4 Ways to Accelerate Your Document Collection Process

In industries subject to information security regulations, such as finance, healthcare and education, transferring sensitive documents and personally identifiable information (PII) between clients and organizations is often both a time-sensitive and a time-consuming process. Organizations that work in these fields must simultaneously manage hard deadlines and complex data protection obligations. 

Examples of common document collection processes involving PII include:

• Commercial and home loan applications
• Student applications
• Purchases requiring credit approval 

In each of these instances, the organizations processing documentation stand to benefit significantly from adopting practices and technologies that accelerate lengthy document collection phases. This blog post covers four ways organizations in regulated industries can streamline document collection without compromising information security standards. 

1. Automate

Manual document management processes consume an excessive amount of time in many white-collar jobs that rely on information collaboration and exchange between multiple parties. In knowledge worker positions, employees typically spend as much time locating information they already have as they do on all other tasks, and an overwhelming majority of employees – 92% – have lost documents exchanged as email attachments. 

To mitigate time loss as part of the manual document collection and management processes, organizations should automate as many repeated, rote tasks as possible. In most document collection processes, there are three major bottlenecks that automation technology can alleviate.

• Notifications: The typical office worker receives 120 emails to their business accounts each day. When clients submit time-sensitive pending documentation via email, it frequently gets lost in the stack for hours to days at a time. In complex processes such as loan applications that involve dozens of separate client documents, time lost in inboxes accumulates rapidly. Document collection software that issues notifications to recipients when new client uploads become available can drastically cut downtime at this stage.  
• Workflows: Processing lag also accrues when recipients of client documentation must decide for themselves in each instance where to send something next or what step to initiate next. Establishing predefined workflows that automatically route documents to appropriate users and prompt new tasks helps organizations minimize collaborative inefficiencies. 
• Requests: On the client side, document requests often come in the form of emails, texts, and phone calls, leaving clients with an unclear understanding of what’s expected of them. Consolidating this information in a single document repository with request statuses and automated deadline reminders keeps clients informed and on track. 

2. Integrate Processes in a Single Application

Today’s large businesses use an average of 110 different software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications. Toggling CRMs, communication apps like Slack, and other siloed IT systems to manage individual client files compounds chances for errors and oversights. 

The solution to application creep in most cases is integration. As custom-coded integrations for specific applications have become prohibitively expensive – if not altogether unfeasible – low-code modular integration capabilities have become the standard for single-screen software solutions. To reduce errors and help employees manage document collection processes efficiently, organizations should prioritize front-end IT tools with extensive out-of-the-box integrations for commonly used SaaS applications. 

3. Cater to the End-User Experience

Document collection as part of time-sensitive processes, like loan and student applications, can be stressful and frustrating. When clients and applicants have to rely on phone calls and email to check the status of their applications and resolve their doubts, it can strain relationships and negatively impact their overall experience. 

To avoid preventable frustrations, organizations should give clients as many direct communication tools and self-service options as possible. Applications that offer live chat and direct messaging on the same platform where clients view and upload documents can keep questions and requests from getting lost in email and voice inboxes. Similarly, eliminating unnecessary repetition in client tasks through document collection software without file size limits improves the client experience. 

4. Prioritize Communication 

Effective, upfront communication with clients about the tasks they must complete and how they can facilitate their own processes can greatly improve document collection efficiency. One way to establish clear communication from the outset is to standardize document collection requests and consolidate them on one platform where clients can respond directly to pending requests by uploading through their own portals.

Collect Data, Documents and Other Information with FileInvite

Instead of streamlining document collection processes through small incremental improvements involving different tools and applications, organizations can implement a one-stop solution with FileInvite’s secure file-sharing and document portal platform. FileInvite uses a single, secure document repository where both clients and representatives can see the pending and uploaded documents, as well as incoming deadlines. 

With configurable automation features, such as notifications and customized workflows, FileInvite cuts document collection turnaround times by an average of 80%. FileInvite’s out-of-the-box integrations include Google Drive, Dropbox, Zapier, and most popular CRMs. These features – combined with Safeguards Rule-compliant security through end-to-end encryption and SOC 2 Type 2 certification – make FileInvite the clear choice for accelerated file sharing and communication in regulated industries.

To learn more and request a demo, visit FileInvite today.

Related Posts:

• 7 Benefits of Automated Document Collection for Banking Institutions
• Document Collection for Commercial Lenders: Which Tools Improve the Customer Experience?
• The 4 Key Features a Bank's Document Collection Platform Must Have