4 Office Processes to Optimize During Spring Cleaning

Spring cleaning in the office can actually take place any time of the year. Rather than sweeping cobwebs out of the corners, turn your attention to inefficiency within the office itself. Wouldn’t you love to save time and money simply by making smarter decisions while “cleaning up” all the loose ends?

Make It Multifunctional

laser printer
Image via Flickr by vernieman

Does your office have a fax machine, a printer, a landline, a scanner, and a copier? Why? It’s time for an upgrade””for everything. Rather than having almost half a dozen separate machines, move up to a multifunctional option.

There are all kinds of multifunction printers that easily let you send and receive calls and faxes while scanning or copying to your heart’s content. While separate phones might still be necessary, you can simply upgrade your printers in different quadrants of the office. You’ll have two or three machines and not five or ten.

Let the Software Schedule It

office workers
Flickr by mimsmithfaro

Job scheduling software makes the office much more efficient. Humans are fallible. If you have a secretary, receptionist, or scheduling assistant who’s ever missed an important meeting, incorrectly scheduled a presentation, or simply made a lot of small mistakes, you’re losing time and money. Rather than risking further mistakes, let the computer schedule things for you. In fact, look for software that lets your computer reach its full potential.

Allowing your office computers to make schedules, handle payroll, and take care of client contacts decreases the chances of human error. That ultimately puts money back into your business.

Think Like the Jetsons

robotic vacuum
Flickr by Bruce&Hollie

The Jetsons promised that robots would one day do everything for humans””and that day has nearly arrived. Instead of relying on janitors to take care of the floors or having closets stuffed full of mops, brooms, and vacuum cleaners, think of something else.

A robotic vacuum is much more efficient and it doesn’t ask for overtime. It’s small, quiet, and unobtrusive, yet it will quickly and thoroughly pick up all the dirt and detritus associated with a day at the office. There are also robo-vacuums that take care of hard surfaces, such as tiled bathroom floors.

Create a Perfectly Paperless Paradise

cluttered desk
Flickr by public.resource.org

Going paperless is great for the environment but it’s also great for your bottom-line. By keeping everything electronic, you won’t spend money on printer paper. You won’t run the risk of losing important documents, especially if you back up everything on inexpensive, reusable thumb drives.

By going paperless, you won’t need a secretary or assistant whose only job is filing””there aren’t any papers to file. You also won’t have to shred any documents, because no one outside of the computer system has access to them. At the same time, sharing documents within the office is much easier.

This year, take spring cleaning to another level and turn your attention beyond dirty shelves and dust bunnies by making the office more efficient. Saving time, money, and effort pays off immediately for your personal and professional lives.

Sources:
http://lifehacker.com/5755870/how-to-ergonomically-optimize-your-workspace
http://www.thegoldhillgroup.com/how-to-optimize-your-office-for-success/
http://www.datamaxarkansas.com/blog/web-master/optimize-your-office-workflows