Is the paperless office a good idea? While going paperless is like flying cars on first blush—a sign of the future and of course something we want—some argue that paperless is a little extreme and more of an idealistic notion than a practical reality.
That in mind, let’s look at some of the reasons for going paperless.
First, there’s the cost savings from being paperless. Paper costs money, as does ink, stationery and paper-based office supplies such as paperclips and writing equipment.
“This is one area digital has come on in leaps and bounds in recent years,” noted a recent blog post at AllTopStartups.com. “Suites like Google (News - Alert) docs and Libreoffice have become an easy and effective replacements for the expensive MS Office, and there is an increasing amount of free (or at least very cheap) powerful software available to replace previously expensive tools.”
Then there’s sustainability. This, actually, is not a vote in favor of going paperless like you might think.
While paper obviously cuts down trees, 60 percent of energy used to convert these trees is now provided by renewable energy, according to sustainability organization, ISC. An estimated 70 percent of paper now has been recycled, too, and the paper industry plants more trees than it uses. So paper isn’t as bad as we think.
There’s also the fact that not only do digital devices use energy, their manufacture also is bad for the environment.
Workflow and creativity is another areas that is cited as another reason for going paperless. This is a mixed bag. It is hard to argue that digital doesn’t improve workflow—anyone who has used a product such as AudioCodes’ (News - Alert) Fax ATA solution to have their faxes arrive digitally will tell you that it is better to have documents digital. But for certain creative tasks, paper still can be a better medium for quickly getting things down (except if you have an old-school tablet such as Lenovo’s (News - Alert) X61, which pretty much is a badass paper replacement).
Accessibility is another consideration.
“In a flat-out race, your shiny, new, expensively-acquired proofreading software may beat an admin with a pen and a stack of papers,” noted AllTopStartups.com. “But unless the tool can perform a task completely, or you have the personnel to fully utilize the tool, it’s worth questioning whether it is entirely necessary, or even more efficient when bearing in mind your other needs.”
So is paperless all we have been led to believe it is?
I would say that yes, on balance it still is a noble goal for businesses to pursue. But it might not be as perfect as some would argue.
Edited by Rory J. Thompson