There is a difference between ‘storing’ your documents and ‘managing’ your documents. Here are 10 Windows Explorer problems that can be solved by implementing a good Document Management System (DMS).
1. Templates Can Be Easily Overwritten or Populated with Client Data
A DMS would prevent this from happening by protecting your templates as ‘read only’ and creating new documents each time the template is used.
2. Inadequate Control of Template Versions
A DMS will place controls on who can edit your templates, ensuring your team are starting with the correct document.
3. Lack of Information About Who Accessed Documents
A DMS will provide data on who has accessed a file, modified, copied or emailed it, with date and time stamps for each time the file is used.
4. Lack of Consistency in Creating Folders on Shared Network Drives
A DMS will have a defined set of folders that can apply to both clients and administration areas.
5. It is Too Easy to Move or Delete Folders
A DMS will not allow users to delete files without the appropriate level of access and should include a recycle bin.
6. You Need to Know Where to Find Documents
A DMS enables you to search and find documents based on a wide range of criteria (i.e. you don’t need to know where it has been filed, or which client it belongs to).
It can save 20 minutes per day on searching alone for each person in your business – you do the sums!
7. The Inability to Filter Costs Time
In a DMS you can filter on many different options, including creator, partner, manager, status, date modified, created, added or finalised, plus the status of the document.
8. Control over Versions of Individual Documents
A DMS will automatically create new versions as documents are edited, without any input from the user.
9. Email Management
A DMS will manage emails by prompting users to save, without needing to remember to go back into their sent items.
10. No Identification of Saved Emails
A DMS will flag emails that have been filed into the system and move the emails into an identifying folder.
A good document management system will save you time, money and just possibly a law suit, but make sure you ask for ALL of the above features!
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