In case you haven’t noticed, “document scanning” seems to be an increasingly popular business phrase. According to a VARBusiness Market Insight Report, which polled more than 600 mid-market and enterprise information technology (IT) managers, document management solutions rank among the top five solutions IT buyers cited as spending priorities for the next 12 months.
This is not a new technology. For years, document imaging has been the domain of large organizations: banks, governments, police agencies and so forth. Today, because of technology, the price is affordable to most small and medium businesses. In fact, the return on investment is such that, if a small or medium business isn’t taking advantage of scanning and archiving its documents electronically, then it’s missing the boat. For example, companies use it for things like corporate compliance for legislative requirements, backup and disaster recovery and, probably most important, eliminating waste and the huge costs of dealing with (storing and looking for) paper. Printers and scanners (mostly combined in one item), integrated with electronic document management software and a local, certified vendor, are the essential components.
So what does one look for in a document management system? Following are some guidelines:
The software needs to be user-friendly and easy to understand. The file structure must simulate your business as much as possible. This makes training and implementation that much easier.
Try to find a local vendor who provides on-site training. You need someone who understands business processes, has done this before with different industries and has a knowledgeable and reputable support staff.
The software company needs to provide unlimited phone support and software upgrades. Both are generally provided via an annual maintenance fee. As long as that’s kept up, you’re set.
The software needs to be customizable. It must work with most “line of business” applications, such as extracting data from your database so you can auto-populate index fields.
It needs to be scalable. In other words, it must be able to grow with your business. A low-end “starter” package may be great for now, but in five years, you don’t want to be faced with the prospect of an upgrade.
Don’t purchase a system with a proprietary file structure. If you have to change, it can be very costly to convert your documents.
Automated indexing and optical character recognition (OCR) are critical features. This lets you set up automated indexing (automating is one of the more time-consuming operations). However, you don’t want software that relies 100 percent on OCR to do your indexing for you. First, it’s not 100 percent accurate (potentially you could lose documents!). Second, the search is more time-consuming. You end up looking through all of the words in a document to find it rather than the index fields attached to that document (which are much smaller). You want that ability—but only as a fallback.
Bar code recognition is another nice feature.
An easy search utility is also important. It makes things so simple if the software comes with that ability. To find a document, simply type in any search criterion just like you would with Google.
There will be some changes in your daily work flow processes. Consider whether or not to spend the time and money to scan the “back file.” This can be a daunting task. Many businesses use a third party (a fully insured and bonded service bureau) to do this task for them. The service bureau comes in, packs up your documents, takes them to their processing plant and/or warehouse, scans them to CD and stores your paper originals (if you want) after returning your documents on CD. Other businesses decide to leave the back file as it is and just start scanning “going forward” with a cutoff date.
You’ll also want to take a look at the document flow once you begin to start scanning. (This is where working with a local vendor who understands electronic document work flow becomes really important.) Now your documents are electronic. They can flow around your company via the software’s work flow features. This is what separates “off-the-shelf” from customizable software. Every business is unique in its document work flow needs. Those needs and possible solutions should be addressed as early in the process as possible.
The main issue here is not if, but when, your company or organization should do this. The time savings alone in document retrieval (think of how many times employees look for documents that aren’t where they should be—either on someone else’s desk or misfiled) makes for a very fast return on investment. Document safety and compliance with legal issues are two of the other main benefits. That’s why electronic document management systems are on most IT managers’ list of top five “must haves” for the next 12 months.
Giles Scott is president and CEO of Scott’s Office Equipment in Rohnert Park (voted “Best Office Equipment Dealer in the North Bay” for 2004 and 2006 by the readers of NorthBay biz). You can reach him at 707-584-3995 or visit www.scottsoffice.com for more information.
