Enterprise content management drives office sustainability – a fact that many
business leaders may be both surprised and delighted to hear. 

Bringing the concept of the eco-friendly office to life is a feat far easier said than done. With many organisations proclaiming to have mastered this challenge and embraced sustainable business practices, it can also be difficult to tell who is walking the walk and who is guilty of greenwashing.

Kyocera’s commitment to sustainability is intertwined with our pioneering, innovative spirit. For us, these two ambitions depend on each other. Our innovations, such as our ECM solution, help organisations uphold sustainable business practices by reducing the waste they produce, and minimising pollution caused by commuting and transporting files. 

What is an ECM solution?

Enterprise content management, or ‘ECM’, is a way for businesses to
digitise their processes and transform paper-heavy procedures into efficient, digital workflows. 

An ECM solution enables a business to store its documents in a secure, central repository. This makes it easy for employees to find and access their files, as often all they need to do is carry out a simple search for a document’s keywords.

ECM solutions also improve data security, as options such as Kyocera Enterprise Information Manager (KEIM) comply with GDPR to ensure a business doesn’t need to add data security to their list of concerns.

In short, enterprise content management makes businesses more efficient, secure, and flexible. Another unexpected bonus that many might not consider is that ECM also helps to boost office sustainability.

Use less paper and electricity with ECM

It’s simple – the more digital workflows you have, the less paper you will print. As a result, your printer will be in use less frequently and you will improve your office’s sustainability score. 

Invoices, contracts, employee records, order receipts – businesses handle a wide variety of paper documents every day. If your business has used ECM to digitise these materials, there will be no need to print or copy additional versions so everyone has access to the information they need. They can do so by simply accessing the digital repository where your business’ documents are stored, and then accessing the files to which they have been granted access. 

This doesn’t mean that you need to stop printing – on the contrary. Many
professionals still prefer to print out documents to read and annotate them without being disturbed by a blue light. However, an ECM means that your printing will become more controlled and deliberate, eliminating unnecessary prints that lead to paper waste and excessive energy consumption. This is one of the ways you can create an eco-friendly office that avoids producing waste. 

How ECM solutions power hybrid working

If employees only have physical versions of their files strewn across their desks or shuffled around in filing cabinets, they are forced to come into the office whenever they need to get their work done. However, if their organisation has digitised its business processes with ECM and transferred physical files to a digital repository, employees can instead access these files from anywhere. 

What’s more, collaborative work is a breeze wherever employees are located, as all employees can access the shared documents they need and make edits without causing frustrating version chaos or overwriting each other’s work.

As a result, there are far fewer workers travelling to the office every day, which leads to less pollution in our atmosphere caused by transportation. The positive impact of hybrid working on the environment is greater than one might think, with Forbes reporting that this type of model can cut carbon emissions in the UK alone by 70%. 

This is just one of the ways your business can embrace office sustainability – by redefining the very concept of ‘the office’ and empowering professionals to work from anywhere with the same productivity and synergy as they would in the office.

Boost office sustainability with secure file sharing

The power of ECM stretches even further than its ability to reduce your paper usage and facilitate hybrid working. It also improves sustainability by creating a way to share files securely and minimise the need for third parties and clients to travel to your place of business. 

One such example would be eSignatures. Once you have digitised documents such as contracts and customer forms, you can unlock the potential of eSignatures. With eSignatures, a customer or client no longer needs to travel to your business to sign a document, nor do you need to travel there yourself or post the document and pay for the necessary tracking service.

All you need to do is share the digital document with them, and then wait for it to be automatically returned to you once the required party has added their eSignature. It may seem like a small step, but, at the end of the day, driving office sustainability comes down to the way you set yourself apart from other businesses by finding unique ways to lower your carbon footprint. 

How ECM improves office sustainability

The benefits of ECM cover a wide range of challenges. From data security and efficiency to office sustainability, ECM solutions are the tool that any
business wishing to soothe multiple pain points at once requires.

In enterprise content management, businesses can find a new way to adopt sustainable business practices and cultivate an eco-friendly office. By minimising the amount of paper and energy you use and helping to cut down the number of cars on the road, ECM solutions have become the ideal way for businesses to simultaneously reduce their carbon footprint and boost productivity.