Last week I picked up my daughter from college as she began her annual Spring Break. Remembering back to my college days, Spring Break was a great time to rest, reset the mind and prepare for the final push of the college year. Spring Break can also be a time for you to step away from the office, reset your mind, and then return to tackle some of those projects you have been putting off. Possibly, one of those projects might be deploying a document management solution.
There is no question that offices that are well organized are inherently more efficient and nimble. Removing clutter and having access to the documents you need, through the click of a mouse, not only saves time, but money. Many studies have been performed that demonstrate that properly digitizing and storing your documents electronically can have an exponential effect on the bottom line.
Simple productivity gains can be found in reduced filing times and quicker retrievals. More tangible savings can be seen when deploying workflow to affect the processes within a company. In an Accounts Payable application, the use of workflow eliminates paying an invoice twice, allows you to take advantage of early pay discounts, eliminates late pays and reducing human intervention of approvals through the automated use of two and three way matching. Audits are greatly impacted as well, through the use of a document management system. Documents requested by auditors can be retrieved in seconds and placed in an electronic clipboard for use by the auditor.
Human Resource professionals laud the use of document management systems to create tight security around personnel files. Employee files can be made accessible to those who need to see them, while limiting the access to only specific documents they have rights to view. Automated capture saves time when onboarding new employees. The system can recognize specific documents and determine if any are missing from a folder. Certifications can be tracked and notifications sent out when renewals are necessary. And when employees leave an organization, the system workflow can track specific tasks that need to be performed and forms which need to be completed.
We haven’t even touched on remote and mobile connectivity. As more organizations hire employees who work remotely, the need to have documents available anytime and anywhere is becoming more and more important. Working out of your home or while traveling is quickly becoming the norm. Having documents available through your phone or tablet is invaluable.
So, as you enjoy your Spring Break and clear your mind, rest assured that when you get back there are solutions available that will make your life easier and more productive. Now is a great time to begin to organize your files and improve your processes.
Jack Arnston is a Principal at The Priton Group. He can be reached at jarnston@pritongroup.com.
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