Despite society’s impressive advances in technology, 73% of companies with less than 500 employees still print papers a minimum of four times every day. Many of these papers contain sensitive or private information, such as client account details or confidential office information. These pages shouldn’t be disposed of in the public garbage – but then where should they go instead?
Paper shredding may not sound like the most glamorous solution, but the benefits it provides to individuals and companies alike are too valuable to be overlooked.
1. Protect Your Customers (And Your Business)
The news is replete with stories of companies who, through improper information management, accidentally exposed their customers to the risk of identity theft. A single sheet of paper is enough to cause months of headaches and thousands of dollars in losses. Shredding any and all documents with personal or confidential information is the best way to guarantee that they will never be stolen or compromised. At the same time, you’ll protect your clients and ensure that your business never suffers a bad news cycle.
2. Reduce Safety Hazards
A few sheets of paper may not seem like anything worthy of prolonged concern, but what about rows of file cabinets, all stuffed to the brim with papers? Storing these documents – simply because you have no means of getting rid of them safely or effectively – can take up valuable floor space, but it could also introduce a safety hazard. In case of emergency, employees might be forced to try and navigate their way through a maze of cabinets or could bump into stacks of papers or garbage cans that should have only been temporary. Paper shredding quickly and securely removes these obstacles.
3. Guarantee Compliance with Federal Privacy Laws
Certain trades, such as the legal and medical industries, have obligations they are federally required to meet regarding the safe disposal of personal information. A professional paper shredding service guarantees that you and your company will be compliant with HIPAA guidelines and that documents will be disposed of in a manner befitting their information and physical composition (after all, paper records will require different processing and disposal than, say, x-rays or electronic media).
4. Increase Employee Productivity
Individually shredding documents in-house creates a host of problems, not the least of which is constant disruption to your employees’ work schedule. It’s hard to maintain focus on a task when trips back and forth from the office shredder eat up valuable minutes. Over time, hours could be wasted each week on an inefficient task. Outsourcing the work reclaims that time, enabling your company to focus on and complete tasks according to schedule.
5. Saves Money
Standard office shredders are expensive to come by and may require even more in unexpected repairs. Factor in the worth of employee efforts and the result is wholly inefficient, costing you as much as $6,600 every year. Professional shredding services are wonderfully economical in terms of both money and time, and you’ll notice an immediate return on your investment as you’re able to continue uninterrupted in your workday.
6. Office Automation
When we discuss office automation, we’re not only referring to the automation that can be found through the use and implementation of machines. Rather, automation of office processes, management solutions, and employee training can all serve to benefit a business and create a more economical work environment. Disposal of sensitive documents is simply one example of a process that could be automated, thereby freeing up employees to work more effectively at their respective tasks.
7. Responsible Recycling
Operating in an eco-friendly way isn’t just good for the environment – it’s good for business, too. Forbes reports that 87% of consumers will hold a more positive mental association with a company if it supports social or environmental issues. The documents passed through the paper shredding process are sorted and recycled by a trusted local recycling facility. Recycling a single ton of paper is enough to save 17 trees and 3.3 cubic yards of landfill space.
8. Improve Reputation
Hiring a paper shredding service indicates several things to current and would-be customers. The first is that you take their information – and the trust they’ve placed in you to protect it – seriously, and that you’re willing to enlist trained, experienced help to dispose of it in a responsible way. The second is that you know precisely where that information is during every moment it’s in your possession. After the shredding process concludes, you’ll receive a Certificate of Destruction, which can be used to legally verify that it was destroyed.
9. Improve Document Security
When documents are placed on the curb for trash pickup, they are effectively removed from your ability to control who sees them and where they go. However, the risks begin much earlier than trash day. Suppose a tour of the office is being held, and the guest just happens to spot confidential information lying unattended on the desk. Shredding (and safe storage within a locked office console) guarantees that such a scenario never has the chance to happen, and that information will only ever be obtained by those who have been properly screened and granted permission to use it.
10. Quick and Efficient
A regular office shredder can only go through one or two sheets of paper at a time without jamming and may require a cool-down period after heavy use, but professional mobile shredders can obliterate well over 375 lbs of paper in minutes.
Paper shredding is one of those unique services that benefits all parties involved. You’ll be able to relax knowing that your documents – and the information on them – have been destroyed beyond any chance of reconstruction or retrieval. Your customers will be able to confidently supply you with the information you need to provide them with your services, and your community will thank you for managing your disposal solutions in a smart and eco-friendly way.
At A1 Shredding in Arizona, we’re proud to provide services to businesses and residents throughout the state, and we offer scheduled shredding as well as one-time, on-site purge shredding to help you clean out and start fresh.
For more information on our on-site paper shredding service for businesses or residential customers, give us a call at (602) 759-5103 or contact us online for a free, personalized quote.
