Roadmap to a Better Reality: Speed Up the Transition to a Digital Office

Published On April 14, 2017

tips for a faster digital transformation

“It’s 2016 and we are truly in the “digital” age. Between smartphones, smart watches, tablets and laptops, we have finally moved away from physical files and documents.” If only that statement were true. Recent surveys have shown that 31% of offices report that they are still stacked high with paper. 40% use paper to file “important stuff.” 52% have made little to no progress towards electronic business workflows. 80% agree that paper content and processes hinder their ability to work remotely and access business documents. So if we all agree that digital documents are better for our businesses, what is keeping organizations from moving to a truly electronic environment? The answer to that question will vary from company to company (culture, budget, etc.), but we at Iron Mountain believe that there is a process that can be followed which will allow you to make significant steps towards that goal.

Four Steps to the Starting Line

Benjamin Franklin once said, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.” By following these four steps you will position your organization to be successful with this transition:

1. Understand your existing environment and costs

Map where your records are

Know what technology is being used to create and store records today

Understand how your different departments access and utilize the information in your records

Map your current processes and determine pain-points and areas that can be improved

2. Define your Goals

Reduce Paper Storage to make space

Improve records visibility, access, security, and privacy

Integrate records from a merger/acquisition

Change/Improve Business Processes

Improve Compliance, E-discovery, and Information Governance Practices

3. Get the Right People Involved

Include IT along with:

Compliance

Legal

Supply Chain/Purchasing

Finance

Lines of Business Leaders

4. Build a Roadmap for Change

“When eating an elephant, take one bite at a time” – Creighton Abrams

Identify what, if any, legacy records can be digitized and determine how/where you will store the electronic images

Once you’ve determined what you are imaging, develop a plan to store and destroy the remaining physical records

Eliminate the creation of paper on the front end of your business processes

Obviously, this is a high-level framework for moving your organization forward and each company has unique requirements, but we are confident that by following these steps you can develop a strategy that will assist you in the transition from a physical to an electronic records environment.