Benefits of Going Paperless

Why and How to Go Paperless

Some people still use flip phones, and some businesses and nonprofits still use paper. If you’re among the holdouts still hanging on to the old-school comfort of printed handouts and boxes full of documents, it’s time to take a deep breath and embrace a paperless world—a world that will be better for your organization.

Why Go Paperless?

There is an overwhelming list of benefits to going paperless—it really is a smart move for just about every type of organization imaginable. The benefits include:

• Cost savings: Imagine not having to buy paper, copier ink and toner, envelopes, and file storage solutions!
• Time savings: No more manually filing and searching through reams of paper documents—a few mouse clicks is all it takes for employees to find whatever they want.
• Space savings: Paperless offices have less clutter on desks and fewer storage needs. Now your organization can grow without requiring more space.
• Environmental benefits: One office does make a difference, given that it takes one small tree to produce about 10,000 pieces of paper. By going paperless, you can do your part to leave more trees in the ground, where they benefit people and the environment.
• Better access: Need to read a document while on the road or at home? If it’s stored digitally, you can always access what you need.
• Stronger security: More than a decade ago, it made sense to question the security of cloud storage, but now the cloud is far more secure than your office, where theft and natural disasters are a continuing threat.

How to Go Paperless

Probably you already recognize the benefits of going paperless, but how do you get unstuck and actually make the change? Start by making a plan that covers these and other concerns:

• How will you convert physical files to digital files? It’s going to take some time, but it’s a one-time process. Decide what you need to scan, who will scan it, and when and how they’ll dispose of the paper documents once they’re done.
• How will you convince employees to change their behavior? Employees might resist a top-down announcement, so you might want to involve them in the process, including listening to their ideas for making the transition successfully.
• What will your new processes be? Decide how current paper-based processes will change. You might need new business software to help.
• Where should we start? You might want to start going paperless by tackling “low-hanging fruit.” Can you shift to electronic billing statements, for instance? Achieve success in one area, and use that to build momentum leading to other changes.

Need a Helping Hand?

Insero & Co. provides audit, tax, outsourced accounting, and business advisory services to help you through every business transition. Contact us to talk about how we might be able to help you improve efficiency through the use of cloud-based software and other solutions.