There are quick and easy ways that will fix the flow of information in your print environment. More than a third of business processes are document driven. The trouble is, businesses spend way too much time and money managing their documents. And as many as 40-60% of all IT helpdesk calls are print related.

The good news is that if you take a quick assessment of your print environment, you’ll notice all sorts of smart ways to make the most of your print resources.

If you’re the person who’s managing printers, here’s a collection of quick hacks to improve your document workflow.

1. Automate the simple stuff

Most print jobs and document processes involve repetitive tasks like filing invoices, processing claims and saving files to the right folders. Today your users carry out most of these steps manually. If you document and understand the workflows they need, you could automate them as pre-set digital workflows using your multi-function printers (MFPs).

2. Move to the cloud (and stay there)

It makes sense to move large, graphic-heavy files like marketing collateral to cloud repositories. Most people share large documents using e-mail so they might have to download a copy before printing or scanning them to cloud repositories like Dropbox.

Set up your MFP to directly scan and print documents to and from apps like Dropbox. That way you reduce the number of steps in the process and free up valuable e-mail server space at the same time.

3. Troubleshoot remotely

When your people have a problem with document workflow, it’s only natural that they’d turn to you for help. At the same time, you shouldn’t be shuffling across the office every time someone has a printer issue.

The good news is that today’s MFPs are smart enough to let you fix issues remotely. Use a remote admin interface to access and interact with your MFP and settings to troubleshoot remotely.

4. Order supplies proactively

Set up automatic re-ordering with your Xerox partner. That way you’re only ordering when you need something.

5. Put colour in the right hands

Colour printing is more expensive than printing in black and white. At the same time, it’s also really important that certain documents are printed in colour. So don’t allow everyone to print everything in colour all the time. Instead, use permissions and controls to restrict colour printing to certain people, departments, document types or even times of day.

6. Switch to two-sided printing.

Printing on two sides is an easy way to make a big impact. Choose printers that print on both sides of paper by default. You’ll cut costs and paper use in half. It’s easy and sensible.

7. Print on demand

Ninety percent of businesses have suffered security breaches because of unsecured printing. Way too often that’s because someone left sensitive documents in a printer tray. Not only is that a breach waiting to happen, it’s also a waste of paper and money. In fact, around 50% of printed pages get thrown away and 20% never even get picked up.

Print on demand makes sure the MFP only releases the document when the person who sent the print job is there for validation with a Pin or card swipe. You’ll solve a cost and security problem with one simple move. Find out how.

When you improve the way documents flow through your business, you’re improving the way information flows through the business. Because getting it right means making your life easier, saving the company money and making sure your people work better.

These quick hacks will definitely get you there.

About Altron Document Solutions
Altron Document Solutions (ADS) is Africa’s leading document management technology, and services company and the largest Xerox distributor in the world. It is the authorised Xerox distributor in 26 sub-Saharan African countries, offering the complete range of Xerox document equipment, software solutions and services. Altron Document Solutions forms part of JSE-listed Altron Limited.

About Xerox
Xerox Holdings makes every day work better. We are a workplace technology company building and integrating software and hardware for enterprises large and small. As customers seek to manage information across digital and physical platforms, Xerox delivers a seamless, secure and sustainable experience. Whether inventing the copier, Ethernet, the laser printer or more, Xerox has long defined the modern work experience. Learn how that innovation continues at xerox.com.