SeamlessDocs is helping local governments and other public sector organisations cut the amount of paper they waste using automation to sign documents with the introduction of its SeamlessGov.com service.

SeamlessGov comprises three parts: SeamlessDoc, the Service Centre and the Government Relationship Manager.

The platform has been developed as an extension of its standard SeamlessDocs software, which autonomously turns PDFs and paper documents into digital forms, with the ability for managers and key stakeholders to sign them online. They are then be sent to the correct department’s database and filed away to free up workers’ time to complete more analytical tasks.

The new government portal encourages public sector organisations to replace their PDFs with digital forms. It’s an industry where forms are commonplace, whether from the public or internal documents.

SeamlessGov’s Service Center shows staff and citizens all the the forms available, with governments able to create custom portals for certain service sectors and employee dashboards. The Government Relationship Manager is the connection between the government and citizens. It allows public sector organisations to implement live chat, visitor portals and workflows to make communication more streamlined.

“When we started SeamlessDocs, it wasn’t obvious that government would become our niche; all we knew was that something had to be done to streamline paper-based processes,” the company’s boss Jonathan Ende told Forbes. “Once we realized that governments were especially struggling with antiquated technologies, we started shaping the product to best suit government needs.

It also means the workflow of document management is standardised, because everyone has to use the same system to read, sign and file documents – they won’t get lost on desks or other piles of papers and are accessible to everyone at any time.

“While we have honed our product to satisfy the needs of small- and mid-size governments, we are in the process of rolling out features targeted at large, enterprise-size governments,” Ende added. “In the next 3-5 years, we will continue to develop our product with larger markets in mind, and hopefully begin to automate paper-based processes on the federal level.”