Sustainability through Technology: Myth or Method?

Like many of my colleagues and friends who are employed in Business Development roles, I am often disheartened by how quiet things get in August and how frustrating the management of some complex sales cycles can become. August does, however, afford me some time to engage in my favourite pastime – reading!

Reading anything and everything I can find related to my role keeps me abreast of the latest technologies as well as the issues that uppermost in the minds of potential clients. One of the articles I read this August highlighted how differently we can interpret the same subjects and how we can view things very differently depending on context.

The business advisory company Fortus recently published a paper on Sustainability that I approached with a sense of knowing how the topic would be covered. Imagine my surprise when the study highlighted 5 key areas that had nothing to do with environmental issues, not a mention of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) and not a single mention of single-use plastic. Forgive my flippancy but if you Google ‘sustainability’ you will understand my point about ESG omission! The Fortus study raised the following five issues:

• Leadership
• People
• Financial sustainability
• Reputation
• Communication

The five areas cited caused me to reflect on what I do and the solution I sell, and how it helps client organisations to become more sustainable. The Document Logistix solution is a broad-based platform that helps organisations with their document processes and impacts all of the five Fortus areas:

1. LEADERSHIP

One of the leaders I learned most from in my teaching career used to say to me, “Mark, you can delegate everything other than ethos.” The way an organisation handles its financial processes, its HR practices, its policies and procedures, GDPR and regulatory compliance, is the most evident reflection of its ethos and values. The Document Manager platform helps business leaders to ensure the very highest of standards in managing their business processes.

2. PEOPLE

People like to feel that they do their jobs well, efficiently and in a way that maximises both the use of their time and the opportunity for flexible working. Employees list the fact that the use of up-to-date equipment and software is a key reason for staying with an employer. Plus, the requirement for flexible working is now a prime consideration for job applicants. While there is debate about remote and hybrid working, attracting and retaining key staff is the biggest factor in business success according to recent Gartner research, so applicant aspiration is an important factor. Document Manager empowers employees and managers alike, and enables fast, easy access to information from anywhere and workflow supervision.

3. FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

Financial sustainability is about strategically reducing costs, improving efficiency and controlling revenue. Automation of business processes using document management can support all three of these areas. Our clients use digital document management to automate Accounts Payable, which removes the need for manual keying through OCR, matching to PO, GL coding and posting alongside the workflow of approvals. They also use document management to access reports on Receivables from where copy invoices can be emailed directly, as well as payment terms, which enhances business intelligence reporting. Finance departments using Document Management are 100% paperless and optimally efficient.

4. BUILD YOUR REPUTATION

Issues highlighted in the People section above have an immediate impact on an organisation’s reputation as an employer of choice. Deploying Document Manager can raise the reputation of an organisation among clients and suppliers.

Ready access to delivery information, orders, invoices, statements – as well as queries and complaints – instantly improves the efficiency of customer service teams and helplines in AP, AR, Sales, Procurement, as well as for any front-of-house staff. Having instant answers to queries of all kinds helps an organisation to appear totally in control and customer-focused, and supports their ethos and values.

5. COMMUNICATION

Communication was once stated to be the oil that ensures the smooth running of the business machine. Professional document management is central to any organisation’s communication.

The Document Manager solution integrates fully with Microsoft Office, which means that all documents and emails can be saved directly and indexed in a centralised location. Document Manager also facilitates collaboration, shared projects and document review, while automated workflows ensure the accurate and consistent application of your policies and business rules.

My takeaway from reading and reflecting on the Fortus article is that I can comfortably and confidently talk to prospects about our solution, knowing that without a doubt that it provides a methodology that helps any organisation to become more sustainable.

If you would like to discuss anything in this blog, please get in touch with mark.baterip@document-logistix.com