Digitise your data to make office moves easier
By digitising your data you can eradicate the need to transport bulky paperwork.
The global economy is still looking very unstable. In a bid
to address outgoing expenditures, many companies are deciding to downsize their
offices or change location, in order to reduce their outgoings and boost
profits.
However, although the concept is great, many organisations
worry about the transportation of bulky paperwork during a move; in many cases,
decades of data may be stored on-site. This is where Dajon can help. We offer
secure, reliable document scanning and off-site storage – eliminating the need
to worry about physical data transportation.
Why are more businesses relocating and down-sizing these days?
With the global economy still decidedly shaky for many
industries, businesses all over the world are looking out for ways that they
can reduce their outgoings in order to boost profits.
For a great deal of companies, the biggest expense will be
the physical overheads; not only are utility bills going up, but rents and
rates are also increasing to unaffordable levels, prompting entrepreneurs to
take another look at their premises and whether they really are suitable.
In many cases – and in London in particular – the answer is
often ‘no’. They realise they could survive better at less prestigious
addresses and with fewer square feet of space, impressive though it may feel
for employees.
Mat Oakley of Savills states that it is often high-rise buildings
that command the biggest price tags.
It doesn’t look like this is going away, either – Jones Lang
LaSalle predicts that rents are likely to increase further across the board as
demand grows and fewer premises become available.
For many companies, especially smaller ones, the best option
may be to relocate and downsize. Indeed, half of Dajon’s customers in London
said in a recent poll that they want to move away from the city centre as it is
too expensive.
Mat Oakley of Savills about why firms in tower blocks may be
paying the most rent:
If you go over 20 storeys you can generally expect to achieve top grants in that market. They are not that common, so people are prepared to pay.
What’s on the way? Even higher rents, as Henderson director
Andy Schofield predicts:
We remain confident rents will enter their second growth phase from 2014 once fundamentals catch up. By 2014 we expect the global economic recovery to gain momentum, financial confidence to resume and take-up to return to its long-run average.
What are the problems this can cause in terms of document and data
management?
Once the decision has been made to move, a person or team of
people is usually nominated to manage the relocation process. This is typically
when companies realise they have a lot more ‘stuff’ than they realised.
Barbara Hemphill, author of Simplify Your Workday and the
Taming the Paper Tiger series, says she has seen this happen on numerous
occasions, with company after company forced to deal with hundreds of boxes of
‘archives’ in storage rooms. However, she explains, this can boil down to a
fear of throwing things away or that the boss will ask for a document as soon
as it is shredded and binned.
This is despite the fact that her research suggests 80 per
cent of the information kept by businesses is never used.
Even supposing everything that can be removed is disposed
of, there may still be filing cabinets and folders full of old documents that
have to be retained for legal reasons but are not necessarily going to be
looked at.
How long should things be kept? HM Revenue & Customs
states that:
- Business records should be kept for five years
after the end of the relevant tax period - Monthly quarterly corporate financial statements
should be kept for at least three years - Files such as cash register tapes should be
retained for six years - All records concerning employees must be kept
indefinitely, including pension details
By digitising your data you
will free up vital office space
Companies working with the NHS must store paperwork for even
longer than this; rules state that GPs should not dispose of patient
information until ten years after their death, although electronic records are
not being deleted ‘for the foreseeable future’.
According to Business Zone, many firms totally underestimate
the amount of planning an office move requires and so often do not leave enough
time to complete it in an organised way.
Ideally, options should be reviewed nine to 18 months before
a lease expires, but lots of managers find themselves organising a relocation
in a much shorter timeframe than this.
With changes of address, new phone numbers, internet
infrastructure and other issues to worry about, making sure all the records and
data are taken care of can slip further and further down the to-do list.
This is the point where a lot of delegates finally call in
the experts and turn to third party document scanning and storage services –
but again, even this is not an ideal time in which to do so.
A panicked worker will often take up the first quote they
are offered, even though it might not necessarily be the best value or provide
all the required services – and if this is the case, then there is still a
danger of documents getting lost and data becoming corrupted.
Arguably, they might as well have taken their information
out of the filing cabinets and thrown it straight in the bin before the move.
80 per cent of the information kept by businesses is never
used, according to Barbara Hemphill, author of Simplify Your Workday and the
Taming the Paper Tiger series.
How can Dajon Data Management help businesses to move office premises more
efficiently?
Fortunately, if companies get in touch with Dajon in plenty
of time (perhaps using Business Zone’s schedule as a guide), they can benefit
from secure, reliable document scanning and off-site storage that is sure to
make an office move easier while keeping data safe.
Our experts will be able to provide plenty of advice on
retention regulations so unnecessary paperwork can be eliminated early on in
the process and future build-up is prevented – this will be a consultation, not
just a quote.
Once documents have been scanned for electronic storage,
they can also be linked with other relevant paperwork to make retrieval and
archiving much simpler. This mining of information presents a much better image
to clients and can be maintained even during busy periods.
Previous clients have enjoyed paper reductions of between 40
and 80 per cent, meaning fewer filing cabinets and less of a headache when
moving premises. It also means smaller workplaces can be allocated without
managers having to worry that everything and everybody will fit, something that
can save a considerable amount of money in the long run.
After the relocation has been carried out, Dajon can
continue to advise clients on document and data maintenance using tailored
Electronic Document Management (EDM) solutions to ensure initial gains continue
in the future.
We are specialists in our field, our friendly advisers will
back you up whenever you need assistance and we can save you money, so get in
touch with us now to see how your business could benefit, whether you’re ready
to move or not.
References
- Interview with commercial research director for
Savills Mat Oakley, carried out by Axonn researchers, December 2012. - http://www.ipinglobal.com/ipin-live/406754/speculative-office-development-torestart-in-central-london
- http://www.cnplus.co.uk/news/intelligence/downturn/construction-braces-for-tough-2013-but-optimism-remains/8640878.article?blocktitle=Latest-UK-constructionnews&contentID=556
- http://www.property-magazine.eu/pages/news/article.php?news_ID=23396&filename=london-office-market-good-prospects-from-2014
- http://nma1.org/Communications/Manage/2001-09/willtheinternetreplaceyour.htm
- http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/1889.aspx?CategoryID=68
- http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/clare-moorhouse/moving-office-
don039t-fallfirst-hurdle/three-mistakes-no-one-tells-you-about-http://www.businesszone.co.uk/blogs/clare-moorhouse/moving-office-don039t-fall-first-hurdle/three-mistakes-noone-tells-you-about- - http://nma1.org/Communications/Manage/2001-09/willtheinternetreplaceyour.htm