The fifth in my series of six issues relative to getting rid of paper focuses on what I call Perplexing Processes. See also…
- Paperless Dilemma No. 1 – Paper Persistence
- Paperless Dilemma No. 2 – Legal Limbo
- Paperless Dilemma No. 3 – Input Irregularity
- Paperless Dilemma No. 4 – Cloud Craziness
Someone once told me there are 2 things a person should never see made – 1) sausage; and 2) legislation. I would add a third – changing processes.
AIIM data suggests there is still a lot of paper related challenge out there -- and lots of untapped process improvement opportunity. When asked, “Would you say that the amount of paper flowing through your business processes is increasing or decreasing?” there is an upside that 46% saying the amount of paper is decreasing. But for over 50% of organizations, there is a lot of work to do – 28% say the amount of paper in processes is “stable,” despite all of the technology we have deployed and another 25% the amount of paper is “increasing” or “increasing rapidly.”
So what should we do about all of this? What lessons can we learn from those who have “been there, done that?” The data from our recent Paper Wars survey suggests some basics: 1) capture as early as possible; 2) make sure you get senior staff buy-in and like any project, do not neglect the change management implications; and 3) don’t repave the cow path – use this as an opportunity to rethink processes from scratch.
