5 Tips for a Successful Paperless Project

Written by Ken Kramer. Posted in Blog

Tips on Creating a Paperless Environment

So in our previous article, The Paperless Office: Is It Just a Dream, we discussed some statistics, and the key reasons why organizations don’t move towards an environment with less paper.  In this post, we will discuss key focus areas for Paperless Project Success.  Below are 5 Tips to Follow:

• Start Small and Grow – all too often I see organizations with broad reaching goals, and huge projects.  Pick a key pain point, create a successful solution, learn you lessons and grow.
• Focus on Simplicity – technologists like to use a sledgehammer to pound in a nail.  Always, always, use building blocks and start with the simplest solution that provides the maximum value.
• Find a Champion – forcing a project on an unwilling participant is always a recipe for failure.  Find the person with the most paper pain in your organization and get full buy in.
• It’s About the Users – the technology will work, it is proven, but the biggest barrier you will face is user adoption.  Time after time, I have seen users that just refuse to use scanning technology, and managers that let them.  Educate, train and encourage.
• Track Success – building an internal case study with gains in efficiency and productivity, as well as cost savings is key.  Once you have success, promote and expand.

These are some tips that can be used in the implementation of any paperless technology:  advanced capture and scanning, digital forms, digital workflow/business process management, print to PDF or a digital archive.  Want more info on these technologies?  See our presentation on Key Tech for Paperless.  Thoughts?

Tags: bpm, capture, paperless office, project, scanning