Document management users increasingly desire workflow, electronic forms (e-forms) and a better way to manage user permissions/guest access to keep up with their business needs and streamline processes. However, these functions are not readily available in most document management platforms today. This leaves users with two choices:
- Wait for their document management vendor to develop additional capabilities
- Replace their document management platform with a new solution that has these functionalities
Neither option is ideal because a user’s vendor may never develop these capabilities to the satisfaction, and these additional functionalities may not justify the cost and headaches of migrating to a new document management platform. Thus, users often find themselves stuck.
Getting Un-Stuck with 3rd-Party Modules
Third party applications are increasingly available to extend the functionality of their document management platform without having to wait for their vendor or throw out the baby with the bathwater.
Example 1: Workflow
Third party workflow modules streamline business processes across multiple departments, including:
- Invoice Processing: automatically routes invoices for general ledger coding, review, approval, and payment based on business rules
- New Account On-Boarding: rapidly allows sales to get new accounts on-board faster, while also minimizing risk, such as credit, by streamlining the approval process
- Work Orders: empowers your mobile staff to access work orders and complete and/or sign them from their mobile device
Example 2: Electronic Forms
Third party e-forms modules allow information to be capture more quickly without requiring paper, which is costly to print, transport and store (and which easily can be lost). E-forms are especially useful for:
- Human Resources: employees can now be on-boarded electronically with e-forms on tablets and digital signatures
- New Account On-Boarding: information from new customers and clients can be entered immediately, without having to fill out paper and fax or FedEx into headquarters
Example 3: Permissions
Third party permissions modules allow management teams, department heads and IT to quickly view and edit who has access to what information. These and/or other modules also typically allow auditors to be granted temporary access so that they can log in, get everything they need as quickly as they can search for it — which could otherwise tie up a company for weeks.
Leverage Your Investment
You’ve probably spent hundreds of hours training your staff on your current document management platform. Putting in a completely new system probably doesn’t make sense, while finding ways to extend the functionality of your system with third party applications does make a lot of sense. You’ll save time and money, and get more out of your current investment.
Contact ECM Toolbox to learn more or for a free consultation
