The 6 most common frustrations in document and printing environments.

In this article, we’ve outlined the six most common frustrations. We’ve also included a simple way to help you pinpoint where things tend to go wrong in your organisation – so you can start putting them right.

A familiar frustration: you hit print, and it’s not quite right. The document looks different on paper, the settings aren’t what you expected, or the formatting doesn’t come out properly. Instead of a quick print, people often end up trying again – sometimes more than once – before they get a usable result. It may seem minor, but it quickly adds up. Not just in wasted paper, but in time, energy and cost as well, often without being noticed. Getting a better grip on how documents are handled and printed helps reduce misprints and avoid that ongoing drain on resources.

You see it all the time in the way documents are handled: a scanned document ends up in a mailbox, sits there for a while, and then has to be picked up and entered into a system manually. Sometimes it gets forwarded internally once or twice before anyone actually deals with it.

This usually comes down to how systems are – or aren’t – connected. Often, different applications are involved, but print and scan processes don’t properly tie into them. Instead of flowing straight to the right place, documents get passed around, and extra steps creep into the process. That’s where things start to go wrong. Documents are left sitting, handled more than once, or end up in the wrong place altogether. And as soon as multiple people are involved, keeping track of what’s happening becomes a challenge.

When something goes wrong, it’s often unclear what’s actually causing it. Is it the printer, the settings, or the application itself? Users can usually tell that something isn’t working –just not why. For IT, that means starting from scratch each time to pinpoint the source.

In many cases, support only steps in once a problem has already surfaced. Someone reports it, IT picks it up, and works through it until it’s resolved. That approach works, but it also means you’re constantly reacting rather than staying ahead. Without clear visibility and proactive monitoring, the same pattern repeats itself. Issues take longer to untangle, and it reinforces the sense that the environment isn’t fully under control.

Working with a supplier isn’t always as straightforward as it should be. Service agreements aren’t always clear, invoices can be hard to reconcile, and costs don’t always stay as predictable as expected. That makes it difficult to keep a firm grip on the environment. There isn’t always a consistent point of contact either. People change, knowledge gets lost, and organisations often have to explain their setup again and again just to move things forward. Over time, that starts to show. Not because issues aren’t being resolved, but because there’s no clear overview and no continuity in how things are handled.

Toner runs out. Paper’s running low. A replacement part has been on its way for days. Situations like these bring things to a halt – often at the worst possible moment. What makes this even more frustrating is that supply levels are rarely tracked. There’s no clear process for keeping an eye on stock, no automatic reordering, and checks happen ad hoc at best. As a result, shortages tend to catch people off guard.

Organisations that have this under control quickly realise it’s not just about convenience. It reduces back-and-forth, avoids last-minute orders, and cuts down the time people spend dealing with something that should simply take care of itself.

Print environments rarely stay the same for long. Devices are added, contracts are signed, and solutions are introduced as needs arise. Meanwhile, the organisation changes, but much of the setup stays as it is. You start to notice it in the way processes never quite run smoothly.

Contracts follow that same pattern. Earlier setups continue to run alongside newer agreements – each with its own end date, across print and document workflows. That only really becomes a problem when you want to make a change. If you’re no longer happy with the service, the costs or the flexibility, you’re still tied in. Contracts are still running, which makes it difficult to adjust course, even when it’s clear where things aren’t working.

On their own, these aren’t major issues. They’re the kind of everyday situations organisations tend to accept as part of how things work. It’s when they start to add up that they begin to have a real impact. Documents sit waiting. Processes involve more steps than they need to. The environment demands more attention than it should. These are the small, recurring points where time is lost – often without it being visible.

It’s only when you take a step back that the scale becomes clear. Not just in terms of cost, but in how efficiently processes actually run. How much time are your employees spending on things that should simply take care of themselves?

You’ll likely recognise at least some of these situations, and in most cases, there’s clear room for improvement. The question is where that improvement actually lies. That’s not always obvious in day-to-day work. Only when you take a closer look does it become clearer where time is being lost and where processes aren’t running as smoothly as they could.

With ARP’s self-assessment, you can quickly see where your print and document environment performs well – and where you could work smarter and more efficiently.