As one of the fastest growing counties in the nation, Collin County, TX, faced the challenge of managing an increasingly-large number of records generated by a growing population.

According to Records Manager Margaret Anderson, staff in the county’s courts had difficulty finding information, due to disparate systems implemented by each department. “We also had over 15,000 reels of microfilm and 18,450 boxes of paper stored throughout the county,” she says. “Files were everywhere and we couldn’t keep up with the demand. We had to ensure that staff did not unintentionally destroy records that needed to be retained, and we wanted to implement a case management system (CMS). But we also had to manage all the paper.

“Our first step was to select and implement a new case management system for the county court system,” Anderson continues. “The records management system (RMS) we chose needed to interface with this system and provide records management control for closed and disposed case files, as well as support documents.”
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When it comes to their firm’s infrastructure, many financial advisors rely on the same paper files they’ve been using since they joined the industry. For some advisors, letting go of their paper is an unfathomable hurdle.

But other advisors—and their firms—recognize the benefits of document management. From immediately eliminating clutter to long-term benefits such as saving time, space and money, the return on investment with document management is quite impressive.

Stage 2 Planning Partners is one of those innovative firms achieving their goals thanks to document management. Founded by Principal Josh Patrick in 1997, the firm offers wealth management services for owners of closely held businesses, individuals and groups, focusing on a variety of strategic and financial issues.
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Located at the southern shores of Chautauqua Lake, Jamestown, NY, is the largest city in picturesque Chautauqua County. The Jamestown Public Schools serve approximately 5,000 students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade at six neighborhood elementary schools, three middle schools and one comprehensive high school.

In 2003, the Jamestown City School District’s human resources department began investigating document management as a possible solution to managing an ever increasing amount of paper. The department’s six employees were responsible for managing personnel records, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, employment applications and reports regarding civil rights, unemployment and workers’ compensation, as well as all files relating to negotiations, arbitrations, grievances and meeting minutes of the district’s seven unions. Full story »

One of the reasons Scot Fraser and the IKON Office Solutions team chose to focus on implementing digital document management solutions in British Columbia’s school districts was out of loyalty to the teachers who helped them succeed.

“I lived in the Kootenay-Columbia area from grade six until high school,” says Fraser, now Enterprise Solutions Manager at IKON. “I attended five schools in the area. The teachers and the school system were great. My most influential teacher was my grade seven teacher, Mr. Truant. I owe him a lot. I wish I could see him again and thank him for helping me immensely through a difficult year where I attended three different schools.”

This devotion to supporting educators led IKON to help school districts throughout British Columbia digitize their paper records and speed their workflows. School District No. 20 (SD20), located in the interior of British Columbia, Canada, serves a number of communities throughout the province. Thanks to IKON, it’s also discovered the benefits of Laserfiche.
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For financial advisors at Bond and Devick Financial Network, over twenty years of industry experience had given them a heightened awareness of the problems of a paper-based filing system. File cabinets took up almost 50 square feet of office space, and staff wasted time and money making multiple copies of the same document so advisors could have simultaneous access to information.

“We were dealing with an enormous amount of paper,” remembers Teresa Devick. “And the paper files concerned us greatly, mainly because if our office were ever damaged, our information would be completely unrecoverable.”

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Nestled along the Sheep River Valley in the heart of the Alberta Foothills, the town of Okotoks, AB, is the second-fastest growing community in Canada, with a 46 percent growth rate since 2001.

According to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Okotoks “can fairly call itself the greenest community in Canada, maybe the world,” as it is one of the first municipalities to establish growth targets balancing infrastructure development and environmental conservation. And true to its motto of “Historic Past, Sustainable Future,” Okotoks has received national and international recognition for its environmental initiatives, so it’s no surprise they turned to Laserfiche to reduce paper consumption. Full story »

Principal Mark Berger

Advisors at Berger Financial Group, Inc., (BFG) have always taken pride in providing sound advice and stellar client service, but when it came to their filing system, they knew that improvement was crucial.

“We had file cabinets that were using up valuable space,” says Principal Mark Berger, “not to mention the substantial administrative time required to keep each physical file up-to-date. We knew we needed to improve our filing to improve our efficiency.”

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For attorneys, dealing with boxes and boxes of paper discovery documents is the norm. But as courts and prosecuting attorneys are beginning to provide documents digitally, defense attorneys can be caught unprepared.

Faced with trying State v. Valentini, the largest gambling conspiracy case in Arizona history, criminal defense attorney Howard Snader knew his old paper-based system wouldn’t work any longer. Full story »

Today’s the fifth anniversary of the largest blackout in U.S. history. Damage - from spoiled food to lost sales - is estimated at $6 billion.

According to the Wall Street Journal Business Technology blog, a recent Emerson Network Power survey showed that only 31% of the respondents had a business continuity plan to prepare for such disruptions, yet nearly 80% said they had experienced at least one power outage in 2007, and two-thirds said they expected another one to occur within 12 months.

Did you know that you can use Laserfiche as the foundation of your organization’s business continuity plan? Despite the recent floods in the Midwest, law firm Arenson & Zimmerman used Laserfiche to continue working, even though power at their offices would be out for at least four weeks. The weekend after the flooding began, staff set up remote computer connections for all attorneys and support staff so they could work from off-site locations.

Without Laserfiche, staff members would have had to carry large boxes of files down nine flights of stairs while holding flashlights. “Although the stair climbing would have put us all in much better physical shape, Laserfiche has allowed us to spend our time producing billable work,” concluded legal assistant Laurie L. Chappell. “Laserfiche definitely helped keep us going during this difficult time.”

What if your offices lost power for four weeks? Do you know how you could use Laserfiche to keep working? Download our white paper, “How Digital Document Management Streamlines Business Continuity Planning,” to learn more about how you can better prepare for disaster, whether it’s a power outage, an earthquake or a tornado.

In many cities, staff have to impose on the city clerk’s office whenever they need to consult a report, contract or other municipal document. But thanks to Laserfiche, staff throughout the City of Goodyear, AZ, can instantly access these items online, which helps them work more efficiently—and frees staff in the clerk’s office to spend more time helping the public.

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Established in 1993 as a full service broker-dealer, Workman Securities provides comprehensive services to registered representatives and their clients. But paper-based processes were impeding staff’s ability to provide quality services in a compliant manner.

“We used to print out e-mails to conduct surveillance,” remembers Operations Manager Kelly Buda. “And when you consider we have over 260 representatives and home office staff, that was a lot of paper.” Full story »

Did you know that entries for the 2009 Run Smarter awards are now open?

Every year, we award Laserfiche users with Run Smarter awards in five categories: government, financial services, healthcare, education and commercial. The only requirement to enter is that you’re using Laserfiche to improve efficiency in your organization!

Run Smarter award winners receive a scholarship and three night accommodations at the Laserfiche Institute Conference, which will take place January 12-14, 2009, at the Hilton Los Angeles Airport. We’ll also write an article about them that will be in the Laserfiche UserNews, and, probably best of all, they’ll get a beautiful, one-of-a-kind congratulatory plaque!

So don’t wait, because the entry deadline is July 31, 2008.

To enter, visit www.laserfiche.com/runsmarter. If you have questions, feel free to contact me at melissa.henley@laserfiche.com.

In 1954, Frank Bloss and Earle Dillard founded a small insurance agency, working alone out of a one-room office. Since then, Bloss & Dillard, Inc., (BDI) has grown into a successful managing general agency (MGA) with 1,500 agents and thousands of clients in West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

But success has its price, and for BDI, it came in the form of proliferating paperwork. As an MGA, BDI provides a broad range of insurance products to independent insurance agents. A staff of underwriters supports these agents by quoting and binding both commercial and personal insurance coverage, from simple property policies to highly sophisticated excess and umbrella coverage. Full story »

The majority of legal cases in California begin in one of the state’s 58 superior courts. With facilities in more than 450 locations, the superior courts hear both civil and criminal cases, as well as family, probate and juvenile cases. The superior courts make up the largest part of California’s judicial system—which is itself the largest in the United States. Full story »

Thinking of a traditional courthouse records room might conjure up images of file cabinets overflowing with folders, but that’s not how it works in York County, PA, where staff have used technology to streamline the thousands of cases that pass through the court system each year. Full story »