Paper Tiger Blog

The article below is a great start to declutter your home or office and a plan for beginning and maintaining a recycling program for unwanted items.

For the paper files that you need to keep in hard copy format and other items, such as instruction booklets, or CDs, DVDs, Books, home or office inventory and many other physical items, use Paper Tiger Filing System Software for document management to get organized!

For the paper files that you plan to scan for a more paperless (or less paper) environment, use Google Docs as your digital file storage location. Google Docs is the lowest cost digital file storage system available through a Google or Gmail account. And Google Docs would be more convenient than storing your digital files on your hard drive which would take up valuable memory, or keeping up with CDs or Flashdrives.

In addition, Paper Tiger Online Basic and Pro plans have Digital Tiger functionality, which allows customers to connect their Paper Tiger Online account to their Google Docs account. Then they will be able to search from one place to find both their paper/physical items that they’ve indexed into Paper Tiger and their digital files that they’ve uploaded or created into Google Docs format.

Recycling is the most important part of waste management for a home or office to prevent landfills from getting bigger and bigger. Reducing the collective carbon footprint is possible if each individual participates. Offices tend to be impersonal places where employees may not think about what they throw away. Recycling needs to be as easy as leaves to a tree, so that everyone will do it. Here are 10 tips for encouraging employees to recycle waste in an office.

1. Make it a group effort: A group of employees can join together to make a team that helps educate other employees about recycling, and introduces ways to make it easy. Some people are more environmentally savvy than others, and there will be two or three in an office who take recycling seriously and would probably love to encourage others to recycle.
2. Audit waste production: The team can first perform a waste audit to determine what kind of waste a particular office generates. Most offices have paper in the form of office paper, newspaper, magazines and cardboard. Also, aluminum cans, plastic bottles and containers and printer cartridges. Depending on the industry and type of business, there will be unique items. The team can set goals for the office to recycle 100% of their waste in a month or a year.
3. Provide waste-specific recycling bins: The first thing an office needs is waste bins for different kinds of waste. Plastic, paper, metal and glass should be separated. This can be all-in-one units with each compartment clearly marked or separate bins clearly marked. There are even small desk size bins for paper and plastic. It doesn’t need to be complicated.
4. Locate bins strategically: Separate bins can be placed close to where the waste is generated. Paper receptacles should be near copiers, fax machines and printers. Bins for food containers such as glass, plastic and metal should be in break rooms or cafeterias. Bins for cardboard should be in shipping rooms.
5. Create a cohesive policy on paper usage: Paper is approximately 40% of waste in most offices. The company should also buy recycled paper for printing. Always use both sides of a sheet of paper. Either print on both sides or use one side for handwritten notes. When the piece of paper is used up, put it in a receptacle only for paper. One ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees, 7,000 gallons of water, 3 cubic yards of landfill space and 380 gallons of oil.
6. Recycle old computer hardware: Find a certified place in the locality where used or broken computers and computer parts can be given for recycling. Companies that recycle electronic parts are certified by the EPA to meet standards for responsible recycling. Also, contact the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation to properly dispose of batteries and cell phones. Many states have mandatory collection and recycling programs for electronics.
7. Employ a specialist to pick up waste: There are recycling companies that will pickup waste that has been separated for a fee. They will give rebates on some of the collected materials. They will have the information on recycling computer parts and batteries. The team can arrange this. It takes 450 years to break down one plastic bottle. Recycled, 25 bottles can make one fleece jacket.
8. Incite employee participation: If the office recycles regularly, the expenses will reduce. A percentage of this savings could be passed on to the employees in a gift or office party. Custom printed golf shirts, tote bags or baseball caps, made from recycled material, make great gifts. They can have the company logo and a tag line that says, Zero Carbon Footprint.
9. Point out the social benefit of an environmentally correct office: An office culture of recycling will produce a sense of pride in the responsible actions of the employees. It is an easy way to feel that they are participating in something worthwhile that will sustain the environment for the future.
10. It’s going to take time: Recycling is easy to do, but it may take getting used to for some. Old habits are hard to break, but education can help. Give the facts to the employees via email every week to convince them that recycling is in their best interest. It conserves natural resources such as water, timber and minerals. It reduces the amount of energy needed in product production. Since it reduces the use of wood and metal, it prevents loss of soil erosion due to logging and mining.

A well organised office will lend itself to a program of recycling. With knowledge and encouragement, employees will soon become accustomed to recycling; and not recycling will become unacceptable. Inform the entire office of the plan. Let the recycling team give tours of the new waste bins and how to use them. Employees need not feel forced into recycling, but they should see for themselves the benefit and want to participate.

About the Author:

John Brook writes reviews of stationery online as well as other business supplies and equipment at the Office Kitten.

Do you hate your alarm clock in the morning? There are a lot of reasons that you might dread going to work, but one of the reasons might be because your desk is overflowing with paperwork. If so, then you need to know the secret to happy filing so your day isn’t so dreadful.

People spend a lot of time at work. In most jobs, there’s some form of filing system and very often that’s what makes the difference between happy and unhappy staff. It’s also a major factor in the overall success of the business when you and your staff can find what is needed, when it’s needed, instead of wasting a lot of time searching through stacks.

Paper is a challenge that everyone faces at work and people constantly seek better alternatives so they can be more efficient with their time. Regardless of the size of your company, there are only five different choices when it comes to dealing with paperwork.

Your first choice is the Trash/Recycle Bin:

This one is a favorite for many overworked staff members who toss everything they can into the trash. We suggest recycling or shredding as appropriate.

Unfortunately, you simply can’t get away with throwing out everything because so much of this paper contains valuable information and is needed, either now or in the future. This means that you must find another way to file these papers.

Your second choice is “The Stack”:

This is a great option if you have very little paper to deal with everyday, but when stacks of paper start to appear on your desk. Then more stacks appear on the floor, chairs, shelves and any other flat surface you can use, you have a surmountable problem.

If you have your own office, then it will inevitably become very cramped. If you decide to use this rather disorganized system, you’ll waste countless hours searching through the stacks to find specific files or documents that you need to work on. Experts estimate that 150 hours are wasted each year searching for lost items. There must be a better way.

Choice Number Three is Using an Alphabetical Filing System:

This type of document management system has been used for a long time as it doesn’t require the use of computers. A filing cabinet or set of drop files is the popular way to store files. However there are problems with this type filing system.

Different people may use varying titles and so file duplication can occur. As your company grows, so does the number of filing cabinets or shelves. Then it becomes increasingly difficult to file new material and locate previously filed documents. If a drawer gets too full, everything needs to be moved so that the alphabetical system remains in order. This can be a very tedious task. Lots of time and money get wasted on such an unproductive part of people’s jobs.

Your Fourth Choice Is Scanning:

Scanning can be a great way to reduce the amount of paper you use. The office doesn’t need as much storage for files because your filing can be more streamlined. This is a great method of filing IF you’re prepared to tolerate the poor quality of some documents and the fact that there are many types of items that can’t be scanned, such as bound documents, contracts that need to be kept in original paper form, etc. Of course, it also takes time to remove staples in a stapled file, and if you miss any, there will be a jam in the scanner to deal with.

Many people keep the originals in case the scanned documents create problems, thus causing double handling to occur and defeating the whole purpose of trying to streamline your filing system. Some have also said that they wind up reprinting more than they would have if they had just left their files in paper form.

In addition, good quality scanning equipment isn’t cheap and can also be expensive to maintain, not to mention storage of scanned documents. Such equipment can break down easily and cause havoc if there isn’t another option to use for your filing.

Finally We Come to Choice Number Five – Indexing!

It’s the 21st century, afterall. Why should you use methods that are cumbersome and costly in terms of time and money? Indexing is the answer!

• You can still recycle when needed or keep track of archived files in a more efficient manner.
• You won’t have to face the stacks of files and documents on a daily basis.
• You can stop trying to figure out what your colleagues decided to label that file you need urgently.
• You can return the expensive scanners you have out on lease.
• You can keep your original papers intact with an indexing system software.
• Indexing makes the labeling of files easy and consistent so everyone files the same way.

No longer will you have to waste hours looking for or recreating that lost document. You can simply conduct a search in the software’s database and instantly you know exactly where the searched file is located.

There are many advantages to an indexing system software:

• Less time and money is spent on filing and retrieval.
• Staff will actually enjoy coming to work.
• Original documents can be kept intact and stored in whatever format you receive them.
• The system is so easy to learn, everyone from the relief assistant to the CEO will be able to use it.
• You don’t need extra machinery as you simply use existing computers and new software that pays for itself very quickly.

Indexing is the best choice and the secret to a better and more efficient filing system. Try Paper Tiger Filing System Software for Document Management today!

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