Want your business to go paperless? This one did.

Posted on 5 May, 2022

How much paper do you churn through at work? Do you have a plan to decrease the waste and go paperless?

I’d love to share our paperless journey with you.

11 years ago, when I started Capital Hydrotherapy and Exercise Physiology, I would never have envisioned a paperless clinic.

I was all about the pen to paper. I couldn’t imagine bringing an electronic device near water—let alone IN WATER!

I now have a very systemised plan, transitioning from pen and paper to iPads, which are all water and drop-proof (gait analysis with an iPad underwater anyone? So cool!).

11 years ago, it was unique to have a website.

I had no IT plan, and social media was just catching on for small business. MySpace anyone?

11 years ago, I didn’t have the internet at my fingertips.

I loved my flip phone where I could send a very clunky text (without the seven emojis of how I was actually feeling!) and the thought of taking photos ON your phone wasn’t a thing either (or at least I couldn’t afford a phone that would allow that!). Fast forward 11 years, and we can show you in real-time your movement patterns.

What was the defining moment I knew it was time to go paperless, you ask? It was two motivators:

• Filing cabinets. Yuck. I loathe clutter. Chunky, grey, loud, space-wasting filing cabinets. Being in the medical and insurance space, we need to keep every bit of information safe and secure.
• And a tech-savvy crew of 13 teammates, who need information at their fingertips—very different to the one-girl show 11 years ago.

It’s taken a year of planning to make the paperless magic work as I had to transition to a new system, to allow the business to move over to a cloud-based server—and scan 11 years of important labour! Hard to believe I could set up a hydrotherapy business in New York or Harden now?!

Here are my top seven tips, if you’re wanting to make the paperless move:

• Find the reason WHY you want to go paperless. This will keep you motivated through the paperless obstacles and barriers.
• Have an end date and work back from there.
• Think about what is absolutely necessary to print.
• Schedule a meeting about your plan and get the team on board.

• Have ONE team leader to organise the transition. Schedule time for them to make the magic happen. Meet with them regularly to schedule what needs to happen before the next meeting. Our magician was Rachel, and she deserves a holiday as a reward!

• Have a sign at your workplace saying, “We’re going paperless by 30/05/22”. Or whatever date you choose. It reminds the team to not print if it’s not necessary. Having an end goal date as motivation is crucial.
• Organise a paperless party—this needs to be celebrated. It’s a big job, but totally worth it! Our paperless party is in July 2022.

It’s been a journey. When’s your paperless party?