How an electronic file management software can help you save costs

• • Eliminate loss of files

Managing large volumes of paper-based documents day in and day out can make one error-prone. A study by Pricewaterhouse Cooper* reveals that the average organization loses 1 out of 20 documents. It takes $120 in labor searching for each lost document and wastes 25 hours in labor recreating each lost document. But when paper-based documents are digitized, they are stored in databases on your computer or network. become easy to search, especially if you use document management software.

• • Eliminate misfiling

You may take care to not lose a document, but as filing paper manually can make one error-prone, it does increase the chances of misfiling a document. Imagine filing the document in the wrong folder that is stored in a four-drawer cabinet that is just one of several such cabinets! Retracing that document could add up to several hours of wasted labor – which translates into costs. An electronic file management software saves you that cost as files can be organized systematically in a range of ways. This means no matter where you have stored the file in your file management system, all it takes to find it is a quick search.

• • Reduce recurring costs of office supplies

Creating and copying paper-based documents and taking printouts liberally for circulation, amounts to huge paper consumption levels. Add to it the cost of cartridges, boxes, folders, pins, and clips, etc. All these are items of recurring expenditure. Once you digitize your paper archive and all incoming documents and create all new documents in digital formats, these recurring expenses will drop dramatically. The added benefit is that you also eliminate the capital expenses of buying new cabinets, printers, and copiers that perpetuate your dependence on paper.

• • Release cash

Once you have fully adopted an electronic file management system, you can sell old, obsolete printers and copiers that are no longer needed. That’s because the document management software would have made these machines redundant. Selling them unblocks cash and releases it back into your business.

• • Improve employee productivity and customer service

An electronic file management software system helps organize documents in various ways. So your employees can find files fast and save time. They can accomplish more work in the given amount of time. Also, in customer-facing situations, as employees find files quickly and deliver prompt service, chances of escalations occurring are minimized (e.g. at the help desk, front office, etc.) Slow service portrays an image an unprofessional workforce. But quick response using automated processes reflects positively on the image of your organization.