A document management workflow is a structured method which you use to produce, track, edit, store and manage documents that you associate with a business process. In other words, with more documents in production each day, businesses now find their current business workflows are not efficient enough to maintain a streamline document management system.

Difficulties with a Manual Process

If managing your business’s documents manually, you will be familiar with the following steps:

1. A need for a document
2. Try to locate the document
3. Distribute and share the document
4. Email or pass document onto another person or department
5. Wonder if they have received the document
6. Follow them up with another email or phone call
7. Receive confirmation of receipt of the document
8. File the information

These steps may vary depending on your business or type of document, but the process will remain similar. Unfortunately, it is time-consuming, poorly managed, and provides an opportunity for human error because of loss of important information which can slow growth and productivity. Worse still, poor management of documents with important compliance requirements can result in fines, cancelation of licenses, and in some cases, criminal liability.

Streamlining Your Workflow

However, the key to document management is automation. Once you capture a document, it should work for you. It should be there when you need it and it should be accessible to those who need it when they need it.

What is automation with document management?

• A document is located and retrieved quickly
• A document can be automatically sent to those who need it
• Anyone who must approve a document is notified of such
• A document owner receives a reminder when a document needs review or renewal
• Document sign-offs are automatically recorded and retrieved for auditing
• Details of anyone who accesses the document is recorded

Benefits of a Document Management System

A Document Management System streamlines and automates the manual workflows associated with document management; from creation to storage and distribution throughout an organisation, increasing efficiency and reducing the cost and clutter of maintaining paper records.

The top five benefits to your business when implementing a Document Management System are:

• Improved business compliance with the collection of metadata on every document
• Easier access and document retrieval with a central location for all business documents
• Reduction of business costs as you transition from paper-based to digital
• Increased security to your business with document controls for each document
• Backup and disaster recovery through a cloud-based system

In conclusion, documents are a necessary part of any business or organisation and the ongoing management of these documents doesn’t have to be difficult or time-consuming.

To see how dita Solutions can assist you with implementing a document management system for the ongoing management of your workplace documents,  please contact us today.