The Role of Document Handling in Hybrid Work Environments

The element of legacy technologies in a hybrid or remote workplace is often ignored in the race towards digitalization. However, the pandemic forced enterprises to make their existing operations digitalized enough for a remote workforce to access and work around, irrespective of where they were working from.

The first step of the operational process to see this digitization was document handling. When the employees moved to a hybrid worksetup, they faced several challenges around management of documentations. However, the biggest challenge they faced was moving from paper documents to digital. 

So while on one hand, businesses were forced to create a digital process around documentation, on the other side, they had a bigger issue at hand – eliminating the dependency on paper-centric documents. Let us breakdown those pestering issues:

• Ensuring everyone has access to the same document, in a situation where multiple versions of the document existed in paper form. 
• Ensuring consistency in the documentation process between teams working from office and remotely. 
• Building a process for document handling in hybrid work where the office-based and remote teams collaborate seamlessly – while removing the dependency on photocopy of the paper documents. 
• Solving the issue of siloed or multiple sources of information – an issue led by the fact that in an in-office work setup, every team stores documents in their separate physical files, making retrieval difficult when the teams go remote.

The solution to these, which the corporate world found, lies in using documentation management systems and eliminating the dependency on paper documents. 

What is Document Management in Hybrid Work Environments?

The document management system is a critical business solution which helps with capturing, processing, managing, storing, and retrieving documents across multiple functions of a business. To make the document handling process efficient, a number of platforms are entering the space with features like:

• Access control
• Remote access to information
• Secure file sharing 
• Searchability and indexing
• OCR and content-based retrieval

A document management software doesn’t just help bring data in one place but also makes the document handling process automated, real-time, and efficient – elements that come together to streamline business operations, irrespective of what market condition it is going through. 
In order to implement a mechanism for document handling in hybrid work, it is crucial to first know how they can benefit your organization in comparison to the existing practices. Let us answer that by looking into the importance of document management in a workplace next.

Benefits of Using Document Management in a Remote Workforce

At dox2u, when we talk to our clients, irrespective of which industry they belong to, we hear the same challenge. The biggest issue that every company with a hybrid workforce faces is in terms of managing documents – retrieving a document, collaborating on it, managing access to documentation and keeping the data secured. 

But what makes a document management software so critical to business success? 

Streamlines workflows

Unlike an in-office work setup, in a hybrid environment you cannot walk up to a colleague and discuss problem statements and work on issues. 

A well-structured automated workflow integrated into a document management system solves the challenge of issue identification and its redressal. The way it does that is by enabling the operations to move in a streamlined manner via real-time raising and resolving of issues by the respective team. This doesn’t just impact the remote employees but even the businesses that use document handling in hybrid work report better efficiency in the in-office workflows.

Maintains business continuity 

A hybrid system enables workers to operate independently. While multiple employees claim that it leads to better productivity, business continuity becomes a challenge when the teams are not able to collaborate. 

Thus, it becomes imperative for an organization to turn to the integration of a documentation management system in a hybrid workplace. These modern-day platforms give teams secure connectivity, an access to all the business resources, and a real-time collaboration tool that can be customized according to the different job roles. At dox2u, we give our clients solutions which they can use for advanced functionalities like secure file sharing, permission controls, and even seamless integration with enterprise tools like ERP and CRM. 

Improves business agility 

The reason why businesses tend to invest in software that supports document management in hybrid work environments is to come at par with the digital transformation needs of the market. Now while digitalization enables a company to change rapidly, the stepping stone lies with a functional document handling model having advanced automation capabilities. 

These automation functionalities enable processing of repeatable tasks, eases the decision making process, and gives businesses the freedom to reallocate teams and resources without hindering the ongoing operations. This, as a byproduct, saves teams from indulging into menial tasks thus freeing them up for critical, high priority issues. 

Betters network resilience 

The moment a business process leaves a physical office, it becomes difficult to monitor and secure. The fact that a hybrid work environment brings with itself work from anywhere culture, safeguarding documents becomes all the more challenging, especially with employees working on public or unstable WiFis. 

Businesses generally address this with software for documentation in a hybrid workplace. The software uses high-level security for managing the files within a business network. Questions like who can access the file, what level of permission an individual holds, and where is the file hosted, becomes easier to answer with an efficient document handling software. 

So here were the key reasons why businesses tend to take a digital route for document handling in hybrid work. A key thing to note here is that these benefits will only stand true till you use the best practices to manage the software.

Best Practices for Document Management in Hybrid Work Environments

No matter which document management system you choose, the end goal remains the same – seamless access and transfer of documents between remote and in-office employees. The way to assure that lies in following the right practices when managing the business data. Let us look into them as we conclude the article. 

Build a single source of truth

Creating a single source of truth model ensures that the documentation is well-managed between teams working out of multiple locations. Typically, the model requires businesses to keep documents in one place – shared folder or software dashboard – from where different people can access the information. 

However, when building the architecture, it is important for the team lead to ensure that the stakeholders have all the information they would need and that they have a complete control on which information is saved where and who has the access to view/edit the documents.

Align security and access

The software for handling documentation in a hybrid workplace should be able to monitor who access and share the documents and if something has been downloaded to personal devices. 

So while businesses should give complete access to the respective stakeholders for them to work efficiently, it is also crucial that they keep a track on how the documents are being used. 

Use high-grade tools

When teams are not working in one office space, it is given that they will use a bunch of platforms for sharing documents internally and externally with the clients, vendors, etc. Ensuring that document remains secure and you don’t lose control of its access and permissions would require investing in high-grade communication and collaboration tools like Slack, Basecamp, Microsoft Teams, and more. 

At dox2u, we give an additional level of security to our clients with the provision of sharing documents from within the software – this way, businesses can be assured of a safe transmission. 

Parting Notes

If you are here, there is a 90% probability that you are already operating in a hybrid work setup and are facing challenges around document handling. The key takeaway that we can offer is to create a single source of truth for all the documents where the team leaders have control over the content of a folder, who can access it, and how it is being shared. 

This will help you inculcate an environment where the remote team doesn’t feel left out in terms of key business discussions. By investing in a document management software designed specifically for a hybrid team, you would be able to work on your business process and office culture simultaneously. This is one of the reasons why enterprises love dox2u. 

We don’t just digitize physical files and documents but also give you a workspace for storing all the documents and collaborating with the teams. Our team has made it easier and secure to upload, verify, modify, tag, and share work with internal and external users.