Business Information Systems: Paperless Office Case Study Analysis

This report analyzes a case study focusing on the implementation of paperless office systems within organizations like Hyde Group and Liverpool Direct. It examines the challenges and benefits of transitioning from paper-based processes to digital systems, highlighting improvements in efficiency, cost reduction, and customer service. The study explores how these companies leveraged technology to streamline operations, particularly in areas like recruitment and benefits claims processing. The report discusses the impact of digital transformation on various aspects of the business, including reduced paperwork, faster processing times, and improved employee productivity. It also addresses the hurdles faced during the transition, such as resistance to change and the need for system integration. The analysis draws on the case study details and relevant academic sources to provide a comprehensive overview of the shift towards paperless environments in business information systems.

Running head: BUSINESS INFROMATION SYSTEMS
BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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Table of Contents
Discussion..................................................................................................................................2
References..................................................................................................................................7

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Discussion
Paperless office is been a long dream to business organizations. Hyde Groups and Liverpool
Direct are looking in achieving offices which are 100% paperless. Staff members of the
organization have wasted too much time in stamping and filtering the mails. Every stamped
mails after that are manually assessed by other members of the team. As per McElginney,
nearly two hours have been wasted by staff members in locating the files. Contact centre for
both organizations are set up for handling customer visits and queries. It is not easy for
Liverpool and Hyde Group for reengineering system based on paper as things cannot be run
parallel with paperless system that is existing. For benefits of project, it is important in
modifying current approaches which are used by staff members to perform business
operations. According to Roddy Horton who is Hyde Group’s system manager, processes
are to be known by organizations for making them more efficient and effective.
According to McElhinney, there are significant delays caused by the paperwork and
also office space worth 750000 pound is taken up by these papers per year. For recruitment
process, candidates would get application form and information pack in post. These forms
would be filled in by the applicants and sent to recruiting managers and five people from
review panel. Several forms would then be filled by recruiting manager regarding interview
and then human resources are returned the forms that would give decision letter then to
candidate. This used to be very time consuming and hardworking process. People would get
files for hand operated assessment. Bottlenecks caused delays in paperwork and someone’s
desk would be filled up with files. Average time for turning benefit claim used to 140 days
and 50000 backlog cases were there as everything was being hold up by paper. The service
provided by the organizations seemed to be failing. Personal visit might be paid by a claimant

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and their files won’t be able to be located. Paper caused massive delays in every work in the
organizations.
For benefits of project, it is important in modifying current approaches that are being
used by staff members of the organizations to perform business operations. At present, staff
members of about 1200 are serving to close to 75000 customers. For stripping out 58000
paper sheets, Hyde group changed and computerized the overall process of recruitment.
Online form is logged in organization’s centralised database that could be used by group of
interviewers. An email would be received by the candidates, once decision has been reported
to human resources. Single electronic document has been opted by the organization which
could be referred to every parties whenever required.
When document is received, first scanning of the document takes place and then put
in digital file. These documents could be attached by data that dedicated team archived to
separate folders depending on the document’s content. Flags based on software could be set
then for document which could trigger actions. One trigger may cause letter for generating by
particular response. Application for recruitment is created on database of Northgate HR
which was brought by the company for managing few information of human resources.
ePeople was then purchased by it which is an application of human resources of Northgate
which enables company for providing database’s self-service front end. Workflow rules were
built by the developers in the system which coordinated with these communications.
Applications for recruitment join with expense claims that are already deployed which are
paperless and training request’s application, also designed for stripping paper within system
of the organization.
These communications are handled digitally by electronic system, so expenses
claims could be directly entered by the staff members into the system. Hyde group refined

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also expenses process through making possible in the system for requesting to another person
in signing a document. As digitalization was implemented by recruiting system, close to one-
third of paper is eliminated. There are hopes for increasing it to 80 percent through
digitalization of supplier invoices, repair requests and tenancy agreements. However the
organization is unwilling in getting rid of tenancy agreements based on paper and keeping
them for legal objectives in off-site location.
Though both the organizations implemented techniques for stripping away paper,
neither of the organizations are paperless yet. Great success is, however, achieved by
Liverpool Direct, by stripping away paper about 70 percent in process. None of the paper
which is bought personally in one-stop centres scanned is retained. However, any postal
agreement is retained after digitalization for almost 30 days. Attempt of Hyde Group in
digital deforestation is more muted. Even though offices which are entirely paperless is not
plausible, by stripping this quantity of paper out from the system could have positive results.
For instance, backlog in Liverpool is reduced to zero from 50000, while average time for
processing of benefit claims being dropped from 133 days to 19 days. Abandoned rates for
call dropped from 50 percent to 5 percent. Waiting time of personal visits related to benefit
claims is reduced to 4 minutes from more than 2 hours.
Hyde would have always few paper, even for not speaking strictly in office.
Nevertheless, with recruitment system that are paperless now used, and with previous saving
efforts of paper, it has eliminated 153000 paper sheets per year from the operations. Staff
members can enter the expenses in electronic system digitally. Expenses process has been
refined by Hyde group by adding functionality in system which would allow other person for
signing a document. Though, for several staff members, it was counterintuitive to sign
documents. And with this, they could be nervous also to introduce efficiencies for job threat.
70 percent of paper work has been stripped out by Hyde group and Liverpool Direct from

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current operations for business through deployment of digital recruitment system. About 80
percent paperless organization could be achieved by digitalization of repair requests, supplier
invoices and tenancy agreements. Actually, efficiency in the business operations of Hyde
group and Liverpool Direct could be increased by paperless office. In reality, total paperless
office might still be far away, however organizations could go long way in reducing what is
used by them and by increasing efficiency of the work as well.
Organizations are looking for paperless offices. In early times, many challenges were
faced by organizations due to paper work of operations. There were 50000 backlog cases
based on paper and 20000 mails were received at benefit office per weak. It took a lot of time
for staff members in stamping and filtering all these mails. These mails were manually
evaluated by other members. Staff members wasted about 2 hours in locating files. It is not
easy in reengineering system based on paper as existing system which are paperless cannot
run in parallel. It is important for modifying current approaches which are used by staff
members to perform business operations. The whole recruiting process was computerized by
Hyde group.
One of the challenges while re-engineering system based on paper is minimising
disruption. Stripping away previous techniques for work was essential part for the benefits of
the project. 58000 paper sheets were stripped away per year from system by computerising
recruitment process of Hyde group. Now database is used for keeping online application and
are sent to recruiting manager who forwards it electronically to interviewing panel. Once
human resources are reported about the decision, an email is received by the candidate. This
application for recruitment is generated on database of Northgate HR. Workflow rules were
built by developers in system which electronically coordinated the communications.
Recruitment applications then join expense claims which are paperless, are also designed for

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stripping paper from system. These communications are handled digitally by electronic
system, as staff members could enter the expenses claims in the system directly.
Both projects of Hyde group and Liverpool Direct had common problem for getting
people in changing the way in which work is done by them, especially what senior staff
members used to work in certain way. Liverpool Direct though has achieved great success by
stripping paper about 70 percent from its process. There are positive effects of stripping away
this quantity of paper. Backlog of Liverpool reduced to zero from 50000, call rates of contact
centre dropped to 5 percent from 50 percent and average time of processing of benefit claims
reduced to 19 days from 133 days. Total paperless work might still be far away, however
organizations are going long way in reducing the paper work and in increasing efficiency in
their work.

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