If you need to get a specific document from your company – a contract signed with one of your employees or a document referring to a partnership with a supplier, for example – how long does it take you? If it's longer than 1 minute, we've got something to tell you: you need a management document electronics.
As much as physical documents are still part of the administration of many businesses, it is necessary modernize processes of your company so that it doesn't get stuck in time.
Therefore, we have produced this article to explain what electronic document management is and to point out the main reasons for adopting it.
How are physical documents managed?
Before we talk about electronic document management, it is important to go through the points that are part of physical document management first. After all, it is still a form adopted by many companies, especially the more traditional ones that for years have maintained the habit of signing contracts in person and in their own hand.
To organize physical documents, you must first have a dedicated space for it. In some organizations, a locker may suffice. But in others that have links with employees, customers, suppliers and a frequent issuance of contracts, it may be necessary to have a room entirely dedicated to the storage of these files.
However, physical space is just one of the problems of this more traditional type of management, as it also involves a series of costs that, at the end of the month, make a difference in billing, such as:
- paper for printing documents;
- toner for printing;
- motoboy to send the document if one of the parties cannot sign it in person;
- carrier to ship the document if either party is a resident of another state or country.
In addition, keeping physical documents also requires a lot of care, as papers deteriorate quickly. Have you ever thought about losing an important contract because of the humidity that still allows the proliferation of insects, fungi and bacteria that harm health?
For this reason, some companies are starting to abandon printed documents to adopt electronic documents.
What is electronic document management?
Also called EDM (which stands for Electronic Document Management), it brings together a series of technologies that make it possible to store and manage files that bring data and information from a company.
So, when you need to access a document, instead of opening the locker and manually looking for it among many other papers, just log in to a online platform and perform a search to find your digital version in a few seconds.
Therefore, when using GED in your management, you bring the following practical points to your business:
- agility in accessing documents and information;
- greater transparency in the administration of the company;
- save expenses related to physical documents;
- assign more speed to the work process;
- control the flow of documents and files;
- classify them in an organized and intuitive way;
- preservation of the environment since the GED is online.
What are the main features of electronic document management?
When we talk about GED, we can highlight as characteristics the modules of this type of management and also its functionalities that we present below.
What are the electronic document management modules?
The GED modules are two: capture and document management.
Capture
It speeds up processes through the use of forms and documents. For example: when you need a person or company to register on your system and use a form to securely register their information.
Document Management
This is the technology used to manage electronic documents efficiently. By having a dedicated platform, you can create and keep your company's most important documents.
Among the features, we highlight: workflow, COLD, forms processing and RIM.
Workflow
As the name implies, he is responsible for the workflow, that is, he ensures that all tasks be done by the people in charge and within the right time. For example, if an online document is not signed by your customer, the workflow can send reminders for them to sign.
cold
Also called ERM, it is the technology used for document storage and data retrieval, which makes management safer and more efficient than having a lot of paper stored in the closet and deteriorating over time.
forms processing
Corresponds to the processing of forms of all the people involved in the activities of your business. If you need a new supplier to register on your system before you start working with them, for example, the form can collect the necessary information.
RIM
It is the acronym for Records and Information Management, that is, it is the management of the life cycle of a document. From there, you have access to all the company's documentation and can organize them by categories.
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What are the reasons for adopting a GED?
Here we raise the four main reasons why electronic document management should be present in your administrative process.
1) Control access to information
Your business information must be protected very carefully, as it is valuable to both you and your competitors. To give you an idea, there are people who dig through the garbage of market competitors in order to find any kind of sensitive information. Therefore, it is recommended to tear up all the papers that go to the trash.
Thus, in digital, caution cannot be different. When you keep your printed documents in a locker, anyone can access them if they're on site. On the other hand, when you have them stored electronically, you can control these accesses.
This year the General Law of Data Protection enters into force to protect the personal data of people, which includes those who have ties to your company: employees, suppliers, customers, etc. This reinforces the importance of you having a GED.
2) Control of document update
Imagine the following situation: you delegate to an employee who signs a contract with a customer interested in purchasing your service. However, the employee ends up using the outdated draft of the contract that includes services that are no longer performed or an old price list. Disastrous, no?
Hence, it is essential to keep your documents up to date. Once you have full control of the company's document management system (as we said in the previous point), it becomes simpler and more effective to perform this task.
3) Competitive advantage
Has it ever occurred to you that time seems to be passing faster? If you have or have had this impression, the same may have already happened to your audience. This means that decision-making, meetings and assistance need to be carried out with agility.
We have as an example the calls made by whatsapp whose people expect companies to respond and pass on information quickly. By relying on a GED tool, you have quick access to the documents needed to provide information in a quick way, which represents a competitive advantage if your competitors still use the old paper management method.
4) Cost reduction
As we said a few paragraphs above, dealing with paper documents requires a lot of costs for their manufacture, storage and preservation. Depending on the number and size of the office, some companies even rent offsite locations just for this purpose, which increases the expense even more.
As much as an electronic document management system also requires a monthly or annual investment, it will certainly be more affordable than continuing to work with printed documentation.
What are the steps to apply the GED in your company?
Basically, there are two steps that we emphasize are very important to start the culture of electronic document management in your company. Check them out below.
Make everyone aware of the importance of digital documents
Do you know when a person approaches us, but we only notice it when he is right in front of us and we get scared? The same happens if you change the management of your company from print to digital without prior notice.
So before taking the big step, hold a meeting with your employees and inform them about this transition so that everyone is prepared and no one is scared when she arrives.
Hire your first electronic document tool
Scanning documents is a question that many managers have. After all, as much as printed documents can be scanned, how to collect their signatures directly in the digital environment?
For this, you must have a service of electronic signature that parties can use to sign digital documents at the click of a button. THE ZapSign offers this service in a simple way and with plans that meet the most varied types of business.
Thus, we conclude this article on electronic document management (EDM). We hope he was enlightening, as well as showing why it's important. To learn more about how online subscriptions work, stay with us and check out this text we wrote on the subject!
