The State of Document Management in 2019

The document management industry continues to change and grow in 2019 just as it helps other industries elevate their document management processes, first by helping them go paperless and then streamlining their workflow processes with automation, faster document retrieval and secure sharing.

This growth doesn’t appear to show any signs of slowing, with Business Wire reporting that the global document management systems market is expected to reach a value of $7.07 billion by 2023, compared to the $3.44 billion it was valued at in 2017. This is a big indicator that more businesses are going paperless and turning to reliable systems, both cloud and on-premise deployments, to maintain their documents.

Automation

Document management has become so much more than a means to digitize your filing cabinet. It also offers the tools to eliminate time-consuming processes involving document organization. Businesses looking to eliminate inefficiencies frequently turn to automation tools to save on time and labor whenever possible. Document management solutions are constantly improving their automation tools to expand user workflow capabilities.

Workflows are designed to move a document through the system starting from its creation, to the right people for actions and ending in the right archive with the right retention policy. eFileCabinet’s Zonal OCR ensures a document is identified by indicators set by a template and is set on the right track as dictated by the workflow. For example, an invoice entered into the system is identified as invoice and categorized by several factors including names, invoice number, date and amounts. A workflow can be programmed to alert designated users if an invoice contains an amount over a certain threshold and requires action, or archive it if it’s a smaller amount. Processes such as this will go a long ways toward restructuring offices to be more efficient and ultimately save them money.

Security

Like all tech solutions, businesses want to know if document management will strengthen their security and not be a liability. Any worthwhile solution needs to incorporate strong encryption when storing and sharing sensitive documents, with 256-bit AES accepted as the standard for banks and government organizations. Clients and partners are likely to react negatively if they receive sensitive files through unsafe email attachments. A secured sharing portal allows you to send and receive documents through an encrypted channel.

Security is on the mind of most businesses that want to avoid data breaches. These incidents damage not only the bottom line but reputation as well. A surprising amount of these breaches are caused by internal sources, both intentional and unintentional, so consumers are looking for solutions that utilize two-factor authentication. This feature acts as a safeguard in the event a single password falls into the wrong hands, another form of authentication is needed to access accounts with higher privileges.

Mobility

The line between computer and mobile device grows thinner with each generation of electronics. The proliferation of 2-in-1 laptops, cloud computing and virtual workstations makes it clear that the workforce is becoming more mobile and are demanding that their tech solutions be able to come with them. It should go without saying that a tech solution without a dedicated mobile application is a black mark in the eyes of any would-be users.

Users want to access their work applications from any device, anywhere. For document management, this makes not only accessibility important, but security paramount. While documents are increasingly backed-up and stored on cloud storage, developers work to keep the links between our documents and devices locked and encrypted. Accessibility and security are often at odds with each other, so it’s up to document management solutions to strike a balance, allowing users to conduct their business on the go. eFileCabinet’s mobile offering is perfect for remote users that need quick, uninterrupted access to their documents. Other mobile perks include the ability to upload documents remotely with a mobile device. If you need to upload a contract a client just signed, just snap a picture of it with your phone, and send it through the Secure Drawer app. Documents you upload and download are protected with 256-bit AES and SSL/TLS encryption.

Unified Platforms

It’s apparent that users are looking for solutions that can not only cohesively work with their other important applications, but that can perform multiple, essential functions, all under one, uniform application. When document management is integral to securely share important documents with clients and other outside parties, it’s much more efficient to perform those actions within the same interface. For most users, the primary purpose of searching and retrieving a document from the system is to immediately share it, having the ability to do that right from your document management system is much more efficient than checking out a document to bring it into a different application for sharing.

This demand for uniformity is part of the reason why eFileCabinet announced Rubex as part of its evolving document management offerings. Rubex brings eFileCabinet’s document management and SecureDrawer’s sharing capabilities under one roof. You’ll be able to send and receive files with the same levels of security capabilities as SecureDrawer.

Document Management Going Forward

The document management industry still faces certain challenges, including an effort to change the popular perception that DMS is just another form of digital storage, when in fact, it offers so much more value to businesses, particularly in the automation arena. Consumer education about what you can do with document management is needed to convince companies the ROI of implementing a document management solution is high. eFileCabinet offers document management so smart, your files will file themselves, thanks to technology and solutions like Zonal OCR and SideKick. Contact us today to find out how eFileCabinet can make your business more efficient and view a free demo.