TECHNOLOGY
6,800 of those sheets end up in the rubbish bin. Another problem is that critical business information is often locked in with certain individuals or stored in disparate systems across the organisation. This is a tremendous risk to businesses - without transparent access to critical data, companies can find themselves being held hostage to events outside their control. The Paperless Project cites an alarming statistic that more than 70 per cent of today’s businesses would fail within three weeks if they suffered a catastrophic loss of paper-based records due to fire or flood. Some other indirect costs of paperbased processes »» Siloed, unusable data: Information doesn’t get integrated into centralised systems, and can’t be acted on »» Lost revenue: When paper is lost or misplaced, it prevents decision makers from analysing business performance, slows down the deal closure process and could potentially incur a fine from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if there is a data breach »» Unproductive employees: Staff spending time looking for information are not being productive and the overall cost to the business is increased »» Poor customer experience: Faster customer on-boarding translates into growth. Manual processes delay communications and customers who have a ‘low-effort’ experience are more likely to buy again While it appears that organisations are aware of the problems with paper and looking to achieve a competitive advantage by capturing information as close to the
point of origin as possible - 41 per cent of respondents to a study by AIIM said that they are using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) in some form - many are still lost when it comes to developing a digital strategy to document management. Only 17 per cent of organisations say they work in a ‘paperfree’ environment. Furthermore, 20 per cent say paper consumption is increasing and a tiny three per cent of companies questioned have a comprehensive multichannel system to aggregate and process information from paper documents, electronic communications and social media. So, what’s the answer? Data capture and robust automated information management can be a lifejacket when you are drowning in paperwork. Where Kodak Alaris excels is in helping organisations to capture information from paper and other sources right at the point of origin. Web-based capture, often referred to as cloud capture or thin client capture, streamlines processes, delivering increased efficiency and overall business value. With thin client capture, businesses benefit from reduced operating costs. IT support can be centralised making it easier to deploy, upgrade and administer with substantial savings, resulting in higher profitability and ROI.
customer responses, while other advantages include increased productivity and improved compliance. When non-digital information, practices and processes are converted into digital formats, organisations see increased agility, improved productivity among employees, better customer service and long-term cost savings. Businesses operating in regulated environments are also turning to technology to assist with compliance. The ever-increasing flood of data is one of the greatest opportunities facing businesses today. How it is managed can have a huge impact on the future of an organisation. Investing in sophisticated information management solutions can be the first step for many on the road to digital transformation.
Wireless scanners enable seamless connectivity through the office network or over Wi-Fi. Equipped with standard drivers, they can be easily and securely integrated within existing and legacy business applications and used alongside cloud- or web-based capture applications. The AIIM study points to the fact that improved search and share capabilities are the primary drivers of scanning and capturing technology investments. 43 per cent of businesses questioned say the biggest benefit of going paper-free is fast
Steve Mulroy Portfolio Marketing Manager, Information at Kodak Alaris
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