How To Migrate From Paper To Digital

Transcription

1 Charlie Smith Charlotte Mora Marketing 2014 GEM HME Tangent90

2 Introduction The digital age demands documents in an electronic format, but businesses often find their document management systems are incapable of rising to the challenge of changing from a paper-based system. In many cases both hard and soft copies are required, and these are filed in two separate locations actual and virtual. There is often resistance to taking the leap to becoming a digital based business, holding all data and documents in the Cloud. But new technologies are constantly emerging to enable businesses document management and distribution to be streamlined in processes that could not be simpler. Once migration has taken place, businesses can start to reap the rewards of change. According to the Association of Records Managers and Administrators (ARMA), current estimates indicate that more than 90% of business records created today are electronic. 1 Gone are the days of the single print channel with patience for lengthy response times for customer communication. Today s digital world is multi-channel with high expectations around personalization, convenience and speed. Customers expect the information and activities they want access to via the channels or devices they want to use to access them. In fact, there are few customer interactions that don t involve more than one channel. According to Forrester Research, 75 percent of all customer interactions involve at least two communication channels (2009). 2 In this article, we will look at the reasons why businesses are hesitant about migrating to digital processes, how offering incentives in the sales process can help to overcome such hesitancy, how the implementation of a document management system into a sales environment can sharpen a business s sales tools, and the benefits (and the costs) of going paperless. Currently, businesses and their customers can be segmented according to their degree of digital engagement, as shown in Figure 1. 3 Digital Customer Segmentation Careful Evolution Conservative test & learn candidates DIRECT DEMAND ($) Paper Engaged Continue paper and stimulate digital trial Making the Migration Aggressive test & learn candidates Digitally Engaged Immediate quick win cost savings LOW DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT HIGH Source: L.E.K. analysis 1. Case Study: Moving from Paper-Based to Digital Document Management Migrating Your Business from Paper to Digital Accelerating the Paper to Digital Migration -

3 Hesitancy Towards Paper to Digital Migration For decades, businesses have run effectively enough on paper-based systems. However, since the advent of the digital revolution, we often see businesses storing the same file twice a hard copy in a filing cabinet, pinned to a notice board, on a literature rack at a conference or mailed through your front door. That same document is also stored electronically on the server in a filepath location where employees or those with access know where to find it. As technology evolves, we are becoming more and more mobile with our ability to work on the go using smart phones, tablets and apps that allow us to access content downloaded locally but also in the Cloud. But what is the use of storing documents twice? Are we not just duplicating efforts and could we not save money on print, storage and distribution costs if we went 100% digital? The answer to both questions is an emphatic yes, as we can see in Figure 2. 4 Digital v Print Savings Warehousing & Distribution Digital SAVING Vendit Platform Cost Print Costs No Digital Discount No Aggregated Savings Rush Charges & Copyright eprint Costs Copyright RePRINT Costs Source: HME Businesses can save more than half of their overall costs on storage, print and distribution by going digital but if the cost savings are clear, perhaps the reasons for hesitancy to convert lie elsewhere. 4. Diagram taken from the Tangent90 Vendit sales presentation, 2014.

4 Perhaps it is the fear of migration issues that cause businesses to be reluctant to take the plunge. They may have several interlinked processes and software in place to manage document distribution in both paper and digital forms. But a single document management system could enable this process to become more slick and efficient than ever before. Sometimes it is reluctance of employees to adopt new technology, but an incentive program might help to overcome any reticence, as we have found when customers have implemented a paperless document distribution system (Vendit TM ). There is evidence to suggest that up to 90% of employees time can be occupied with the retrieval and dissemination of documents on a daily basis (Figure 3). 5 Conversion as a Business Strategy 30-40% of a knowledge worker s time is spent on document related tasks. AIIM 80% of your total information is unstructured IBM 6 weeks are wasted by executives every year searching for lost documents FastCompany 49% of workers surveyed agree that AIIM Market IQ Image: 2014 istock 90% Delphi Group Storing paper documents is expensive. Retrieving paper documents is also expensive, not least in terms of the man-hours taken up with simply searching for information. It costs $5 to file a paper document, and then $20 to find it later It costs $250 to reproduce a paper document (text, graphics, photos, layout). The average typing speed of the business user is <50 words per minute Approximately 7.5% of all paper documents get lost altogether. Re-creation costs: inestimable Winning Strategies for Converting Paper Records to Digital 6. When Less is More Migrating from Paper to Digital Documents

5 The Benefits of Paper to Digital Migration The environmental advantages of businesses turning to paperless solutions are obvious: By signing up for paperless statements and electronic billing, you can contribute to making Earth a much healthier planet, simply by saving paper. 7 However, there are other benefits of e-billing to take into consideration, including: Convenience saves paper, postage and hassle. Just click and pay. Enhanced security reduces the flow of personal information through unsecured mailboxes. Monitoring accounts regularly speeds the detection and resolution of identity fraud. Greater efficiency receiving bills online means you can view and pay at your convenience, and set reminders so you don t forget. A history of recent transactions is readily available. Higher credit score using an electronic billing and payment service ensures prompt payment, maintaining a good credit score or improving track record. A consistent payment history can contribute 35 per cent of an individual s credit score. 8 The same benefits can be scaled up from the individual to a business, and the benefits of e-billing extrapolated to the wider contexts in which the business operates. In recent years, clients and customers have come to expect a fast turnaround and rapid responses. Internetbased systems such as and instant messaging, coupled with mobile hardware such as tablets and smart phones mean the ability to respond quickly is paramount. Therefore, the real measure of value should not be how much faster you are able to respond to a situation with new technology, but rather, what value is added to the business process through faster response. 9 The ability to respond faster to the customers needs will enable the business s sales force to convert a higher percentage of prospects into sales in a shorter space of time. The business value in that alone is inestimable. Whether located on a printed page or as bits in computer memory, the goal of the project, for any business, should be to get the information as quickly and efficiently as possible into the hands of the people who need it in order to do their jobs. 10 By implementing a document management application into your business, you can reap the rewards of simple document sharing capabilities, previously a more complicated process with paper-based documents. Digital information, as opposed to traditional paper-based information, is much easier to share, expanding communication channels Why Switch to Paperless Billing? 8. E-bill Benefits Indexing Digital Documents it s NOT an option Digital Files Replace Paper

6 Paper to Digital Migration Examples 1. Scanning of paper documents in an Accounts Payable department in a large manufacturing corporation as a digital conversion project US multi-site bank employ Integra Business Systems, suppliers of electronic document management and archival software to the financial services industry to convert loan and account documents to digital format to improve work flow efficiencies and customer service Digital conversion project for Napa Court, CA, using imaging systems and document management applications allowing instantaneous retrieval of documents that used to take 10 days to retrieve from storage Implementation of a digital scientific paper reprint distribution and management system for a client in the pharmaceutical industry, for use at congresses and by the sales force in physician calls, generating cost savings and improved compliance with copyright and Sunshine Act requirements. 15 These examples show how digital migration has benefited the organisations involved, but there are also pitfalls that need to be avoided. There are a number of implementation challenges to cloud computing deployment. As a result, it is important that your cloud computing deployments are carefully planned and part of a holistic information technology roadmap. 16 These challenges include lower availability or performance than expected, painful transition from legacy systems and difficulties in integrating with existing systems. (Figure 4). Challenges of Using Cloud Solutions Integration with existing systems 49% Changes to IT policy 40% Learning curve for cloud model 39% Costs higher than originally estimated 35% 30% Painful transition from legacy systems 28% Locked into cloud provider 26% Lower performance than expected 26% Lower availability than expected 24% Source: CompTIA - 4th Annual Trends in Cloud Computing Base: 449 US. end users with cloud solutions Percentage (%) Why Vendit?

7 It is therefore vital that partners and products to deliver digital migration are carefully selected to ensure that the transition is made smoothly, that legacy issues are overcome, and that the new paperless system is truly capable of meeting the business s requirements. In the second part of this article, we will explore the impact of paperless technologies on the scientific and clinical paper reprints market. Other Useful Resources 1) Publishing in the Digital Age This study, conducted by Bain & Company, investigates the increased use of digital devices for the reading of books (fiction and non-fiction), newspapers and other media. 2) Accelerating the Paper to Digital Migration This study focuses on catalogue marketing in the retail industry undertaken by L.E.K Consulting. 3) The Impact of Media Tablets on Publication Paper Markets html?source=pr1108fxpr This study provides low, mid and high impact scenarios over the next 5, 10, and 15 years of the effects of media tablets on graphic paper demand in books, magazines & newspapers. 4) Digital Migration Strategies - Old and New 5) Digital Migration Savings html?ito=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490 An article on an experiment conducted by a student in the US demonstrating that a simple change of font could save the Government $136 million a year on ink. (However, the savings could be even greater by switching from paper to digital altogether) Produced by Charlotte Mora Marketing for Tangent 90

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