7 reasons why companies need to go paperless

In the digital age efficiency, productivity and swiftness are some of the main watchwords when dealing with the administration of a company. Despite this, managements often fail to recognise the problems posed by the use of paper. Paper is expensive, impractical, slow: technology can solve the issue by providing an efficient way of managing, distributing and filing documents. If you think your company would not benefit from going paperless, here are 7 reasons why you should change your mind.

1. Efficiency for your HR Department (...and every other department)

Accessing and managing personnel files and other employee records takes a lot of time in your HR team. Most companies still rely on paper to collect employee signatures for policies or Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). This often involves an impractical process of printing and posting hundreds of paper documents to reach employees spread around the territory. With a digital solution, you can create a digital library for all your documents and policies that allows you to easily access any document and send it to any employee. Moreover, an electronic signature function can allow your HR department to collect signature digitally, cutting in half the processing time for employee records. Obviously, such a solution is not only valid for HR, but can be applied to any other department working with paper-based documents.

2. Increased Accessibility for your Employees

By submitting their signed documents online, employees can save a lot of the time they normally use to sign and manage documents. Thanks to the digital platform, they can read any policy and access any document they need anytime, anywhere, from any device and without the need to ask their managers or the HR department. This alone could be revolutionary for companies with employees working remotely and/or internationally.  It’s possible to allow employees access to documents and communications in multiple languages too. Let them choose which language best suits them.

3. Environmental friendly

Using paper to manage a company’s operations means printing a lot of paper - but how much is “a lot”? Research shows that the average office worker uses 10,000 sheets of copy paper every year, that roughly equal to 4,48 trees per year. Companies are increasingly using recycled paper to fight the issue, but the best and most handy way of being eco-friendly is still going paperless.

4. No more “I can’t find that document”

Most of us have experienced the frustration of not finding something we are looking for - but when that something is an important company document, it becomes more than frustrating. Filing a huge amount of documents is not easy and having to manage an office full of paper can become a challenge, especially when it comes to an office move. A digital library not only allows you to organise documents in a much clearer way but also to easily find the one you are looking for through a quick keyword research. No more hours spent looking for a piece of paper and more risks of losing an important document.

5. Keep up with the times

The future is paperless. Accepting this and acting to make this happen means recognising the importance of being up to date with the latest technologies. Little differences can take your company ahead of your competitors and improve the overall health of your business. This report from Harvard Business Review Analytics Services and Microsoft shows that companies recognise the benefits provided by digital solutions, but most are still far from becoming completely digital in their processes. Investing in digital has been proven to be an effective way of bringing your company to success, according to McKinsey Digital report.:

6. Increase productivity and profit

Less time spent managing documents means better productivity for your HR and for every single one of your employees: look at your office and imagine what it would look like without paper. Such a tidy work environment could not be just a dream if you decide to employ digital documents. Moreover, paper is expensive both to print and to manage, and it produces a useless expense that you could be using to develop your company.

7. It’s easy

You might be thinking: how hard is it to get all these benefits? Not hard at all. Sponge can provide your business with a ready-made, easy to use Electronic Signature system to help you go paperless as fast as possible. With our system, you could start creating your company’s policy library and collecting digital signatures in the blink of an eye, without the expense of developing a solution from scratch. Many companies have already implemented our digital signature tool with success and have started their journey to become paperless. Will yours be the next?

Read more about our Electronic Signature or get in touch below for a demo.