Business records are of paramount importance: they are crucial for compliance and tax obligations, and provide a frame of reference for your organization as you progress. There is also the fact that business records must be kept by law, and failure to do so can result in costly repercussions. 

However, it is not merely the act of keeping records that is important. A business must also do so efficiently, in order to avoid wasted resources, lost records, lapses in organization, and a myriad of other issues. That’s why an effective business records storage solution is so pivotal. Your business storage should not only curtail the mountain of paper in your office, but it should also offer security, enable easy access to specific documents for employees who need it, and also reduce the administrative time it takes to file, organize and search for business records.

Below are 3 business records storage solutions that can help you save time, money, and ensure you keep records with pinpoint accuracy.

Did you know that the average employee spends up to 40% of their time simply searching for the information they need to do their jobs? That’s a lot of time (and money) that could be allocated towards tasks that help improve business performance.

Often, this wasted time is a result of poor paper records management. When employees need to dig through a large inventory of physical files, can’t recall if the document was born analog or digitally, or otherwise have issues locating certain records, this is an indication that your current paper records management system is sorely inefficient.

However, implementing certain changes can help to significantly improve your paper records management, so that every person in your organization spends less time searching for documents and more time attending to role-critical functions. Here are 3 ways that you can improve your paper records management to increase the efficiency of your business.

Why go paperless? Apart from the environmental value, going paperless is an efficient way to streamline your manual paper-based processes, saving you time and money and also improving the management of business processes. To put it simply, paperless document management allows your business to complete and process more work – with fewer resources. Below are a few on the key areas of your business that can benefit from going paperless. 

Integrated library systems that provide quick, convenient access to myriad resources are the way of the future. Indeed, the transition is already taking place. Digitization of library resources is the goal institutions are aiming for to maintain their status as centres of knowledge and information in the digital age.

The digitization of library systems and services is no small feat. It requires format transitions for a variety of items, from books to manuscripts, historical information to microfilm, newspaper collections and beyond. It also means the development and implementation of online databases for improved information sharing and distribution. Such a transition can come with quite the price tag. 

However, developing a fully digitized, integrated library system doesn’t have to break the budget. Here are some steps you can take to digitize your library on a budget.

A simple truth about digital technology is that it is transforming the ways that library systems and services operate. Not only is technology itself advancing, but the expectations of users are also changing; today, people expect to be able to access all manner of information digitally.

Analog documents – books, newspapers, microfilm, microfiche, town records, historic information – are still important, but there is a recognized need to have them digitized in order to improve access and availability. And documents are not the only things being affected by the digital age. Increasingly, libraries and other informational institutions are rethinking the ways they provide services to their clientele. Below are some of the bigger transformations library systems and services are experiencing in the age of digital media.

With the internet surpassing other media as the primary source of information, digitization has become an increasingly salient topic. The ability to access information digitally is no longer a novelty ­– it is expected. Take for example the Google Books Library Project, in which Google is working with several major libraries and educational institutions (including Stanford University) to digitize library resources and create a vast digital library.

The trend isn’t ephemeral. The push towards the digitization of library resources and other sources of information will only accelerate. As Guy Berthiaume (who will become the new head of Library and Archives Canada on June 23) points out, libraries are in the process of reinventing themselves. He believes that digital technology is not threatening the place of libraries as centres of knowledge; rather, it should be embraced and leveraged to improve the availability of information and how people access it.

At the beginning of this year, I talked about investing time and money into the personal development and training of our staff. Our goal is to continually improve the customer experience and strengthen our position as your "go to" source for all things document management. Well, this week it's my turn.

There's no need to check your calendars. Yes I'm writing about microfilm CAR systems and no it's not 1995.

Microfilm CAR (Computer Assisted Retrieval) systems were developed in the 80’s as a way to quickly locate any image across a vast microfilm collection. It was really an ingenious system at the time; a computer database would contain a detailed inventory of all your microfilm rolls. So if you were looking for Kevin D'Arcy’s student record, you could search on ‘Kevin D'Arcy’, filter down the results using additional fields such as data of birth, and the system would tell you his file was located on roll 2,784 at frame 346. You would simply pull roll 2,784 from the cabinet, load it into your microfilm reader printer and it would automatically advance the roll to frame 346, bringing you right to Kevin’s file. You could even configure it to automatically print the record. For the visual people in the group:

Mitigate risk and plan to succeed in the face of disaster with digital document management

Malevolent weather seems to have been the theme of past year. During the Alberta floods and the Ontario ice storm, many Canadian businesses experienced property damage that resulted in service disruptions lasting several days. The length of time it takes to re-open after a catastrophic event will determine the overall longevity of your company. Business Continuity Planning ensures that there are advance procedures in place to maintain or resume key operations quickly when disruptive events arise.

In its initial stages, BCP identifies internal and external threats that will affect the delivery of critical services and products to clients. However, businesses often overlook a key area of vulnerability: paper files. Losing important documents can hinder recovery efforts and increase costs. Not only does digital record storage provide additional security for your files, but gives management some flexibility in tailoring successful continuity plans. So why hasn’t everyone adopted digital records as part BCP? Let’s take a look at some of the misconceptions of digital record storage.

So your organization has made the decision to scan your paper files, turning those stale documents into useful digital content. You've decided to outsource the bulk scanning of your documents, but you have a lot questions before you're ready to send your files out. Questions such as: