In recent years companies the world over have focused on implementing new business methodologies and processes in a drive to reduce costs while improving productivity. One process that is being implemented in a growing number of firms is the scanning of business documents as they enter the company and only using the electronic image in day-to-day business functions.
There are many benefits to transforming physical documents to electronic format. Firstly, the original document can be stored in a safe place and does not have to be passed around the company at the risk of being lost, damaged or changed. Additionally, documents in electronic format are easier to share, and multiple users can access the information simultaneously. And finally, electronic documents are easy to store and retrieve if indexed properly.
"As useful as the scanning process is, it is not as simple as most people expect," says Paul Mullon, divisional director marketing of Metrofile. "If attention is not paid to the initial preparation of documents and their indexing, scanning can actually cause more problems than it solves."
The preparation phase of each document is critical if companies are to ensure the appropriate quality of information is stored and that the scanning proceeds quickly. Get this wrong and costs accelerate in inverse proportion to the quality of data stored. Similarly, if documents are not indexed correctly, costs will soar because, on the one hand too much information is captured and on the other nobody will be able to find the data when it is needed.
"It is in this first phase of the process that many companies hit a snag," adds Mullon. "Scanning is often left to the IT department as a technical job - but it is not. Technology is used in the process, but scanning is a business function.
Internal outsourcing
Many companies are addressing the scanning issue as they have other areas of their business, by examining the pros and cons of outsourcing the entire process to a third-party. The obstacle in this approach is that some companies are wary of allowing sensitive or even confidential information to reside with another party. The answer: insourced operations.
"Insourced scanning bureaus are run by third-party operations with all the skills and experience necessary to handle the task, but the actual work is done onsite, on the client`s premises," says Mullon. "Insourcing allows the organisation to maintain control over its data and offers alternatives to the capital costs of owning all the scanning equipment and employing the staff."
One insourcing scenario will see the business owning everything, employing staff and only hiring the scanning service provider to implement best practices and manage the bureau. The opposite extreme will have the service provider owning the equipment and taking responsibility for its upkeep and upgrading at regular intervals, as well as supplying trained staff to handle operations.
"A benefit of the latter is that the insourcee has no staff or equipment responsibilities," notes Mullon. "Should the scanning bureau be short-staffed because of illness, it is up to the service provider to make up the shortfall to ensure service levels are maintained."
And people costs are high. Scanning operations do not require IT skills (apart from for machine maintenance), but they require more than unskilled labour as every document needs to be evaluated and indexed according to its relevance in the company. Some business knowledge is therefore required to ensure the process flows smoothly.
Insourced scanning operations deliver the best of both worlds. This option removes a non-core operation from the organisation`s task list, but if done correctly does not increase the company`s risk exposure. It also provides the company with easier access to information, ensures it keeps well within document retention regulations and allows faster transfer of vital information throughout the company.
"Of course, all this depends on choosing the right service provider and ensuring all scanning operations are done as fast as possible, but are also audited to ensure the process is foolproof and no documents can be changed before scanning," concludes Mullon. "An insourced scanning operation removes many operational burdens while delivering cost reductions, productivity increases and data integrity thus allowing the company to simply focus on its core business."
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Metrofile, a broad-based empowerment company, is the South African market leader in the management of business documents, and is committed to help customers reduce costs and improve productivity in processes that are centred on documents and corporate records.
All companies have a combination of paper and electronic documents, and are forced by law and customer requirements to secure the availability of the documents for the duration of their lifecycle. For most organisations, the volume of documents is growing at an exponential rate, and is becoming increasingly difficult to manage.
Metrofile is uniquely positioned to provide consulting and implementation of full lifecycle paper and electronic records management solutions from storage and conversion through to destruction.
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