My company is also a paper-w****... Not only do we print just about everything, but because we have to "maintain confidentiality" from each other, we have cover sheets that automatically print too. So with all this wasted paper (coversheets are one-sided and mostly blank) instead of recycling, our company turns our coversheets into notepads. We have a separate box we stick our cover sheets in, and someone picks them up, does some fancy magic work on them, and then these notepads show up in our supply closet.
How would Ipads help? We need to take notes faster than a touchscreen keyboard would allow. Right now, I'm liking these ideas: - Sticky notes app. - Turn the useless paper into notepads. - Adobe Acrobat signature. We also make meeting minutes for every freaking meeting we ever have (and print them). I'm thinking over the long-term, it's easier to give everyone an easy-to-use sound recording device, which then easily transfers audio to computers in mp3 (or similar) format. Helps productivity as well. We take these notes 100% of the time, print them 100% of the time and use 1% of them. I'm thinking it makes more sense to record audio, and then document them when it becomes necessary.
Take notes on a piece of paper. Otherwise, put all of your handouts into PDF form and pass out iPads at meetings.
Saving paper is a fine idea from an efficiency/profit standpoint. It does little to improve the environment though. Recycling paper is a waste of time. The more paper we use, the more trees get planted, it's a renewable resource that responds to the laws of supply and demand. No one worries about running out of potatoes because we are eating too many french fries. Recycling itself is a manufacturing process that consumes energy and time and money. There's a reason it has to be subsidized. If it made sense, a recycling company would pay you for paper. Our time and money and resources are limited. If you want a greener planet, there's better ways to do it.
Just printed out this thread. Will reply with useful information, as soon as I finish reviewing it after dinner.