No matter what industry your business is in, effective document management is key to productivity. Document management challenges have been shown to result in a staggering 21% loss in business productivity, as documents get lost, mis-filed, and incorrectly classified.
What’s more, a full 7.5% of all paper documents get lost in a business, which can result in devastating consequences for your bottom line. That is why it is time to go paperless by investing in an effective document management solution for your company. If you are looking for document management services that can save your company vital time, money, and human resources, read on to find out what to look out for when choosing the right types of document management systems.
1. Consider the Cloud
When choosing a document management system, your first question will be whether to choose a cloud-based solution provided by a third party or an on-site system that involves your own servers. While the latter option might make you feel that you are in control of your data, this is not always the best choice.
Setting up your own document management server system is expensive and time-consuming, requiring on-site IT expertise. In addition, cloud-based solutions offered by the likes of Microsoft (such as SharePoint) are likely to be more secure than anything you can build yourself.
2. Consider Your Business Needs
You should always carefully consider the needs of your business when deciding on the right document management solutions. Systems come in all shapes and sizes, with different functions and price tags. If you are a small business with fewer than 50 employees, you probably do not need to choose an expensive solution that is designed for Fortune 500 companies.
In addition, you should only pay for services you will actually use. If your company does not deal in highly classified information, for example, then you do not need to invest in a service that offers rigid document classification.
3. Choose a Document Management Solution That Deals with Mail
Although we live in a digital world, the vast majority of companies still handle physical mail. If you wish to go paperless and have your mail documents sorted and managed digitally, you should choose a digital mailroom provider that will scan, store, classify, and manage all of your physical mail documents offsite before sending them to your digital work environment.
Mail is not going anywhere for a long time, so it is important to ensure that cumbersome paper mail does not derail your document management strategy.
4. Consider the Existing IT Environment
Finally, it is important to consider your existing IT environment when choosing a document management solution. It does not make sense to choose a solution that works on any operating system that your team is not familiar with. In addition, there are many document management solutions that work as effective extensions of IT applications you might already be using.
It is important not to burden your team with additional training when choosing a document management solution. Always choose a system that can easily be adapted to your existing IT environment.
Your Business Questions, Answered
Now that you know how to find the perfect document management solution for your business, it is time to learn more. Knowing the right productivity-raising hacks for your business can help you thrive in the year ahead. For this, make sure to read out expertly-curated Business guides for insider advice and tips.