The business world operates at an ever-increasing pace. As the workplace evolves to reflect the changing business environment, more and more information is being created and used in countless locations every day. This presents both challenges and opportunities for companies seeking to boost efficiency. A large volume of the efforts involved in office workflows are not linked to employees’ tasks, but instead pertain to the administration and planning of projects, as well as searching for information.
With this in mind, being able to streamline these efforts allows for a more efficient workflow and, ultimately, a faster-paced business. Content Services provides the ultimate archiving tool and platform to improve your productivity at work by using information to optimise workflows and drive efficiency gains. Here are just three ways that you can improve your business’ output with a Content Services Platform.
1. Automatic task allocation
The designation of tasks is a task in itself, and one that is both time-consuming and, in part, avoidable. Rather than team members using valuable time assigning documents to particular workflows, content management services can provide an overview of everyone’s tasks and responsibilities, as well as the required information at any stage of the process.
A key feature of a Content Services solution is that it can allocate tasks and stages of a workflow directly to the relevant individual, team or department. In this way, employees can focus on their specific tasks, saving time and driving efficiency as menial tasks are automated. What’s more, if members of staff are out of the office or unavailable to perform a task, the task can be reassigned, streamlining workflows and avoiding delays.
Just remember that in order to leverage the productivity and efficiency gains of Content Services, workflows must be clearly defined.
2. Make decisions in a second
Technology can not only be used to allocate tasks, it can also approve decisions automatically. This feature allows for quicker reviewing, purchasing and signing-off within the workplace. The review and approval of a document are common steps within a workflow, involving a number of individual tasks and correspondence between various individuals.
Getting a document printed, scanned and signed by more than one individual could cause delays that businesses would rather avoid. A Content Services solution can allow for documents to be reviewed and approved automatically based on business rules defined by the organisation.
In addition, purchases within a certain value band can be processed instantly instead of relying on managers’ signatures that can take some time. The automation of these processes means that time-consuming, minimal-value tasks can be avoided, thus freeing up time for personnel to achieve business objectives that are of higher priority and value.
3. Find the information you need quicker
Finally, Content Services can actually speed up individual stages of an automated workflow. This speed primarily comes from faster information retrieval. Searching for and retrieving information are both tasks that reduce efficiency within the workplace. Offices still stuck in an analogue environment often have to physically search for documents that could be found in seconds with the use of Content Services.
Rather than hunting through filing cabinets, emails, or folders on your desktop, digital archiving technology can allow users to enter keywords and apply filters to narrow down the range of documents in a significantly reduced time. It allows processes to be realised more quickly and with greater clarity, whilst unifying document formats and versions in order to avoid the arduous and inefficient task of handling conflicting document formats. When employees can retrieve information more quickly and have access to compatible files, a streamlined workflow will inevitably follow.
In the modern business landscape, learning how to improve productivity at work, optimise workflows and seek efficiency gains are all attractive and necessary to business success. Speed and efficiency allow businesses to keep pace with an ever-changing landscape. With Content Services, these benefits can be realised without the need for time-consuming and costly restructuring programs, allowing businesses to improve processes and take advantage of external opportunities.
Businesses are handling more documents and data than ever before, and many are struggling to keep up. The answer to this challenge lies in using modern technologies such as Content Services to drive business efficiency and growth. Download the ebook today to learn more.
