Going Almost Paperless in 2009
Three Offices Leading the Way
Presenters
Richard Porter, Director of OISS,
Washington State University
 Greg Simkiss, Assistant Director of ISSS,
Georgia Institute of Technology
 Jason Baumgartner, IOffice CEO, OIS,
Indiana University
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Technology Tools
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Washington State University
◦ F-1 Students and J-1 Students and Scholars FSA Atlas Enterprise Edition
◦ H-1B and Permanent Residency Cases Immigration Tracker
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Georgia Tech
◦ F-1 and J-1 Students –
FSA Atlas Enterprise Edition
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Indiana University
◦ All Categories
IOffice
Why
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Less paper usage (be a green office)
Frees up precious space when filing cabinets are
moved out.
No longer a need to keep both electronic and paper
documents current (the web site and your database
become the primary document repositories).
Fits with the way students seek information
All information in one location (documents attached
to a record in a database)
No more searching for missing/misplaced paper files
No more need to make and retire paper files
Before
After
Before
After
Welcome Packet/Thumb Drive
Scanning During Check-in
Web-centric students = web-centric office
Handout Dispenser
To Computer Kiosk for Web Access
Note the Digital Photo Frame
Goodbye to Paper & Paper Processes
Stage1: Maximize Use of Database Systems
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Data Integrity
• Keep the data accurate and up-to-date.
Whether you use iOffice, fsaAtlas, PASS, or a custom software to
manage your data needs the first way to move paperless is by
having good data integrity in the database.
• Make the database the first line of record
checking instead of reaching for the student’s
folder.
Stage 2: Maximize e-Communications
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Emails
• Setup alert driven emails triggered by the systems that can be
automated and saved as notes in the client’s record.
• Store individualized email correspondence as notes in client’s
record; and if possible have the system pickup that email after
you send it from Outlook.
• End the process of printing out emails for the student’s or
scholar’s folder.
• Use systems for general email announcements (i.e. no more
paper newsletters) as well.
Stage 2: Maximize e-Communications
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Enhance Web Informational Resources
• Move from spending time on paper handouts, promotional
materials, initial supplemental documents to more time on the
website.
• Direct traffic to the website (i.e. via automated emails).
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Client Web Access to Information
• Provide clients secured access to information like notes or alerts
you’ve communicated on along with the status of their case.
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Expand into Web 2.0 (Facebook)
• Setup Facebook page or application to get information out to
students and also use for marketing of events (no paper
marketing).
Stage 3: From Paper Forms to e-Forms
 PDF Fill-able Forms (Accessible to Anyone)
• Provide access to fill-able forms from the website. Clients can
choose to download, save, and email them to the office.
• Still results in many print-outs of these forms that then to be
scanned into the system.
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Online Electronic Forms (e-Forms)
◦ Provide online e-Forms for client (student or scholar) and
department that can be secured through a web portal and
access based upon their credentials.
◦ Electronically route an e-form for approvals like from an
academic advisors, departmental chairs, head of hiring unit, etc.
Stage 3: From Paper Forms to e-Forms
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Online Electronic Forms (e-Forms cont.)
• Allow for supplemental materials (i.e. new financials) to be
attached, uploaded, and automatically indexed with the e-form.
Stage 4: From Photocopying to Scanning
 Reduce What Needs to be Scanned
• Receive requests in PDF or e-Form.
• Enable clients to submit scanned supplemental materials with the
request to index (or auto-index via e-Form) into the system.
• Have any faxes auto transformed to PDF and either emailed or
placed on file server for indexing into the system. Most fax
machines can do this work.
 Scanning for All Remaining Documents
• Orientation check-in, data collection, scanning (i.e. passport, visa),
and document check via the system.
• Consider models for day-to-day scanning workload:
 Provide scanners to most, or all, staff members.
 Centralize this work into an existing or new position.
Stage 4: From Photocopying to Scanning
 Plan Out the Transition
• At Indiana University we setup goals and objectives to stay on
course as we transitioned to e-forms and began the scanning
model.
• Implemented pieces at a time so the task was not too
overwhelming.
• Committed to the full transition at a defined point in time after
several pieces had successfully been converted.
• Decision of what to do with existing folders. At IU we did a final
close out and all existing folders were scanned into the system
with one PDF file per folder indexed as an archive - conversion
of paper records.
Stage 5: From Folders to e-Case
Management &Workflow
 Tracking
Cases without
Folders (IU example)
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Important to have paperless way
to track cases through
completion.
Electronic case assignments via
alerts, e-forms, front desk checkin, manual assignment, etc.
Provide status updates via email
and online to the student, scholar,
and department.
Challenges
Stakeholder objections
 Technological resources and expertise
 Making decisions and sticking with them
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Stakeholder objections
Colleagues in your office
 Academic and administrative departments
 Students
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Technological resources and
expertise
Who is the financier?
 Securing the resources
 Crossing the aisle
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Making decisions
Once its green, don’t go back to red
 Stick with the decision, but be flexible in
execution
 Get people to buy in to the decisions.
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