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A Guide to Digital Transformation

Julie Italiano — Mon, 27 Apr 2020 08:00:10 +0000

The popularity of the phrase, “digital transformation” has quickly grown in the last decade. As we enter the 2020’s, this phrase is only going to become more important. We think it’s safe to say that no one saw that start to 2020 that we’re all experiencing. Most of us are working remotely or from home. Zoom meetings and Google Hangouts have become the new normal for communicating with coworkers and clients. But what does the “digital transformation” actually mean? No matter the size of your business, why is it important to transform digitally? What are you or could you be doing to become more digitally transformed? Adaptation is key…especially during today’s uncertain times and the need to equip your newly mobile workforce.

Here is what digital transformation means. It is the integration of digital technology into all areas of your business, changing the operating structure of your business, and delivering higher-level, competitive value to your customers. Harnessing digital technology and directing its beneficial effects appropriately and wisely can assist in the following areas.

Improve overall operations.
Make your business more competitive.
Help you comply with business and government regulations.
Secure your business information more effectively…from the office to the home offices.

Since the 1980s, the mass introduction and subsequent cost reductions of digital technology let businesses embrace the use of the internet, desktop and laptop computers, cell phones and other digital devices to create, capture and digitally store information necessary for business. While the paperless office has not yet fully come into existence, customer records, supplier invoices, legal documents, employee records, business communications and more have been digitized. During the past decade, the world achieved the capability to store virtually all information digitally. Data from the internet of things (IoT) needs capturing, storing and analyzing, adding more reasons for businesses to undergo digital transformation.

While digital transformation is multifaceted, managing the vast amount of digital information your business now has is a critical starting point. Recently, Canon U.S.A. Inc. released a whitepaper titled “Information Revolution” that provides some guidance on best practices to begin a digital transformation journey. Along with data from the Canon Lean Information Management and Governance Study, the paper applies the concept of “lean thinking” to business information management.

Valuable insights are gained by properly managing and accessing your digital information. You can find opportunities to better meet customer expectations, automate inefficient workstreams, and identify security gaps to better protect your business data. Yet, according to Canon’s study, 64% of executives reported that their organizations must wait for information and 63% said they get excessive information or over-documentation. In other words, they don’t get the right information at the right time or they get a “data dump” that isn’t valuable to any decision-making actions.

Over the past 30 years, lean thinking has been used to improve manufacturing processes by mapping the flow of materials and how workers interact with those flows to create processes that produce higher quality products faster, more efficiently and at less cost. That same lean thinking can be applied to business information flows and workstreams in the office.

Mapping the flow of information into and out of your business, and identifying who sends, receives, stores, modifies and acts upon the information is a key step in digital transformation. This locates bottlenecks, stretches of inefficient waiting time, duplication of efforts and areas of security and compliance gaps. You can then redesign and automate workstreams to be more efficient and better meet all critical requirements. By gaining control of the digital information you create and receive in your business you will be able to analyze it, ensure the right information is getting to the right people at the right time and begin to transform your business into a digitally powered business.

There are a variety of tools, solutions, and services available that enable you to incorporate the lean thinking approach to the capture, management, distribution and security of information flows in your business. These include:

Multifunctional devices (MFDs) to digitize and intelligently capture information from paper documents.
Information management software solutions that can capture information anywhere and any way it enters your business (paper, email, PDF, audio, video, CAD, etc.), automate workflows, store, and implement information governance so you have the right information at the right time.
Dashboards that give views of workstreams, processes such as accounts receivable or accounts payable and other data to help you run your business more efficiently.
Cloud solutions for ubiquitous and secure availability of business information.
Professional services experts to assist in workstream mapping, security and compliance audits, solution implementation and continuous improvement.

Working with the right partner that provides these solutions will help you get started developing a digitally transformed business based on lean information management practices. Feel free to contact the Modern Office Methods and Full Service Networking teams for more information.

The post A Guide to Digital Transformation first appeared on Modern Office Methods.

Tech Expert Q&A – Better Billing Solutions

Modern Office Methods - Tech Expert — Wed, 24 Jul 2013 18:34:00 +0000

Question: I work for a local consulting company, and one of our challenges is billing our clients for all the paper reports, and documents they require us to print out as our final deliverable. What options do we have to automate the accurate collection and invoicing of these documents?

Answer: There is a real cost to producing paper documents, and as a consultant you deserve to charge your clients for this cost. The good news is that there has never been a better way to collect that information than now! MOM offers several different software and hardware solutions to meet the goals of monitoring, and charging for the cost of producing paper documents. The key is to identify your requirements and goals. Requirements may include things like: “I need to print and track mobile printing on my printers and copiers,” “we want a customized report that allows us to track the project sub-tasks,” or “we need to import the charge-back data into our Accounting system for invoicing.” Once your goals and requirements are accomplished, we can help you choose the best solution to match your requirements and your budget! For more information about MOM and our products and services, visit our website at www.momnet.com.

The post Tech Expert Q&A – Better Billing Solutions first appeared on Modern Office Methods.

Tech Expert Q&A – Improving Document Workflow for an Accounts Payable Department

Modern Office Methods - Tech Expert — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 13:05:00 +0000

Question: I am the CFO for a local construction company, and am in need of some advice regarding a solution for our mountain of paper that is moved through our organization every day. My highest priority is to streamline our Accounts Payable process so we can take advantage of all the discounts offered by our vendors.

Answer: Vendors, and people you borrow money from offer you reasonable discounts and low interest rates if you can pay them quickly. A document workflow solution for Accounts Payable can increase your ability to monitor and control the flow of Vendor Invoices from receipt to approval, and payment of these documents! A document workflow solution can help you monitor an invoice awaiting approval that has sat too many days in a managers inbox, and notify the right people when documents are not approved in a timely manner. These documents can also be re-assigned if key document approvers are unavailable for any reason causing a delay. With a document workflow solution, you will always know where your documents are located! Systems like this can pay you back in a very short, period of time.

For more information about Modern Office Methods and the solutions we offer, visit our website at www.momnet.com.

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Tech Expert Q&A – Managing Day-to-Day Office Tasks Better

Modern Office Methods - Tech Expert — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 19:13:00 +0000

Question: Our company is growing very rapidly, and we need to find a better way to manage all the vacation requests, expense reports, and invoice approvals that circulate around the office. Many times they get lost, and everyone is upset. Any suggestions?

Answer: The last several years, we have seen many companies with the same problem. Ironically, it is a problem that is very easy to solve. MOM offers OfficeFlow Central as an easy, efficient, and cost effective way to digitally streamline any paper-based workflow in your office. In addition, people designated as “Approvers” in OfficeFlow Central can be notified via email when a document arrives awaiting their approval. Say goodbye to lost expense reports or vacation requests! You now have a way to track all the paper that moves through your office!

For more information about the products and services Modern Office Methods can help your office with, visit our website at www.momnet.com.

The post Tech Expert Q&A – Managing Day-to-Day Office Tasks Better first appeared on Modern Office Methods.