since more than one employee can access and work on the same document (at the same time, from different places).
Greater transparency
Digitalisation can make your company more transparent for your employees and for your customers by making it possible to map internal and external processes. At the same time, digitalisation can help you get an overview of everything that’s going on in your company and even ensure legal compliance, especially when it comes to meeting important deadlines.
Working sustainably
Customers as well as investors usually prefer cooperating with companies that support climate action and take all social matters as well as corporate governance seriously. If you make your company more sustainable and maybe even use the term “paper-free” to promote your business, chances are that you might be able to improve your company’s image besides being perceived as up-to-date.
Saving money
If you keep printing every single document and email, you are probably going to have to spend quite a lot of money on paper, cartridges, folders etc. (We’re not even talking about purchasing costs here or about maintaining that printer of yours.) And if your business grows and every department wants their own equipment, the costs will multiply.
But fear not; this doesn’t have to be the case: By digitising your company and making it paper-free, you won’t only be able to significantly reduce these costs, but you also won’t have to bear the costs for extra storage room for all your folders, a cleaning service to dust all those folders or extra electricity to actually find the folder you’re looking for.
Data security
Data security is automatically improved in a paperless office, since access to files, folders or specific software is only granted to employees who really need it and who have clearance, and unauthorised staff can’t read documents that are marked as confidential – not even accidentally by clicking on the wrong folder.
Flexibility and mobility
The managing director of a company as well as property managers are going to be able to keep track of everything that’s going on. – Even at weekends and, in an emergency, on holiday, since important information can be accessed at any time and place. Likewise, it’s no problem at all to set up an office at home with a digital database, which is especially practical for partially retired staff or parents with younger children, who would like to return to work and want to start by only doing a few hours a week.
Improving customer service
If your employees can access information and documents remotely, this is also going to improve things for your customers. Important documents are available on the go, so you can view them during on-site inspections.
International Teams
With a centralised storage system and digital access to documents, you can set up offices in different cities and countries all around the world. The endless stream of emails and huge amounts of data being sent back and forth are going to be a thing of the past, which makes working together as an international team so much simpler!
Boosting your company’s competitiveness
Cooperation with customers and business partners can be improved in your digital, paperless company. Especially when you need to exchange large amounts of data, a cloud storage system with shared access can make matters simple – especially, when you’re trying to develop new ideas and concepts together as a team.
How to go paperless
On the road to your paper-free office, digitisation clearly plays a major role. A variety of different technologies exist to help you reduce the piles of paper cluttering your desks. The basis for any of these systems is a so-called cloud storage system with very big and powerful servers that offer your business the following major advantages: Several employees can access documents at the same time, and saving and sending any kind of data gets easier and quicker. There are many different providers offering cloud storage systems, such as Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox or iCloud Drive. If you digitise your company, you can also send service charge or ground rent notices in an email or via the app instead of printing everything out and sending it by post. (Another significant advantage is that you’ll be able to digitally sign documents.) Bear in mind that some employees might still prefer to print texts rather than reading them on a screen. High-quality computer screens could help you out here. If your employees prefer hand-written notes during phone calls or meetings, you could try introducing tablets with special pens for writing on them. Further tools such as OneNote or Evernote can then help you organise your notes. Digital diaries such as Google Calendar would, besides being more practical, definitely reduce the amount of paper waste. Your personal calendar (diary) can also be shared with colleagues (for more transparency), and you can create events (such as meetings) and schedule holidays, so the whole team knows what you’re up to and when.
You work in the real estate industry, want to take the bold step of digitising your business and are currently looking for block management software? – Let us give you a hand! iDWELL is a cloud-based software solution that helps your employees through their busy days by increasing efficiency and improving customer service. Reach out to us for more information at contact@idwell.com.