Digital Signature Blog

Lessen Our Impact on Trees

Everyday we use an amazing array of forest products. Forest products include more than just paper. Working together we can lessen the impact we have on the earth by eliminating the amount of paper we use.

Human beings have used forest products for thousands of years, and throughout history, cultures have struggled to obtain wood and manage forests. Today, more than ever, the world’s forests provide a treasure trove of valuable raw materials, from wood and paper to pharmaceuticals and food. The art and science of forest
management is constantly evolving.

We have learned more about forest management in the last 50 years than we learned in the previous 500 years.

However, as our population continues to grow and the demand for forest products increases, wise management and use of forest resources is all the more critical. Deforestation is one of the top recognized causes of the greenhouse affect. Plants and trees remove carbon from the atmosphere during photosynthesis. The decay and burning of wood release much of the carbon back into the atmosphere.

It's time for businesses to switch to digital and stop wasting trees on outdated practices.

Everyone can do something... just be mindful every time you use paper products.

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How Close Are We To Going Paperless?

Given the advantages of a paperless office, why is society not yet there?

The answer is deceptively simple: There is no substitute on the market today that is as portable, durable, simple, and accessible as paper for every aspect of a businesses functions. In fact, contrary to the Center for Energy and Climate Solutions’ study, the consumption of paper per capita in the United States has grown 43% since 1980, according to the American Forest and Paper Association. This works out to about 2 pounds of paper per person per day (Hilgen, 2000).

The transformation to paperless is not a painless undertaking. It requires carefully thought out implementation schedules from management and unbridled commitment from the entire organization. Paper is a medium which everyone can use and to which everyone has access. Why transform a business into using a medium of information exchange that is not comfortable to everyone? Another contributor to the slow transformation to the paperless office is the lack of standardization, particularly in relation to electronic-based office forms as well as digital signature solutions.

Business communications, documents and forms work well with digital signatures and flow simply eliminating the need for paper documents.

A 3-STEP PROCESS For Digital Signature Solutions

Step # 1 : Document creation, collaboration and revision.
Step # 2 : Document circulation, approval and execution.
Step # 3 : Document archive and retrieval.

Standard e-signature solutions have, until now, focused on low risk transactions and low volume applications. SIGNiX SIGNOLOGY is the next-generation solution that delivers significant value to companies by allowing business critical applications involving important legal and financial transactions to be digitally signed as part of a fully automated electronic process.

Transitioning To The Paperless College Admissions Office

Going paperless in your Admissions Office is difficult and costly if not done correctly. Creating an effective paperless plan can increase applications, assure compliance and minimize transition costs.

With the transition to a paperless admissions system, students applying to colleges and universities should find the process faster and more dependable, not to mention more helpful to counselors.

Making every applicant’s documents available electronically streamlines the process, saves time, and virtually eliminates the risk of losing materials. In addition, any admissions staff member can access a student’s file. That all adds up to better service for counselors and students alike.

By using SIGNiX for Education, both public and private universities – as well as institutions and medical colleges – are expanding student services, improving financial performance, enhancing operational visibility and reducing costs. The result is better management of communications for campus activities, student lifecycle, research, grants, financials, operations, human capital, procurement, and assets.

How Does SIGNiX Work for Higher Education?

* Provides the convenience of signing/reviewing documents, regardless of format, from anywhere
* Facilitates rapid completion of a transaction without delay
* Reduces direct costs of printing, overnight deliveries, couriers, copying, filing, storing, etc.
* Provides immediate application processing and obtains consent for background search for students, staff and volunteers
* Helps reduce the resources and costs associated with preparing, reviewing and archiving student and employment packages
* Helps provide a positive on-boarding experience for new students and new staff

Admissions will become fully paperless once more schools make the switch to electronic transcripts, greatly reducing the amount of time it takes to process an application. Timalyn O’Neill, Assistant Director of Admissions, said, “I’m confident this will result in even better service for students and counselors.”

Going Paperless Is A Process

The decision to go paperless is by far the easiest part of the whole process. The actual act of becoming paperless is a long process and should be planned in advance. At the outset, it seems impossible, but with some planning it can be a much smoother process. After the initial planning the the most important thing you can do is take Action! How do you attack this project? A little bit at a time.

Come up with a clearly written out schedule and stick to it. Measure it by either amount of files scanned in a day or number of hours spent scanning during the course of the day. Set aside one hour a day scanning. It sometimes ends up taking more time than we expect but in the end makes a huge difference. The point is to get started and to chip away at the monster a little bit everyday.

One misconception that many people have when starting out is that just opening a file and throwing it in the scanner is all that needs to be done. Scanning files and using less paper is just the beginning. In order to reduce further paperwork use digital signatures. In medical, financial, real estate, and government offices, often times documents have to be signed multiple times maning many pages are printed and usually several copies. Using a digital signature in these cases will greatly reduce paper as well as postage, paper and employee costs that are associated with such processes.

The Benefits of Using A Digital Signature Solution:

    * Signer Authenticity
    * Reduced Processing Time
    * Reduced Operational Costs
    * Security and Confidentiality for Documents and Data
    * Enhanced Process Efficiency and Optimization
    * Speedy Decision-making and Approval Process
    * Non-repudiation and Integrity

When people think of a paperless office, they usually focus on how to store documents in a digital form. This is important, but it misses the real point of going paperless. The real benefit comes from creating  documents in way that they are digital for the entire lifetime. Once a document gets printed out, you’ve broken the paperless life cycle.

Going Green is an opportunity to innovate and help the environment.

A True Commitment To Going Paperless

Going Paperless

Sounds easy doesn't it? You just decide one day that you're going to make your office a paperless one, as if becoming paperless was as easy as just making a conscience decision to do so. If that was the case wouldn't everyone be paperless, from the work at home mom to the largest insurance company? I would hope so, but I doubt it, which is partly the reason why it may just be impossible to become truly paperless. In order to become totally paperless every individual or business that your company works with must become paperless as well. Is that likely to happen soon? It's not likely.

If you're waiting to go paperless when everyone else does you'll be waiting a long time. Do it now. Make a hard, determined decision to go paperless and begin the long but ultimately rewarding process of getting it done. Concentrate on the future benefits of becoming paperless instead of dwelling on the seemingly insurmountable task of physically getting it done. It will be a large undertaking, but it is very achievable and not as difficult as one might think.

One part of going paperless is the digitizing your files. Do you have to filter your files first? No, of course not, but it sure will help in the future if you ever need to retrieve that information. Some of you may be fortunate enough to already know without a doubt that every document in every file is important, and therefore, will be scanned. In that case all you need to do is get busy scanning.

    * Remember to attack the monster one day at a time.
    * Quantify each days work by time or number of files.
    * Set a goal and schedule for each the week and stick to it.
    * Filter useless paperwork from files to be scanned.
    * Get busy scanning or pay someone to get busy for you.

The other step that must be taken is to put in place a digital signature solution for your company. Despite the myriad challenges faced by large institutions in today’s economic climate, it might just prove to be a perfect time for small- and medium-sized institutions to focus on green initiatives and grab market share from their competitors who have put these inniatives on the back burner.

In this age of Internet and mobile transactions, it’s hard to imagine some industries such as banks operating without paper. Whether a customer completes a paper application or internal documents are passed along for signatures most employees and customers still assume all transactions end with a stack of paperwork and a “wet” signature on the bottom line. There is technology that can reduce everyday paper use, while reducing costs.

The solution is to create an enterprise-wide digital environment that is superior to a paper-based environment—one that customers want to join because it makes their lives easier. There’s growing evidence that such green efforts boost the bottom line and can help companies outperform their competitors. It’s an opportunity to innovate and help the environment.

Digital Signatures: The Solution for the Paperless Office

With budget reductions affecting most businesses, there is an urgent need to improve efficiency and reduce costs. One of the easiest areas to reduce costs is those associated with printing countless documents that usually have to be scanned at a later date.

The slow rollout of digital signatures—despite laws clearly establishing their parity with wet signatures—exemplifies the inefficiencies still plaguing the digital world. E-signatures are a key step in executing a document management strategy. "With an e-signature, a document can be turned around in minutes not days." No matter how good the rest of the online experience is, “anytime you need an ink signature you trip yourself up by falling into the paper mode.” Nicole Kealey, Adobe

When people think of a paperless office, they usually focus on how to store documents in a digital form. This is important, but it misses the real point of going paperless. The real benefit comes from creating  documents in way that they are digital for the entire lifetime. Once a document gets printed out, you’ve broken the paperless life cycle.

THE GREEN BOTTOM LINE

Going green is almost synonymous with going paperless. By shedding paper a business can reduce the enormous environmental and business costs associated with paper’s creation, transport and disposal. However, kicking the paper habit will not be easy. Consumers’ hearts are in the right place, but if the paperless process is inconvenient or confusing most are not going to switch. It’s up to businesses to create a digital environment that consumers want to join because it is superior to their current paper-based environment. Some institutions are already working toward this goal by more fully automating back-end processes and making better use of digital signatures.

Despite the myriad challenges faced by large institutions in today’s economic climate, it might just prove to be a perfect time for small- and medium-sized institutions to focus on green initiatives and grab market share from their competitors who have put these inniatives on the back burner. It’s an opportunity to innovate and help the environment.

Go Green And Spend Less With Digital Signatures

The amount of paper used today is staggering. A typical document is copied 19 times, a typical office worker uses 10,000 sheets of paper each year, and a typical office discards 350 pounds of paper per employee each year, according to Ecopreneurist.com. Seven out of ten consumers receive paper bank statements. If every household stopped receiving paper bills and statements, 687,000 tons of paper would be saved every year—enough to circle the earth 239 times. The National Archives and Records Administration estimates that a cubic foot of records costs $23.24, virtually all of which is the rental cost of the office space.

In this age of Internet and mobile transactions, it’s hard to imagine some industries such as banks operating without paper. Whether a customer completes a paper application at a bank branch or prints the application off a bank’s website, most employees and customers still assume all transactions end with a stack of paperwork and a “wet” signature on the bottom line. There is technology that can reduce everyday paper use, while reducing costs.

For utility companies, hospitals & banks there is a heavy price tag to this paper addiction. A typical statement has an all-in cost of approximately $1.20, according to industry estimates, and multiplying that by millions of customers adds up very quickly. Industry experts state that the banking industry alone spends $70 billion to $80 billion per year on printing and mailing statements. This number does not include other paper correspondence, or any other costs associated with paper.

These are astounding numbers. But getting consumers to turn off the paper is not an easy task. Most consumers, even green-leaning ones, need an incentive beyond the environmental benefits to make the switch to digital. The solution is to create an enterprise-wide digital environment that is superior to a paper-based environment—one that customers want to join because it makes their lives easier. In an era of heightened environmental awareness, green initiatives resonate strongly with the public and can strengthen a businesses brand. There’s growing evidence that such green efforts boost the bottom line and can help companies outperform their competitors.

The Benefits of Going Paperless

The green businesses movement has certainly taken hold over the last decade. Until recently taking an operation wholly or partially paperless has met with varying degrees of success. many high By going paperless  a business at least in part can join the going green effort and reduce costs.
                
A business can save massive amounts of paper through electronic documentation. Energy savings are just as important and can be found by minimizing the use of print and copy machines. Supporting the green movement helps the environment and shows clients that your business cares about affecting it in a positive way.                
                
Traditionally businesses have spent countless dollars time and space maintaining paper business records.  Recently more and more business owners have cut costs and improved their operational efficiency by going paperless.  If this is something you've considered you may want to look into ways to incorporate digital signature technology to further reduce paper waste.    
                
By using esignature software or digital signatures you can now know that the documents you electronically sign are trustworthy and are an authenticated paperless transaction. Digital signatures are inserted into the document and easily travel electronically to their destination assuring the sender the signee data integrity and overall trust. Digital signature solutions can be seamlessly integrated with any business application without needing to change the existing workflow.    
                
Benefits                
                
*  Signer Authenticity                
*  Reduced Processing Time                
*  Reduced Operational Costs                
*  Security and Confidentiality for Documents and Data                
*  Enhanced Process Efficiency and Optimization                
*  Speedy Decision-making and Approval Process                
*  Non-repudiation and Integrity                
                
Digital signature software can now meet the demands of large    transaction-driven businesses that currently rely on manual or semi-automated financial and operational signing processes. Whether the signing processes are performed on a daily weekly  monthly or yearly basis digital signatures can now be trusted.    
                
Until now standard e-signature solutions have focused on low risk transactions and low volume applications. The next-generation solution delivers significant value to companies by allowing business critical applications involving important legal and financial transactions to be digitally signed as part of a fully automated electronic process.           

Improve Contract Turnaround Time & Save Money with Digital Signatures

Organizations have become increasingly confused about their digital signature software options due to the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN). This act officially gives electronic signatures the same legal standing as handwritten ones.

As a result, terms such as digital signature software and electronic signature software are often used interchangeably, even though both technologies are very different. So what is the difference?

Digital signature software is the result of a cryptographic operation. The digital signature software technology guarantees data integrity and non-repudiation of transactions. This ensures that the digital signature cannot be copied, altered, or corrupted.

Standard e-signature solutions have focused on low risk transactions and low volume applications. “SIGNiX SIGNOLOGY is the next-generation solution that delivers significant value to companies by allowing business critical applications involving important legal and financial transactions to be digitally signed as part of a fully automated electronic process.

Authenticity: The digital signature helps to assure that the signer is who he or she claims to be.

Integrity: The digital signature ensures that the content has not been changed or tampered with since the document was digitally signed.

Non-Repudiation: The digital signature helps prove the origin of the signed content to all parties. "Repudiation" refers to the act of a signer denying any association with the signed content.

By integrating SIGNiX into your workflow, you’ll be a few steps ahead of competitors who have yet to embrace electronic signatures and document processing. Plus you can do more with less:

Better, faster service to your customers, with lower costs and more efficient use of resources

More electronic capabilities and capacity available when you need it without discarding your existing business processes or legacy systems

Immediate return on investment with limited or no up-front capital expenditures, and no long, expensive implementation projects

In today’s competitive business world, superior customer service is a must. That’s where SIGNiX becomes your competitive advantage. Instead of asking the consumer to wait up to a week or more while you print, collate and courier a stack of paper documents for their signature, SIGNiX allows you to deliver mission critical business documents online - for immediate execution.

Digital Signature Compliance for the Health Care Industry

The growing adoption of digital signatures in the Health Care industry can be attributed to the need for administrative efficiency and improved record/data management. Also, legislation has been passed in countries around the globe, mandating the protection of patients' digital medical records.

The benefits that health care organizations have obtained from digital signatures include all of the above and more, not to mention cost savings. The South Carolina Department of Mental Health saved over $4 million dollars in the first year of implementing digital signatures solely from eliminating the need to print and route thousands of documents daily across their ten locations.

Despite the growing acceptance of digital signatures among health care organizations, many are still left in the dark. Providers are so accustomed to using paper for signature approval processes that they often don’t recognize the disadvantages of doing so. They’re often quite aware of how significant the benefits can be from turning their paper-based approval processes into electronic, but they don’t realize that it’s not “all or nothing”.

SIGNIX SIGNOLOGY is a complete enterprise signature solution which introduces enhanced capabilities that support diverse and complex signing processes of documents, forms and business communications with a range of security that fits your signing needs while mitigating risk and reducing costs.

SIGNiX digital signing solutions can be customized according to the needs of the enterprise. Any SIGNiX SIGNOLOGY solution assures a trustworthy, authenticated paperless transaction, while automating and speeding up the business process, improving staff productivity and providing a quick return on investment (ROI).

Digital signatures are inserted into the document and easily travel electronically to their destination, assuring the sender, the signee, data integrity and overall trust. SIGNOLOGY solutions can be seamlessly integrated with any business application without needing to change the existing workflow.