A document lifecycle is a path a document takes from its creation to its use to its storage in a database, where it can be retrieved or referenced later. Document lifecycles all start in similar places: whatever program you or your company uses to generate its documents. Then, a document can be written, edited, reviewed, accepted, and sent to someone else, who then sends it to someone else, etc. In the past, documents would have to become paper, but now, digital files and documents are a large part of doing business and this article will show how document automation can help your business improve.
What is the Document Lifecycle?
A document lifecycle is made up of the many steps it takes through a business or organization including its eventual filing or deletion. The lifecycle is so named since a document’s journey can go in many directions and does not follow a linear path toward any one specific destination. If a document is saved and filed, then it can be recalled or retrieved just as easily, thanks to modern document management systems that make creating, storing, and retrieving vital documents much easier.
A document lifecycle moves much faster now than it used to since most companies have gone paperless and do not create physical documents. Digital documents are easier to create, share, and edit than paper ones, which is why lifecycles now can move back and forth, since working with digital documents is not as labor and time intensive as working with paper documents.
The Benefits of Document Automation
Document automation speeds up processes that used to take days or weeks to complete. In paper-based offices, a document lifecycle would drag on for weeks, while it passed through various stakeholders and departments. Anything could happen to it in the meantime, only adding more delays to vital business operations like making payroll or finalizing a project.
A document control system removes all those steps and ensures a smooth, worry-free document workflow so there are no delays between when the document is created and when it is used or viewed by someone else. An electronic document management system can also help you create new files that are properly formatted with the correct details necessary, depending on its use and necessity.
You never have to worry about errors, human or otherwise, with a document management system. Every document it creates is made exactly to the specifications you inputted so the program will never create something you cannot use. You can send the file to any other department with ease and never have any compatibility issues since your company uses the same PDF editor or file management system to work with all documents.
When you or your business deploy a document management system, you also ensure that your documents are kept safe and accessible in a centralized database. All your documents will have a digital trail so you know when, where, and who accessed them. You can always expand or restrict this access depending on the file’s importance, but a document management system gives you many options to secure all your documents.
Document Automation with Lumin PDF
Lumin PDF is a PDF editing program that has many document automation features like its OCR reader that can scan and file documents into a local hard drive or to your cloud-based drive. Lumin can sync with various cloud platforms to make it easier to store your files in one safe location.
The sync features also make it possible for your employees to view a file together, at the same time, to make collaborating easier. Anyone can access it, from anywhere at any time so you can see comments, annotations, or highlights another employee is making in real time. When you make changes to the document, they are automatically saved to the document in the cloud, so none of your changes will be missed.
