Driving better business performance with document management processes: a recent survey suggests how organizations can align their document management processes with their business goals.

• Author: Neal, Ken

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Business documents constitute the lifeblood of an organization. Though often overlooked as red tape, they are vital strategic, financial, and information assets essential to the successful operation of a business. Many organizations, however, confess to their fundamental ineffectiveness in document management, Consider it a warning sign for their corporate health.

It is not as though companies do not recognize the importance of managing their information. That is one reason organizations invest so many billions in IT. It is different, somehow, when it comes to managing documents. They are too often seen as fixed costs of doing business rather than a fertile ground for improving business performance. This is why elevating document process performance is critical, both as an internal practice and an outsourcing strategy, to help organizations reduce costs, increase productivity, lower risk, and build profits.

Six advanced document management processes appear inextricably linked to specific high-value business benefits. These processes are:

1. Document imaging

2. Enterprise-wide print/copy

3. Mail and shipping

4. Records management

5. Automated/print/mail workflow

6. Legal discovery

   This premise is buttressed by a recent 2008 Oce Business Services survey of 170 executives responsible for document management processes. These included chief administrative officers, mid- and upper-level operations managers, and chief information officers. A cross-section of industries was represented, including business services, financial services, insurance, technology, and government.

   Among respondents, 46 percent work at organizations with annual revenue under $100 million; 22 percent have revenue between $100 million and $1 billion; and 32 percent have revenue of more than $1 billion. Survey results reflect responses from participants at organizations with annual revenue of more than $100 million. Respondents were guaranteed confidentiality.

   The survey reveals:

   * Organizations need to use an integrated approach to document processes that views documents in terms of their lifecycle. Although 90 percent of senior business executives admit that managing documents better throughout their lifecycle--creation through disposal--would improve business performance, only 12 percent of senior executives rate their organizations as highly effective at it.

   * Organizations need a way to quantifiably measure document performance in the context of an...