It is clear that going digital and investing in a document management system will improve your business' efficiency and save you money. Choosing a document management system, however, is not a simple choice. In addition to choosing the software that you will be using, you have to make sure that you are working with a document management system provider that can help guarantee the effectiveness of your system.
The latter part is especially challenging, because you cannot read technical facts about a provider in the same way that you can with a piece of software. Fortunately, you can make this process much easier by asking each potential provider the following questions:
1. What do you know about my industry?
Document management is not a generalized business process. The documents that your company produces and manages are uniquely based off of many factors, with one of the primary ones being the industry in which you operate.
If you are in education, but you are using a document management system designed to help a manufacturing business, then the system could actually get in the way of your productivity.
When your system provider understands your industry and the challenges that it faces, they are better equipped to guide you to the best solutions for your needs.
2. Do you offer industry-specific document management systems?
It won't matter how much your system provider knows if they aren't offering the document management systems that you need. As such, it is very important that your system provider offers industry-specific systems.
3. Are you able to customize a document management system for my business?
Even if all of your competitors are on the same block as you, your business will still have different needs than all of them. Your document management system can be more effective when it is specifically designed to meet the unique challenges that your company faces.
If your system provider cannot provide a custom system for you, then you are likely to find difficulty integrating the cookie-cutter system that you get into your current business processes.
4. Can the document management systems that you provide be integrated with my current software?
You already have software solutions that make your life easier every day. You shouldn't have to discard these valuable resources or engage in redundant efforts simply because you bring a new set of software on-board.
To avoid those unnecessary challenges, your system provider should offer a solution that allows your new document management software to integrate directly with much of your currently used software.
5. Will you assist in the document management system transition process?
Simply having a document management system won't get the job done. You need to be able to effectively use it. To this end, your system provider should accommodate your transition into the new system. This support should begin with the document conversion process, and continue long after the system has officially launched.
6. What sorts of support solutions do you offer?
Ensuring that you will get the support you need after you have started using your new system will require a direct question. A system provider should provide you with technical support for both your document management hardware and software. It is so important, because your new document management solutions will become a critical part of your business' processes; solid support will minimize or eliminate any disruptions that a technical problem could cause.
Choose the right provider
The document management system provider that you choose is just as important for enhancing your document management efforts as the system itself. Ask the right questions to choose the right provider.
