Conundrum

Moving to electronic filing: Will ingrained habits be a major stumbling block?

One of the more subtly difficult aspects of converting from paper-based filing to electronic filing is culture shock.

When you have been working with paper documents and are inured to getting up to search for files or asking someone else to retrieve files for you, it's not as easy to stop as it might seem.

In fact, resistance to change is a common problem even when it is clear that the new approach to filing will be similar to the old way except for being easier, faster and more productive.

Officials in Niagara Falls, Ont., on the Canadian side of the world famous tourist attraction, recognized the potential for resistance when they installed their document imaging system. They took an unusual and, ultimately, very successful step to head it off.

Conventional Solution

OVER THE FALLS IN A BARREL WAS NOT THE ANSWER

"We let everyone know that we would no longer approve purchase orders for filing cabinets," reports Ray Miller, the City's manager of supplies and services. "Our thinking was that this approach would force us to bite the bullet and execute our plan to move away from paper files as soon as possible.

"When someone would say they needed a new filing cabinet, we'd ask them to make do with what they had and reminded them that our conversion to Laserfiche would be getting to their department very soon."

"As a result, the ban on new filing cabinets served more to remind people that something good was coming than that they were going to have a problem finding a place for their paper files."

Miller says that he has had very few difficulties enforcing the anti-filing-cabinets policy.

"I think it's because we involved every department in our efforts to find and select our document imaging software," he says. "We all participated in the in-house reviews of different systems. We went in groups to visit other installations. And then we agreed as a group that we'd get started with a pilot project in the Clerk's Office and Engineering Department before rolling it out everywhere else.

21st Century Solution

AND NOW WHAT?

"We have every department and more than a half million documents scanned into our document imaging system. And the number is on the rise all the time," Miller says.

"We've eliminated enough file cabinets to build three good sized meeting rooms.The new rooms have increased our capacity to have more face-to- face meetings in City Hall. People have been responding very favorably to that."

Niagara Falls still maintains some paper files, mostly signed documents that must be retained for legal reasons. Those files are kept in contemporary looking file cabinets that are on rollers and can be hidden away unless needed.

The City recently sold off 60 (now empty) filing cabinets at nominal costs to employees.

"It only took us one hour to get rid of them all," Miller says. "One guy said he was going to use it to store his baseball card collection. Several other people said they were going to put them in their garages to store tools. As additional filing cabinets become available, we are giving them to social service agencies that need them to store originals of important
documents."

This newsletter is an open space for you to share your experiences and knowledge. If you have a story about why or why not to keep paper files, or on another subject of concern to municipal officials, let us know. Similarly, if you'd like to suggest a document related conundrum for a future issue, please drop us an e-mail at usernews@Laserfiche.com. We look forward to hearing from you.

If you have a colleague who would like to receive this newsletter, please send an email called "subscribe" to usernews@Laserfiche.com with their name and email address.