How can we introduce a paperless office that does more than change where documents are stored, making everyday administration more transparent as well? The following seven steps guide the transition from assessing current operations through a pilot to gradual expansion, with examples from HR onboarding and complaint handling.
What moves a case forward when paper disappears?
A customer complaint arrives by email. We save the attachment, forward the message, then try to find out a few days later who is handling it. The complaint was digital from the outset. Yet the case is still waiting, just like a document left on someone's desk.
Sometimes the email is printed, the printout is signed and dated, and then scanned back in
A paperless office works well when the workflow associated with a document moves the case forward. Colleagues know who owns the next task, what document or decision it requires, and when it must be completed. This requires developing the right technology and the organization's working practices together.
The seven implementation steps at a glance
Map document flows and the organization's working practices.
Select an initial process and measure the baseline.
Design the new working procedures and document lifecycles.
Choose technology based on the actual workflow.
Configure the system, integrations, and transition procedures.
Test with real cases and prepare the team.
Measure results, then gradually expand the rollout.
We illustrate the steps with two examples. In HR onboarding, several departments prepare for the first working day in parallel. For a customer complaint received by email, the investigation, response approval, and dispatch form a traceable case.
1. Map document flows and the organization's working practices
Follow a few real cases from start to finish. Record which channels documents arrive through, where new documents are created, who hands work over to whom, and how bottlenecks are identified. Also examine what happens when someone is absent and which decisions depend on a single colleague's personal knowledge.
HR onboarding. Where does HR receive the new hire's details, and how does IT know when access needs to be ready? Complaint handling. Who notices the incoming email, and how does the investigator receive the previous correspondence?
The assessment is complete when the process owner and the colleagues involved can identify handovers, exceptions, and waiting points on the same diagram.
2. Select an initial process and measure the baseline
For the pilot, choose a clearly defined, regularly recurring case type with a designated owner. Define where it starts and ends, and which team participates. For the selected metrics, record the baseline value, target, and evaluation date. Agree in advance on the results that will justify expansion and when further process improvements will be needed. Calculate the metrics consistently before and after the transition.
HR onboarding. Measure the proportion of new hires for whom everything needed for the first working day is ready. Complaint handling. Measure the time from receipt to sending the response, and the proportion of cases closed within the response deadline.
3. Design the new working procedures and document lifecycles
Designing working procedures. For each case type, document what triggers the process, which tasks follow, and who is responsible for them. Also clarify cover arrangements and exception handling.
Document lifecycles. For each document type, define what arrives from external sources and what can be generated from a template. Clarify the applicable retention and authenticity requirements: which documents can be managed exclusively electronically, and which paper originals must be retained. Treat scanning and disposing of the original as two separate decisions. Specify editing and sharing permissions, the version eligible for approval, and the events to be logged, along with the retention and access rules after closure.
After receipt, a document arriving by email, through Cégkapu, or via another electronic channel can enter the same workflow as a scanned paper document if they belong to the same case type. Make separate arrangements to preserve channel-specific data. Recording receipt and assigning a registration number where necessary are part of the intake process. The workflow tracks the case status and the next action.
HR onboarding. A draft contract can be generated from recorded data. HR can edit it, while IT receives the data needed for its own tasks. A missing declaration should hold up only those steps that actually require it.
Complaint handling. The assessment and the draft response created from a template are linked to the incoming email and its attachments. Approval applies to a specific version, and the dispatch event can be traced.
4. Choose technology based on the actual workflow
The choice should be guided by the work the team can jointly take on and the tasks the system needs to perform. The options below can be combined. Verify the capabilities of a specific product or configuration through testing.
Approach | When is it suitable? | What else needs to be organized? |
|---|---|---|
Scanning and shared storage, such as OneDrive or SharePoint | The main issue is that colleagues look for documents in different places. | Who uploads the material, what counts as an approved copy, and who can access it? |
Shared storage and an Excel register | Few cases run simultaneously, and the team can reliably track their status manually. | Who updates the list, and who checks that it matches the actual status? |
Document registration or document management system | The primary need is document identification, retrieval, version control or access management. | What document metadata, permissions and record-keeping rules are required? |
Document management with workflow support | The case involves multiple participants, parallel tasks, deadlines and approvals. | Who owns the process, how are exceptions handled, and which systems need to exchange data? |
For a team working informally, even assigning an owner and using a shared case status can make a significant difference. When handoffs and decision-making rules are clear, task assignment and deadline tracking can be introduced sooner. Targeted AI features are appropriate where they support a clearly defined task and their output can be verified.
During selection, give every vendor the same two tests. In onboarding, a declaration is missing, but IT preparations can continue. In complaint handling, the approver returns the draft response for revision. Check who receives the task, what happens to the deadline, which document version is visible, and what the audit log records.
5. Configure the system, integrations and transition procedures
Configure document templates, access permissions, handoffs and notifications. For each system, identify the source of authoritative data, what information needs to be transferred, and who handles errors if data exchange is interrupted. Test reprocessing as well, so that a repeated message does not create two cases.
HR onboarding. Decide which data comes from the HR system and what goes into the IT task management system. Complaint handling. Plan the connection between the shared mailbox and customer records, as well as how the sending of the response will be recorded in the case.
Before the transition, decide which active cases to migrate, which closed cases will remain in the previous archive, and from what date new cases will follow the new procedures. For migrated cases, verify the documents, status, owner and deadline.
6. Test with real cases and prepare the team
Start with a small group. Participants should use their own tasks to learn where to receive assignments, edit documents and record decisions. The process owner should identify where the team reverts to previous email-based coordination and determine whether this is due to a missing system feature, an unclear rule or a training need.
Test the standard case flow, requests for missing information, staff absences and documents returned for revision. Move forward only when, in every scenario, it is clear who is responsible for the case, what is expected of them, and which document version they are working with.
7. Measure results, then expand the rollout gradually
Compare pilot metrics against the baseline. In addition to turnaround times and deadlines, review the number of manual handoffs, the proportion of cases traceable in the system, and recurring exceptions. Evaluate the results of a short pilot in the context of the number and mix of cases.
For expansion, select the next team or case type, assign an owner, and check which rules can be carried over. A new department's approval procedures or access requirements may differ from those of the first team.
HUN-REN KRTK – Digitizing Travel Expense Claims
At HUN-REN KRTK, travel expense claims previously involved routing a significant volume of paper documents within the institution. xFLOWer automated the expense claim workflow, and the new way of working was rolled out across the institution within a few months.
Stakeholder | What did the transition make more transparent? |
|---|---|
Travelers | It became easier to track the progress of expense claims related to their trips. |
Requesters | The path of submitted requests and the next required action became clearer. |
Reviewers | It became clearer which cases were awaiting review. |
Approvers | They could more easily see which expense claims required their decision. |
The digital workflow connected the documents associated with each expense claim to the tasks based on them. This made each case easier to track from submission to decision.
Pitfalls and Success Factors in Going Paperless
In McKinsey’s 2018 survey of digital transformations in general, 16 percent of respondents reported both improved performance and their organization’s ability to sustain those improvements over time. The research highlights the roles of leadership, capability building, employee empowerment, tools and communication. This percentage applies to the digital transformations examined in the survey. The table below presents xFLOWer’s practical checkpoints. McKinsey – Unlocking success in digital transformations
Pitfall | Early Warning Sign | Success Factor |
|---|---|---|
Inadequate preparation | Participants describe the same case workflow differently. | A process agreed on using real cases, with an assigned owner and baseline measurements. |
Technology poorly suited to operations | Everything works in the demo until missing information needs to be supplied or someone needs to cover for a colleague. | Comparative testing using the same exception scenarios. |
Weak leadership commitment | Those involved are regularly granted exemptions from the new rule. | A leader who allocates time for the transition and resolves cross-departmental issues. |
Integration requirements identified too late | The same data has to be entered manually into multiple systems. | Data sources identified early, tested data exchange and a designated person responsible for handling errors. |
Too much change at once | The team maintains parallel lists and email threads. | A pilot suited to the organization, hands-on training and gradual expansion. |
Going live without metrics | The team knows how many files it has transferred, but has no comparable data on case turnaround times. | Predefined targets and regular management feedback. |
Getting Started Checklist
We have selected a case type and named the process owner.
We understand the current handoffs, waiting points and baseline metrics.
We have documented which documents are received or created and who is authorized to work on them.
We have tested a standard case and an exception case in the selected solution.
We have decided which records to migrate and which systems to connect.
We have agreed on the results required to expand the rollout.
In xFLOWer, document management and the tasks that move a case forward can be designed within a single workflow. The first tangible result of implementation is a case where employees can see the next task, the associated document and the background to the decision. xFLOWer Document Management · xFLOWer HR and Personnel Administration
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