Paperless council meetings the first step toward government efficiency

State leaders are looking to go paperless and maximize their potential efficiency in Washington, with a focus on record archives and all documentation moving forward.

According to The Olympian, Washington's Secretary of State Kim Wyman is looking forward to a reduction in overall paper usage because her office's paper-based records are swiftly outgrowing its ability to store them. The office plans to address this need in its 2014 supplemental budget, with a goal of reducing records archives by 10 percent by 2016 and a further 10 percent through 2018.

The news source reported that the Secretary of State's office has to keep paper records on hand for at least seven years, but in many instances of ongoing litigation, those records can be kept on hand for upwards of seven decades. Implementing a successful paperless strategy through the assistance of conversion services and document management software, the office will be able to reduce its costs and enhance efficiency while promoting public access to key records at the same time.

Going to electronic formats will help government officials in any state optimize workflow as well due to improved access to data, allowing them to spend less time reviewing documents and more time performing other critical tasks. This improvement of operations will drive efficiency and multiple the value added by going paperless tremendously.

Such methods, ultimately, will be critical for government operational progress and forward momentum as the importance of technology increases and offices seek to embrace the latest innovations for productivity and public engagement as well. Ultimately, going paperless will support future trends and improvements, as well as reduce costs so offices and agencies can afford to implement them as needed.

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