The benefits
of electronic document management.
Business consultants say “Lose your records and
you lose your business”. In the event of physical
catastrophe in the office, all your records can be retrieved
via a routine “restore from backup” action.
Electronic document management frees your staff from
the drudgery of bulk paper filing.
Powerful filing flexibility - the same document can
be filed under several references, not possible with
paper documents or computer files unless copies are
made. This lays the foundation for a very effective
retrieval tool.
Integrating the filing of other electronic files enables
you to achieve one consistent and logical filing structure
for ALL your documents.
Paper and PC-generated files received from any source
can be incorporated into one system. They can then be
viewed or actioned by any user or users simultaneously
across a network. The ability to share documents has
several advantages:
• Inter-departmental queries are resolved
more effectively by reducing the time and physical
effort required to communicate and move between departments.
• When talking to customers, questions can be
answered instantly, as information such as specifications,
price lists & delivery notes are available from
the screen without leaving one’s desk.
• The need to print or copy documents reduces
dramatically, saving time and money.
• No more lost or mislaid files.
A 4 drawer filing cabinet typically contains 8-10,000
pieces of paper, occupies 0.7 square metres (7.5 square
feet) of precious office space, and takes around 100
valuable staff hours to fill. By the time it is full,
many documents will not have been retrieved since they
were first filed: as many as 1 in 10 will be missing
or in the wrong place: and once full, it is a costly
and inefficient chore to weed out old files –
either for archiving, or for destruction. And a misfiled
piece of paper is as bad as a lost piece of paper: in
both cases, the information is not available.
Freeing up expensive floor space can result in large
cost savings as space becomes available. More desks
or new equipment can be added without having to consider
larger premises.
Existing paper files can be archived into the system
and then disposed of, eliminating the need for off-site
storage facilities, which are expensive and impractical.
Electronic records are easier to protect from fire,
flood, loss, & theft. See Why
Backup
Link to: Legal
Implications of electronic filing
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