You might wonder if going paperless is all it’s cracked up to be. Can your agency truly go paperless? Is anything really paperless? The answer is yes and no. Yes, there are plenty of companies who now go paperless every day. However, in the world of community corrections we know the truth. Into everyone’s life a little paper must fall.
But what would your agency look like if your own operations went paperless?
Here are five reasons to go paperless.
- A case manager got lost in the file cabinets again. Has this happened to you? You go to look for a file and it’s not there? Then you spend the next 45 minutes trying to track it down? And maybe you still don’t find it. If you are a COO or in management, you might want to have everyone track how much time they spend in a week in the file cabinets in frustration. This looking for paper files is wholly not unique. Is there a solution? Yep, going paperless. What if every clients file was one click away with not just all their documents but also case notes, treatment & dosage information, case plans, assessments, etc.? Keep reading.
- Are paper and associated costs out of control? Do you know how much you spend on paper annually? How much ends up in the recycle bin? Did the copier eat half a ream recently? Paper is messy and takes up an enormous amount of space. How much are you spending on storage space? What if you could eliminate almost all your those costs? How much would you save? And forget the copier machine. If you went paperless, would your agency still need that muilt-plex enormity (aka the copier) with the thousands of dollars lease? And don’t forget the toner costs, file folders, all the little things that go along to organize the paper and of course the file cabinets. Are you setting up a spread sheet already for costs savings?
- The other benefits of going paperless. At APPA this summer, the head of the Department of Corrections for the State of Pennsylvania stood up and told the audience that by going paperless the agency had saved $175,000 annually in courier and shipping fees from moving…you got it…paper. Remember that spreadsheet? Why don’t you add some more savings to it?
- No more lost paperwork. Is this a regular challenge for your clients? Does your staff have to recreate or print out paperwork because it’s gone missing? Staff pointing fingers at each other on who lost it? Staff forgot to have a client sign an important document because someone forgot to copy the last page? If you are in a paperless office, kiss that goodbye.
- More state and federal agencies are looking to meet sustainability targets. As more and more governments look at setting targets and goals on sustainability, your agency can lead in the effort to be an example of how paperless looks. Many contracts are including sustainability requirements as a bonus to sign a contract. If your agency has contracts with governments, then you can add your “paperless” efforts to the conversation.
Show us the money.
In the end the primary reason to go paperless is all about the savings. The savings don’t lie either. By using the CorrectTech paperless office feature, for every dollar spent by your agency to implement, your agency will save $7 to $10 in execution. Not only that, there are the tangential benefits: saving time, more efficiency in job tasks, better communication in between staff and clients, more accurate reporting and measuring, and more time to focus on what matters…successful reentry for clients. That's just one of 30+ features that can save your community corrections program time and money.
What's your biggest paper nightmare or frustration? CorrectTech's Lisa Sayler shared hers in File Room Terrors...sound familiar?
