Who here hasn’t wasted a business day or two waiting for an ‘Approved’ or ‘Please Redo’ from a supervisor or client? But in today’s fast moving business world, these unnecessary document approval delays can not just reduce productivity, it can also cost your business thousands of dollars in potential revenue. And that is why every business needs a systematic (and preferably automated) document approval process.
What is document approval process?
Every business relies on transfer & approval of information – information that is transferred in the form of physical or digital documents. Let’s say you work in the accounting department and routinely have to get your manager’s ‘Okay’ before approving payments. You share the invoices or purchase orders with the manager at the end of every business day, and he or she approves or disapproves them as per their convenience. More often than not, the payments get delayed, and the consequent delays keep piling on. A document approval process helps you avoid exactly that.
A document approval automation is basically a workflow that lists down every stage a document goes through before getting reviewed and approved. It is a map of the document’s journey from the first draft to the final version. For example: Let’s say you want to get your expense sheet approved, and all you need is your supervisor’s signature. You just share the document with the supervisor and VOILA, it’s approved! But if the same expense sheet needs to go through your supervisor, project manager, accounting department, and then the VP, it becomes a lot more complex. The expense sheet can be ‘Disapproved’ at any of these steps for countless reasons, and sent one, two or three steps back for corrections. These are just the kind of issues that can be resolved with a well designed document approval process.
A document approval process provides users with all the information they might need to approve a document, like;
- Which user created & uploaded the document?
- Which user(s) approved the document?
- Which user(s) need to approve the document?
- Which user(s) need to make changes to the document (if it is rejected)?
- When is the document due for approval?
And much more.
Benefits of having a streamlined document approval process:
On the outset, a properly designed document approval process creates a roadmap for your documents & helps you get your document’s approved much faster. But in reality, it does so much more.
- Standardizes document approval processes across the entire organization
- Improves productivity & efficiency by reducing errors & delays
- Results in better follow-ups & information tracking
- Improves accountability & transparency within the organization
- Helps builds trust with clients & employees
How does GLOBODOX automate document approvals?
GLOBODOX document management software is equipped with a unique workflow automation feature that lets you replicate & automate your physical document workflows online. How does GLOBODOX do that? Let’s take the example of the expense sheet that needs to be approved by multiple supervisors or users. GLOBODOX’s workflow automation feature lets you add as many users as you want to your document workflow, and also lets you choose the flow of the approval process.Approved documents are automatically transferred onto the next user as per your workflow. If a document is rejected at any step, GLOBODOX automatically notifies the user(s) who has sent the document for approval. GLOBODOX also allows you to notify users when a document approval is delayed. These notifications can be in the form of in-app notifications or emails.
GLOBODOX allows you to share real-time feedback and comments with every participant in your document workflow, and lets you track, reassign, and cancel the workflow with a single click.GLOBODOX’s document approval automation has accelerated document approval timelines, reduced errors & delays, and has helped thousands of businesses transition to a completely secure, automated & paperless workspace. And you too can reap the benefits of GLOBODOX’s document approval automation by signing up for our 30-day free trial.
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