Information sharing is a crucial foundation for all businesses. Without it, most would fail to get anything done. This considered, it is no surprise that document management forms an important aspect of day-to-day operations and can impact the long-term productivity, success and resilience of a business.

Working patterns have changed rapidly over the last couple of years. How organisations collaborate and manage information has evolved as employees are now able to choose how and where they work. Today, employers are managing a more “nomadic” workforce, leaning on workplace technology to facilitate ongoing demands to switch between remote, in-office and coworking environments. 

According to Statista, the proportion of employees working remotely worldwide has grown considerably in recent years, increasing from 20% in 2020 to 28% by 2023. Hence, the Middle East needs to adapt to accommodate new, flexible ways of working, such as the concept of the ‘digital nomad’ – workers who use technology to work from anywhere, without the need to be based in an office. Traditional management practices need to evolve to support these changes.

Now, leaders must ensure the infrastructure for information and document sharing remains fit for purpose outside the office walls, to ensure productivity remains intact wherever workers decide to log on. 

Despite the tools available to make this a reality, document management and access is not quite as seamless an experience as it should be for many organisations. In fact, our research found that while the majority of IT decision makers are confident in their digital infrastructure and approaches, many workers still struggle with accessing documents. Clearly, there is a disconnect between how IT teams perceive their capabilities, and the reality employees are facing day to day. Closing this knowledge gap is an important part of driving progress towards meeting business objectives in the long-term, rather than hindering them. 

As more employees flex between different work environments, IT decision makers must recognise that a modern, efficient workstream is one that allows employees to access any type of document, whether in paper or digital form, wherever they need. Only then can they create a future-looking working environment that is flexible, takes all employee needs into account, and makes business processes as efficient and hassle-free as possible. 

Pairing paper with digital

In recent years, digital transformation has made these new ways of working possible. Document digitisation allows employees access to everything they need to perform their role remotely, which improves efficiency and gives leaders more power and control over who can access documents at any stage of the process.

However, a digital only approach can create a significant barrier for employees who need to handle physical documents as part of their roles. As a result, leaders are faced with the challenge of bridging paper and digital workflows for a significant portion of their workforce. In order to help support the longevity of flexible working strategies for employees, these decision makers must evaluate how their hardware and software integrate with each other to create a seamless employee experience.

Driving efficient and secure electronic document sharing

Despite early predictions about entirely paperless offices, the reality is many businesses still require paper-based communications with customers, staff or third parties – for example, internal communications or promotional materials. Therefore, it is unlikely that businesses will truly be able to eradicate their need for paper in the future. 

In fact, research from Keypoint Intelligence finds that 77% of IT decision makers are planning to purchase a scanner in the next year. This highlights that many existing business processes are predominantly handled with paper, but still require quick and easy transitions from paper to digital workflows. It’s clear that leaders are aware that a digital-only workflow cannot meet the diverse needs of an organisation, so disjointed workflows may curb their business’ resilience in the long-term.

Thankfully, this balance is not something that businesses have to navigate alone. Vendors are observing the changes in working trends and are adjusting their product offerings to meet demand. In fact, some cloud-enabled scanners on the market today are compact, can be set up quickly, and are able to bridge the divide between paper and digital by facilitating the upload of files directly to a desired location on someone’s own device within minutes.

Managing document storage and beyond

Beyond hardware, there is a wide variety of document management software available to businesses today to help streamline collaboration among remote employees. Choosing the right capabilities that will maintain smooth and productive operations is dependent on the needs of each individual business. 

For example, some systems are catered towards enterprises that are looking to digitise processes which were previously only carried out physically, whereas others may want to bolster both paper and digital document sharing for collaboration and have more control over access rights. Due to the vast array of choices, it is vital that the options are carefully assessed to ensure a document management system will make the lives of employees easier.

The nomadic workforce calls for an approach that seamlessly merges physical and digital operations. Canon emphasises its role in driving digital transformation for businesses, offering solutions incorporating the latest imaging and printing technology to streamline operations, improve workflow, and foster innovation. Employees’ ability to reach their potential and operate in a productive fashion is linked to their ability to access optimised workspace services, particularly when they are motivated by the freedom to work from flexible locations.

Businesses that can bridge the gap between physical and digital ways of working to facilitate evolving business and employee needs, are the ones which will remain resilient in the long-term.