Strategies for Recovery: Streamlining Document Management

*Adapted from Document Management Strategies & Keeping up with the Times, by Cassandra Carnes http://www.dpsmagazine.com/

For decades, companies have relied on paper hardcopies to carry out their business processes. However, change has been on the horizon for the past several years. Natural disasters, such as Hurricane Katrina, and growing environmental trends such as going green, are beginning to shed light on the disadvantages of paper-based document archive, management, and storage systems. Additionally, the increase in telecommuting, advancements in electronic document management solutions, and popularity of portable computers has introduced a digital workflow to the business industry. From internal communications; business-to-business; and business-to-consumer, advancing document management technology is helping businesses streamline operations, eliminate paper filing, and reduce data input. Studies show that the document management sector grows nearly 20 percent annually, making it an area of interest for all companies.


Data is the driving factor behind almost every organization. Therefore the proper management of that data is crucial to success and growth. In a study done by Coopers & Lybrand, they found that 90% of critical business information exists only on paper and that 70% of today’s businesses would fail within three weeks if they suffered a catastrophic loss of their paper-based records. Additionally, more research done by Delphi Group noted that 90% of typical office tasks revolve around the gathering and distribution of paper documents, 15% of all papers are lost, and 30% of our time is used trying to find them. Furthermore they found that companies spend an average of $25,000 to fill a typical four-drawer filing cabinet and about $2,000 a year to maintain it. With statistics like these, a document management solution makes obvious sense for those looking to improve their company operations.


Document management providers are looking at the technology, and ensuring their solutions account for emerging trends, new compliance regulations, and support for a diverse range of document types. Advanced networking and document management integration allows users to scan to email, document management systems, or a shared folder on a network. The files are then printed on demand.

Benefits of an integrated document management solution include:

• Elimination of paper (and the costs that go with it) from your office.


• The ability to archive, process retrieve and research document transactions from your desk, increasing productivity and enhancing communication at the same time.


• Automated processing of documents, reducing redundant data input.


• The automatic capture, transformation and delivery of enterprise transactions to recipients in a variety of formats and distribution methods.

Adopting a document capture and management strategy is vital to a business’ competitive strategy. The value of a document management solution is limitless as organizations will find themselves improving business processes, administration of information and reducing unnecessary costs and workflow.