Elite Imaging Systems March News and Updates

March 1, 2021

Don’t Fall Behind: Why e-Signatures Are the Future of Business

Long before so many professionals worked remotely and people tried to avoid human contact, e-signatures were a popular solution. They enable people to legally provide consent or approval by signing documents online from wherever they are, instead of being required to put pen to paper. Whether it’s salespeople using them to close deals faster, HR departments speeding up the hiring process, or law firms preventing themselves from getting bogged down by paperwork, forward-thinking companies take advantage of this valuable technology to improve efficiency within their workflows. However, in our highly distributed business landscape we currently work in, e-signatures are more beneficial now than ever. Here’s how your organization would benefit from putting down the pen and paper and switching to e-signatures.

Convenience. Imagine how much your business processes would be streamlined if your clients, vendors, or employees could sign a document from any device, anywhere, at any time. No longer do you have to print paper documents, mail them, then wait for them to be signed and mailed back to you. Or even worse, consider the hassle of emailing a document to someone, requiring them to print it out to sign and then scan it to email it back, only to find they don’t have easy access to a device to do so. With e-signatures, you can get a legally binding signature on a document without anyone having to jump through hoops. This leads to greater convenience and satisfaction for everyone involved. 

Savings. Money matters to any business, and e-signatures enable you to lower costs. According to LunarPen, companies migrating from paper to e-signatures save between 55 and 78 percent. DocuSign puts those savings at $20 per document. Switching to e-signatures will provide you with an immediate ROI that will improve your bottom line.

Speed. Exchanging paper documents back and forth for signatures can be a time-consuming, highly inefficient process that slows down business processes. Utilizing e-signatures rather than signed documents allows you to cut the time to obtain signatures from days to minutes. Imagine being able to speed up your transactions and workflows this much by simply adopting a secure, simple-to-use technology!

Isn’t it about time you streamlined your transactions and business processes without sacrificing security? If you’d like to learn more about e-signatures and how this revolutionary technology would transform the way you do business, contact us today.

Don’t Let Interruptions Hijack Your Workday

In a bustling workplace, there’s no shortage of stimuli available to interrupt us while doing our job. With more professionals working from home than ever before, we’ve discovered it can be even more challenging in our residence to avoid distractions and keep your nose to the grindstone. No matter where you work, it’s hard to be productive with incessant interruptions breaking our concentration and distracting us from the task at hand. That’s why it’s important for us to manage potential disturbances regardless of where we work. 

Here are a few tips to help you eliminate interruptions while working.

Tune out – In the office, headphones will not only drown out bothersome noise and enable you to better focus on your task at hand, but they are a great way to notify co-workers that you do not wish to be disturbed. By utilizing headphones, you’re signaling that work is being done.

Don’t always be available – Don’t allow people to interrupt you. Schedule ‘unavailable’ periods throughout your work week, during which it’s known you are not to be disturbed. Close your door, put up a ‘do not disturb’ sign, set your messaging app to ‘busy,” etc. Do whatever it takes to let your co-workers or housemates know you are unavailable during this time and should not be interrupted unless it’s an emergency.

Turn off your technology – Even when you’re trying to ignore communication from others, it can be difficult to do so when you know an email or chat is awaiting your response. Eliminate the urge to reply immediately by turning off the ringer on your phone, closing your email program, and logging out of your internal chat application. You can follow up and address the matter when you’ve got a free moment.

Take a break – Many distractions at work are our fault; we interrupt ourselves. While we can’t control others, we can better control ourselves. Stop sabotaging yourself by avoiding self-interruptions. Determine what your temptations are and take measures to mitigate them. If it’s your phone, turn it off when you’re not using it. If it’s activity outside of your window, close the blinds when you need to focus. Schedule routine brief breaks throughout the day for you to indulge in these activities, so you can still enjoy them without any negative impact on your concentration. 

It can be challenging to pick up where you left off when interrupted during work. Get out ahead of these distractions by using these tips to prevent them before they occur.

IT Costs Racking Up? Here Are 5 Ways to Reduce Them

Businesses today rely on internet technology (IT) to operate. They also rely on cash flow, which all too often is in short supply. While no business can afford to pull the plug on their IT as a cost-cutting measure, there are ways to trim some fat in this area to free up your resources without hurting the long-term health of your company. With that in mind, here are some quick ways to lower IT costs.

Take it to the Cloud – If your business isn’t already utilizing the Cloud, consider making the shift. Storing your data in the Cloud as opposed to on your own servers will result in significant cost savings. You’ll be spared the expense of paying for hardware and the space to store it, as well as training your staff to operate and maintain it, software licenses, and electricity costs. Instead, you’ll benefit from a pay-as-you-go model, which most Cloud providers offer.

Consolidate your platforms and vendors – Odds are, you’re overpaying for IT due to redundancies. Review the platforms, services, and vendors you’re using to look for any duplicated services to make sure you’re only paying for what you need. In addition, consolidating to a single vendor could provide you the opportunity to negotiate a better deal in the form of a discount by giving them all of your business.

Eliminate wasteful subscriptions – Another area in which companies often overspend is their subscription services. Are you paying for services that aren’t necessary? Annual subscriptions can easily be overlooked, especially when they are renewed automatically. Take the time to review your current subscriptions and terminate any that you don’t need or use at all.

Take advantage of free resources – Rather than paying for all of the software you utilize, do your research to determine if there’s a free version of it available. Many software providers offer free versions of their product that lack some of the bells and whistles the paid version includes but are still useful enough for your purposes. Don’t pay for the full version if you don’t have to.

Outsource your IT – Adequately managing an IT environment requires a great deal of resources, which most small- and medium-sized businesses struggle to afford. By outsourcing the management of your IT to a Managed IT services provider, you’ll have access to the technology and expertise you need without the massive overhead that comes along with employing your own staff and doing it yourself in-house.

While it’s essential to any company, IT is a challenging and costly solution that many smaller organizations struggle to keep up with. If your business would like to learn more about partnering with a local third-party IT provider to do the heavy lifting for you, contact us today!

Video Conferencing Fatigue: What It Is & How to Combat It

For most professionals, video conferencing has become a part of our daily duties. These virtual communication platforms have served a valuable purpose, allowing us to connect with our co-workers and clients despite being in different locations by replacing what were formerly in-person connections. However, despite its usefulness, many of us have grown tired of this technology and now find it literally exhausting. And there is even science to back up the syndrome known as video conferencing fatigue.

A recent study conducted by Microsoft’s Human Factor Labs monitored the brainwaves of subjects utilizing workplace technology. They found that video meetings resulted in higher brainwave indicators associated with overwork and stress than other work activities. 

Why are video conferences exhausting? They demand more focus from us to absorb information and remain engaged, requiring more energy compared to face-to-face communication. Processing non-verbal clues such as the tone of someone’s voice and facial expressions is hard work. Additionally, video conferencing often results in constant gazing at the camera to demonstrate we’re paying attention, something we don’t do when in someone’s physical presence. This nonstop gaze without visual breaks causes our brains to become fatigued. During a video conference, we’re not afforded the same opportunities to relax as we are when conducting in-person or telephone communication.

While video conferencing fatigue is real, there are ways to make this technology more bearable to reduce its negative impact on us and our productivity. A great way to eliminate fatigue is by keeping your calls less than 30 minutes. The problem only grows worse over time, so don’t engage in lengthy sessions. If you must, break them up with respites that allow everyone to take five. (Or ten.)

Another way to reduce video conferencing fatigue is by avoiding back-to-back calls. Always have a buffer between meetings that allows you to give your brain a pause. During these breaks, get up from your desk and move around to give your eyes a rest.

Finally, turn off your camera from time to time. Unless absolutely necessary, save the camera for important meetings to reduce screen time during the workday. Phone calls, emails, and instant messaging still work as viable methods of communication, just as they did when we were all in the office. Utilize them occasionally and give video conferencing a rest.

Video conferencing should make our jobs easier, but overuse can result in them being impediments to productivity and our well-being. Don’t fall victim to video conferencing fatigue.