In the 21st century, everything is moving faster. Computers load software in the blink of an eye. Customers zip through Google searches. Data flows into an office and out faster than employees can catch their breath. The days of manual processes, memorizing filing systems, and handing off papers from desk to desk are long gone. Modern businesses now operate in a sophisticated, dynamic, nimble environment that leverages advanced digital tools for everything from the customer experience to document management.
Document management, in particular, has evolved dramatically over the past decade, forcing companies to think about and refine the way they handle these precious carriers of company data. Capabilities once reserved for the most advanced enterprise solutions, such as artificial intelligence, are rapidly becoming commonplace and even expected in these tools.
AI has already yielded tremendous benefits for document management strategies and will continue to do so as more companies embrace its use. Read on to learn why AI is becoming so popular in document management solutions, and what companies will gain from using it.
Science fiction dreamt of robots with intellectual capabilities that could rival humans. While reality hasn’t turned out to be so flashy, artificial intelligence has nonetheless made some impressive milestones in the realm of computers that are smarter than people.
Many industries now harness the capabilities of AI to amplify productivity and refine the efficiency of their processes. For document management, AI means:
Data architecture refers to the set of rules, policies, and models that govern the way data is organized, used, and stored within a system. It’s been one of the primary focuses of document management systems. At its core, a solid document strategy relies on a cohesive, comprehensive, and well-organized storage system – users need to be able to find what they’re looking for quickly.
With AI, it’s no longer necessary to spend time brainstorming the ideal indexing system, file naming convention, or the most efficient directory structure. AI does this automatically given that there’s a set of predefined rules about what the architecture needs to do for the company accessing it. This introduces a level of scalability and flexibility into data architecture never seen before, and the result is better organization for improved accessibility.
If there are people involved, human error remains a risk. Whether it’s dropping a file into the wrong folder or sending the wrong attachment in an email, the risk of human error has only amplified in the digital, data-rich environment of the modern office. However, even as the amount of data has increased, tolerance for such errors has decreased.
Accidents can result in stiff fines resulting from a data breach – and they frequently do. In the 2019 Data Breach Investigations Report, Verizon found that 21 percent of all data breaches were the result of human error. They were the biggest cause of data breaches after malicious external actors.
Artificial intelligence has the potential to eliminate human error by reducing the number of touchpoints, or points in a workflow where documents or data get handled by actual people. By replacing laborious manual processes like filing, data entry or categorization, AI enables process optimization with fewer touchpoints and zero error.
While capabilities like optical character recognition (OCR) are standard on most modern multifunction printers, AI unlocks the potentials of this technology. Using OCR, AI can scan documents for keywords or other important pieces of information. This not only makes it easier to sort documents into the proper workflows, but companies can leverage other advanced data tools such as clustering or deep analytics.
AI marries data analysis to the document lifecycle, making it easier for companies to make data-driven decisions without additional steps. For many industries, that ability creates a competitive edge that can transform a company’s ability to remain viable.
Finally, AI improves document and company security in several novel ways. For example, using OCR, an AI-powered document management software can flag anomalies, missing pieces of information, or keywords that might be concerning to a company. Likewise, AI can learn to spot unusual access behavior or corrupted files before they have time to wreak havoc on the archives.
AI is already making its way into cybersecurity for precisely these reasons. It delivers the productivity of a human employee with the diligence of a machine.
Artificial intelligence has gone mainstream and it’s transforming nearly every industry. For companies, this powerful technology means better data manipulation, more flexibility in their systems, and stronger security to protect the valuable data companies now contain. Like other areas of business, AI is proving valuable in document management. It’s letting companies work better, faster and smarter to achieve their goals and thrive.
Edward Business Systems helps companies achieve operational efficiency through innovative productivity solutions. Contact us today to discuss your company’s challenges.