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5 Secrets to Successfully Deploying Shared Document Scanning Services

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5 Secrets to Successfully Deploying Shared Document Scanning Services

 The recession has forced organizations to look for new ways to reduce expenses and drive efficiency.  And, the fact is, most organizations could be making better use of their operations infrastructure.  

Recognizing this, more companies are considering shared scanning services centers.  
By centralizing tasks such as scanning, companies can eliminate redundant systems 
and processes, optimize their workforce, improve control and visibility over corporate 
information, and reduce overhead.
 
A Shared Services Case Study
One major insurer has achieved significant business benefits by implementing a shared 
services center for its document imaging and data extraction.  Through its shared 
services center, the insurer image-enabled business processes for its auto and property 
claims organization as well as its financial area, centralizing work from field locations.  
Today, the insurer’s shared services center processes approximately 60 million pages a 
year, or a daily scanning volume of about 80,000 pages.
 
As a result of creating its imaging shared services center and redesigning certain 
document processes, the insurer initially saved $4.1 million a year.  And bigger savings 
may be on tap.  What’s more, the shared services center is proving itself as a key 
business partner and strategist for its clients.  The move to a shared services center also 
provides the insurer’s departments with a flexible workforce; on slower mail days, the 
insurer’s shared services center is able to leverage mostly part-time staff.
 
Strategies for Success
Unquestionably, shared scanning services can deliver big benefits.  But there are five 
things that organizations should keep in mind to help ensure the success of their shared 
services initiative.
     
     1. Perfect your own processes before taking on someone else’s work. The move to 
        shared document scanning services is about far more than economies of scale.  
        Your group will be expected to provide leadership in improving your organization’s 
        document-driven business processes.
    
     2. Try to make processes repeatable. This will help reduce your overhead, accelerate 
        the on-boarding of new applications and allow you to apply best practices across 
        applications, improving quality and throughput.  Similarly, don’t customize 
        processes unless it’s absolutely necessary.
     
     3. Invest time upfront understanding the scanning requirements. Since you’ll no 
        longer be the business owner of the applications you process, you’ll have to work 
        hard to learn their requirements.  Take the time to thoroughly document the 
        requirements of new applications and to map process flows.  Also consider doing 
        a pilot or proof of concept before you begin production.  Not only will you avoid 
        potential pitfalls, you’ll have an opportunity to identify processes ripe for reengineering.
     
     4. Make sure your hardware and software are up to the task of shared document 
        scanning.  You want to ensure that your hardware and software have the scalability 
        to efficiently process additional volume, as well as the flexibility to handle a range 
        of document types and capture requirements (e.g. color and grayscale images, high 
        resolution images).  The service level agreements (SLAs) you sign with clients may 
        also place tougher reliability demands on your infrastructure. 
 
     5. Win over other departments. The insurer’s biggest roadblock to rolling out 
        its shared services center was garnering support from business owners and 
        convincing them of the cost savings, as well as the potential process improvements.  
        One way to convince other departments to outsource to you: develop strong SLAs.  
        The insurer’s shared services center offers SLAs for each of its internal clients. 
        While SLAs will vary by client, they will typically cover processing turnaround time 
        and quality. 
 
The Bottom Line
At a time when organizations are looking for ways to improve efficiency and 
effectiveness, a shared services center for document imaging and data capture can 
pay big dividends.  And if you follow the strategies above, you can help ensure that your 
company achieves maximum return on investment.