Paper Statements Spawns Manual Processes
Posted on Wed, Nov 17, 2010 @ 01:13 PM
Save money and improve workflow efficiency
Paper statements, invoices and other documentation often result in inefficient and manual workflow. Duplicate copies, overflowing filing cabinets and a general lack of visibility and control within the process are all hallmarks of a paper-based process. To make matters worse, manually entering data and physically matching account information can often lead to higher error rates, increased costs, and delayed processing time.
If this sounds familiar, now may be the time to take advantage of a less-paper approach. By their very nature, paper statements require a number of mundane and inefficient tasks - everything from removing staples and making extra photocopies, to sorting, stacking and sending batches via interoffice mail. Indeed, a hardcopy statement that is routed around via interoffice mail and may sit for days waiting for attention in an in-basket; and once received, administrative clerks must often manually key important data into an online system in order for the data to be used. The activity is time-consuming at best; and in the event of a discrepancy or question, the process grinds to a halt while clerks play phone tag trying to resolve the problem.
A recent study conducted by the Aberdeen Group surveyed over 200 institutions and 56 percent responded that the inefficiency of a paper workflow was a driving force behind electronic statement automation. Those organizations with e-statements in place found that their processing time was 80 percent faster than their peers. The reason for this dramatic improvement stems from the fact that the extra effort required to "push paper" takes an often overlooked toll on efficiency and throughput.
While most organizations consider paper-based statements solely in the context of a "printing cost," the hard costs of a paper-bound workflow are only part of the equation. Inefficiencies, rework and error are a significant soft-dollar expensive in terms of lost productivity and ineffective customer service.
Now is the time to consider how electronic statements can save you money and improve workflow efficiency.