5 Ways To Improve Efficiency in Your Business
5 Ways To Improve Efficiency in Your Business
Managers are often plagued with the task of finding newer and more efficient ways of conducting business and executing engineering processes. While it may seem easy to some, the implementation of new systems and procedures can often become difficult or confusing for both decision-makers and their subordinates.
Here are 5 ways you can improve efficiency in your business:
2) Improve efficiency with workflow automation
3) Promote effective collaboration
4) Enhance team collaboration through document version control
Embrace Delegation
For many companies, it may come as no surprise that delegating can increase efficiency in the workplace. After all, that’s why we have employees with special skills and abilities.
But what happens when you don’t trust your employees to do the job correctly?
The simple answer – you don’t delegate.
Conversely, of course, we all have our favorites; people that we trust to get the job done. Not only are they the people we can rely on to complete tasks, but qualified employees with the skills and attention to details required to produce amazing results. While this person surely is the best at what they do, they might begin to experience task overload, which will negatively affect the speed in which your projects are completed. Great organizations distribute throughout their company to maximize the impact each employee makes, and the best way to do this is to build trust. Trust is not something that is easy to come by. It can take months, if not years, to build trusting relationships. Fortunately, there are ways to quickly increase the level of trust managers have for their people. One way is by using great support systems.
Improve Efficiency with Workflow Automation
An advanced workflow and document management software can enable managers to create complex workflows that can help them oversee project progress but also provide audit trails to be reviewed after project completion. A system like this helps mangers build trust quicker than ever before, without the need to micromanage. A workflow and document management system facilitates execution by allowing users to define their work as a series of interrelated workflow steps, while automatically notifying users at each step, either through conventional emails or internal notifications. Internally, this can be used to automate processes for teams or across the entire organization, improving accountability and transparency, while enabling employees to work autonomously.
Engineering Workflow
Automatically manage and distribute files and documents for review, approval, and processing. Adjust user permissions at each step, ensuring your company’s files are managed securely.
Third-Party Collaboration
With 3P Direct organizations can provide third parties access for viewing, downloading, marking up, and printing of documents, including CAD drawings and get feedback directly inside the product without having to setup the user or any VPNs.
Promote Effective Collaboration
Every good leader knows that collaboration can promote productivity. Unfortunately, many companies still struggle to collaborate effectively. Often, because they lack the tools used to automate business processes and promote collaboration.
No matter what your business does, the majority of your workflows are document-centric (i.e., include and deal with digital and paper files). Whether it’s invoices, operating agreements, NDAs, financial statements, reports, production routers, or product design specifications, you can be sure documents are involved. So why not focus on these documents as a means to drive collaboration? And what about collaborating with outside vendors and contractors where documents and drawings are involved? Providing a central medium for everyone to view, edit, markup, comment, approve, and download lets the team, as well as third parties, stay on the same page.
Using access control, companies can also selectively restrict access to information. Systems allow only authorized users to access the files or documents needed to get their work done while preventing others from seeing confidential information. Not only is this vital to the safety and security of your company, but it can also have an immediate impact on the success and productivity of your employees.
Employees may often have to take additional, and unnecessary steps to access documents required to complete their objectives. Implementing a DMS with access control features empowers employees to get the documents they need quickly, without having to rely on gatekeepers to grant access in a timely manner.
Document Version Control
Track document changes, capture key decisions and document the reviewing process. Stay in-control of essential workflows while ensuring correct versions of files are being used.
Enhance Team Collaboration Through Document Version Control
Document version control is another way you can further enhance collaboration and can be particularly useful for engineers. In the world of engineering, drafters and designers are required to alter drawings multiple times before moving on to the next stage of the design process. With automated version control, you can ensure that they’re viewing the correct version of the document, preventing duplicated or rework efforts, and reducing your error rate. The cost in both dollars and time due to rework and sub-optimal results is substantial and has a direct impact on the organization’s efficiency.
Further Reading: What is a Document Management System?
Increase Productivity with Incentivization
We believe the axiom that incentives breed productivity, and while this may seem like an obvious solution, there are still many organizations that don’t understand the value that incentives can bring to the table. It provides encouragement for employees to be more efficient and actually gives them an objective to achieve.
Many employers make the mistake of associating incentives with financial rewards, although this is not always the case. Incentives can be simple and meaningful rewards that can improve the lives of your employees. Whether it be a free lunch, public recognition, or additional PTO, you can provide workers with the positive feedback they need to continue to work productively.
Not only does this stimulate efficiency, but it can also boost job satisfaction, attracting more skilled workers to your business.
Additional EDMS Features
Our EDMS Solutions
ImageSite and Engine-Box (the Cloud version of ImageSite) are eQuorum’s robust workflow and document management solutions, created to help workers manage their essential workflows while maintaining complete control over their engineering files and documents. Not only do they provide a secure collaboration site for workers, but they also help organizations manage document distribution with third parties like vendors, contractors, and customers. Both systems are offered at a competitive price, enabling organizations to get a quick return on their investment by providing the features and functionality needed to help organizations improve efficiency, productivity, and collaboration. Companies can choose from concurrent user subscriptions or named user subscriptions, ensuring organizations have subscription options that make sense for their business.
ImageSite®
Our single source engineering workflow and document management system. Built in HTML5 so there is no software to deploy to client computers or mobile apps to download. Offered as an On-premise or Private Cloud system.
Our EDMS Solutions
ImageSite and Engine-Box (the Cloud version of ImageSite) are eQuorum’s robust workflow and document management solutions, created to help workers manage their essential workflows while maintaining complete control over their engineering files and documents. Not only do they provide a secure collaboration site for workers, but they also help organizations manage document distribution with third parties like vendors, contractors, and customers. Both systems are offered at a competitive price, enabling organizations to get a quick return on their investment by providing the features and functionality needed to help organizations improve efficiency, productivity, and collaboration. Companies can choose from concurrent user subscriptions or named user subscriptions, ensuring organizations have subscription options that make sense for their business.
Engine-Box™
Engine-Box is a cloud based workflow and document management version of ImageSite that resides outside the corporate network.
The eQuorum Customer Promise
In 2005, eQuorum developed the first all browser-based EDMS. The system, although for on-premise use, was still created to remove client software and JAVA from user computers and allow users to have a single viewer based on the simple navigation functionality of browsers. Today, eQuorum provides that same application in a private Cloud or a SaaS Cloud option. We can do this because we are, and have always been, browser-based, understanding the enhanced speed, security, and usability of this technology.
With the abundance of document management systems on the market today, there’s no doubt that choosing the right Cloud document management software can be a difficult decision. eQuorum is here to provide a comprehensive, powerful, and most importantly – affordable Cloud document management solution. We believe in providing real value to our customers by eliminating unnecessary costs, providing industry-leading functionality, and equipping your team with the right tools using cutting edge technology to bring your products to market faster.
Resources
eQuorum®
We specialize in engineering workflow and document management. Our comprehensive, yet easy-to-use software provides the solution to manage data from design to manufacturing and production, to sales, support and administration.