Today, India is one of the fastest growing markets for digital users. From working to shopping, everything is done digitally and people are loving the convenience. While the digital shift seems to be taking over almost all aspects of our lives, it has greatly revolutionized the way we “work”. The introduction of the “new normal” brought with itself the concept of “work from home” or “remote working” and it is safe to say that these ways of working are here to stay. With the pandemic hitting the world, people had to start working from home which absolutely cut off physical interactions. This gave a serious push to digital tools and processes in the business landscape.

The demand for document management services is increasingly growing in view of the current situation. These document management services allow hassle-free access, management and storage of documents under highly secure and safe conditions. With the global document management service market estimating a CAGR of 6.9% between 2020 to 2027, this industry is set to grow exponentially in the coming years.

Corporates are not only forced to switch to digital document management due to the pandemic but are also willingly choosing these services as they wish to come out as more conscious and eco-friendly organizations that can enhance their goodwill. A paperless organization is perceived to be technologically advanced as well as environment-friendly. Moreover, big enterprises cut on their costs heavily when they switch from paper to digital. So handling corporate records digitally is more of a best of both worlds situation.

The government has also been a strong catalyst in the process of helping India take the giant digital leap. Various measures have been taken to smoothen business processes, like the introduction and implementation of eHastakshar by GOI which is also accepted legally. eHastakshar or eSign or Digital Signature allows you to sign documents anywhere anytime, digitally while making it legally valid in the court of law.

While it is hard to say whether corporate records will be fully digital in the next 5 years, however, the business world is certainly in the direction of turning into a fully digital and automated landscape and eliminating the use and storage and generation of paper documents. It may take more than 5 years but certainly it will be all digital in future.

Initially businesses found it difficult to adapt to the new ways of working but gradually organizations are finding their way through it and developing efficient workflows that are digital and automated. While the adoption is uneven, it is growing more than ever and will continue to do so.