Quality document management marks you with distinction as the kind of operation everyone wants to work with. How you work with documents is a testament to how you handle all important business. On the other hand, poor document management makes you look terrible in a lot of ways that are difficult to explain away.
Legal Hassles
When your company has poor document management, it becomes a problem that can actually break laws. In some cases, this can be criminal and you may face sanctions, fines or even probation. In almost every circumstance, there are still civil suits that can come up. Your clients will want you to compensate them for documents that are lost, for lost revenues, and to refund them the fees they have paid you. A poor audit can result in being taken to court for a variety of losses that you will be responsible for making whole. Further, if you are part of a larger company, you may either find yourself terminated or held otherwise liable internally, even if word has not yet reached your clients and the public.
Loss of Certifications
Certifications can happen internally or externally, with external ones carrying more general weight. If your company certifies you in anything, you may see those certifications revoked promptly if you fail a document management audit. Further, not handling documents properly can be seen as a breach of responsibility in a more public sense. If there are regulatory bodies that govern your operations, these can also revoke any licenses you may have. This can result in serious issues with being able to conduct business, and may even close your entire office or business. At the very least, loss of a vital certification can force you into a disadvantageous merger that can leave you financially wounded and publicly shamed.
Office Closure
When you fail a document management audit, among the worst-case scenarios is the potential for closure of your entire office. If you are a small business, this can mean having to update your resume or start your next business. If you are part of a larger company, this may still involve updating your resume. When your office closes, you have the unenviable task of explaining to your employees that they no longer have a job. You also have to explain to the clients who are still loyal to you that you cannot serve them any longer.
Retraction of Business
In some cases, failing to manage documents effectively does not end your entire operation. But at the very least, when word gets out that you have failed to care for documents as you should, many potential clients will have pause when considering whether to work with you or not. While this may not push your business into the ground, it will lower your level of opportunities. Reputable businesses with a lot to lose do not tend to work with companies that cannot be trusted to handle documents responsibly. Because of this, you will likely end up working with less reputable, and certainly less affluent, clientele.
Poor Public Goodwill
The public at large will eventually hear of a poor document management audit. When this happens, your company will lose esteem. Much like if you showed up to work wearing clothes befitting a homeless person, managing documents poorly will cost you a great deal of credibility. Further, this lack of credibility can come back not only in reduced business opportunities, but in reviews tainted buy your lower status in the community. No action occurs in a vacuum, and how you handle documents will tarnish your overall reputation to come.