The Future of Operational Excellence: Insights from Operations Week 2023

The most predictable thing about a new year? Stuff will happen that we can’t predict (The last few have definitely shown us that!). 

This has made one thing clear to us at S-Docs: focusing on operational efficiency - and the people, processes, and technology that achieve it - is paramount no matter what you face.

We've learned a lot helping our customers achieve operational excellence through effective document and communication processes. But the best knowledge comes from the diverse perspectives of a greater community.

With this in mind, we brought together operations experts to share their insights at our virtual event Operations Week 2023. After engaging discussions on:

🤝Customer-centric operations
🤖AI’s impact on efficiency
⚙️Architecting operational excellence

Plus more, we asked our panel members for their predictions for the year ahead.

How will operational efficiency change in 2024, and what should you focus on to prepare? Check out their predictions below.

P.S. Are you in need of a partner in streamlining your operations this year? Request an S-Docs demo today!

7 Reasons to Automate Manufacturing Document Management for Optimal Productivity

When it comes to producing products at scale, improving manufacturing efficiency is the name of the game. So it’s no surprise today’s global manufacturers are increasingly turning to data analytics, automation, artificial intelligence, and machine learning in the quest for maximum efficiency. 

The Modern, Digital Factory

According to McKinsey, transforming yesterday’s analog factory into a modern, digital factory can yield 30 to 50 percent reductions in machine downtime, 10 to 30 percent increases in throughput, 15 to 30 percent improvements in labor productivity, and 85 percent more accurate forecasting.

Not to be overlooked is the application of automation to document management — a large, yet relatively simple step towards a truly transformed digital factory. Automated documents liberate your factory from the headache of excessive paperwork, time-consuming data entry tasks, and challenging manual organization. Additionally, digitizing these workflows empowers you to achieve more, particularly in an era of labor shortages when acquiring skilled talent is hard on the bottom line.

7 Reasons Automated Manufacturing Workflows Improve Industrial Processes

Here are seven reasons to automate manufacturing document management for businesses looking to achieve optimal productivity.

1. Reduce Operating Costs of Physical Document Production, Management, and Storage

Streamlining document production and management through automation can result in substantial cost savings. Going digital removes the necessity of physical documents, reducing expenses on paper, printing, storage units, and those cob-webbed filing cabinets everyone is afraid to open. 

For workflows that still require paper documents automation is still a major time saver, reducing manual tasks like data entry so your team can get more done with their limited time. As a result, your operation spends less resources on paperwork and more on improving manufacturing efficiency.

2. Improve Collaboration

Deploying manufacturing document management software also promotes improved team collaboration. Your team can quickly update digital templates and effortlessly share them across departments or geographical locations, breaking down communication silos that might hinder the speed of routing and delivery. 

Your manufacturing teams gain immediate access to essential documents like purchase orders, batch records, and quality assurance documentation to ensure everything is good to go before a product hits the road.

3. Improve Document Version Control

If you don't have a handle on things, you could end up in a compliance mess with loads of different versions of important documents and contracts flying around at the same time. Don’t waste time playing detective — document control software for manufacturing addresses this problem head-on by providing clear version histories. It automatically archives old versions of, say, a Bill of Materials, while clearly marking the latest one for easy identification.

4. Increase Sales Agility and Personalization

Digitizing your manufacturing documentation enhances sales agility by giving you the ability to tweak templates and contracts on-the-fly for regulatory changes, T&Cs, and legal jargon - in a regulated manner. It also allows you to display customized prices to specific customers and adapt to seasonal offerings or campaigns automatically. 

Here’s the kicker — in a world that runs on personalization, sales reps can easily customize documents post-creation or translate them with a button click for global businesses.

5. Enhance Sustainability and Meet ESG Goals

Adopting an eco-friendly approach to paperwork showcases to stakeholders, including customers and potential investors, that you value socially responsible behavior. Shifting to manufacturing document management software helps you contribute to saving the planet by markedly reducing paper waste. 

6. Accelerate Supply Chain Operations

Automating document management in the supply chain speeds up operations. Instant digital access to critical documents facilitates easy tracking of goods—from production through delivery.

It also eliminates hiccups often caused by manual processes such as lost paperwork or incorrectly entered data, making it an effective strategy to prevent system bottlenecks and achieve smoother operational flow.

7. Increase Data Security and Integrity

One of those most valuable perks document automation has to offer is the ability to maintain document accuracy, consistency, and reliability throughout the entire digital workflow. 

By using automated manufacturing workflows for managing documents, you can implement stringent user access controls and centralized data storage. This reduces the potential for unauthorized documents alterations or harmful breaches — keeping your sensitive information safe while promoting a trustworthy working environment.

Implementing Manufacturing Document Management Solutions with S-Docs

S-Docs makes automating manufacturing document management easy, moving your operation one step closer to complete digital transformation. From training manuals and legal contracts to daily itinerary briefs and automated communications, S-Docs effortlessly accommodates a wide range of document generation needs, ensuring flexibility and reliability for your evolving business requirements.

The platform is built exclusively on Salesforce and features an intuitive design so your team can start using it from day one. With S-Docs, your operation can eliminate inefficiencies related to manufacturing document management, enabling your team to concentrate on what matters most. 

Discover how S-Docs can elevate the productivity of your workforce by requesting a demo today.

Jump from Paperwork to Productivity with HR Automation Software

Working in human resources can be very rewarding. You have the opportunity to encourage employees’ growth and help them acquire new skills and promotions.

Yet many HR professionals feel they spend more time shuffling documents than actually managing their workforce. If you and your team are drowning under offer letters, employment contracts, benefits forms, and performance reports, it's time to make a leap from paperwork to productivity with HR automation software. 

What is HR Automation Software?

HR automation software refers to digital tools that streamline and simplify human resources tasks like managing personnel data, creating employee contracts, enrolling employees in benefits programs, processing payroll, and adhering to compliance regulations. 

Benefits of Using HR Document Automation Software

The ultimate goal of HR automation tools is to eliminate paperwork, smooth operations, enhance accuracy, and deliver higher levels of productivity so you can focus on what truly matters – your people. When your efforts are successful, your organization will see clear results.

Time Savings Through Streamlined Processes

With HR automation software, your team will be able to perform critical processes quicker than manually filling out Microsoft Word or Excel documents. This applies not only to singular tasks but also to the overall HR workflow due to the interconnectedness of various operations. For instance, something as simple as automating timesheet approval can have far-reaching impacts on payroll processing and eventually cost management.

Increased Accuracy and Reduced Errors

Mistakes in documentation can lead to serious consequences in human resources. HR automation tools eliminate the risk of errors by ensuring that data is stored in a singular location and integrated with other applications so the information at every touchpoint is consistently accurate and up-to-date. This not only enhances your HR department's credibility but also prevents costly mistakes that could arise from inaccuracies.

Improved Compliance with HR Regulations

Failure to adhere to legal requirements can result in fines, lawsuits, and damage to your organization's reputation. HR automation software keeps you in step with evolving regulations by ensuring that all HR processes adhere to the latest laws. This proactive approach safeguards your organization from potential legal pitfalls.

These benefits result in happy HR employees and a positive employee experience.

Key Documents HR Automation Software Can Simplify

HR automation software can simplify a wide range of human resources documents, making your life easier and more efficient.

Offer Letters

Crafting offer letters is time-consuming and requires you to double and triple-check the final draft (you don’t want to send out an offer letter with the wrong salary, right?). With HR automation tools, you can create offer letter templates that pull candidate-specific data from your database so no important details are missed. 

A new document can be generated effortlessly from a template, delivered to prospective employees promptly, and signed with a simple click, thanks to e-signature technology. This level of efficiency not only reduces administrative burdens but also leaves a lasting positive impression on new hires.

Employee Contracts

Document automation simplifies the often tedious process of signing contracts and onboarding new employees. Instead of manually entering data, emailing a pdf, and then waiting for a prospective employee to print, sign, scan, and return the document to you, you can spin up a contract template with the individual’s data auto-filled, and send it to them to easily sign right on their laptop, phone, or tablet.

Once the contract is received, you can automate the creation of all onboarding documents straight into their employee folder and jump into your onboarding checklist.

Payroll and Benefits

Processing payroll and benefits is an enormous responsibility. An HR workflow tool can significantly streamline this job by automatically generating payroll-related human resources documents, such as pay stubs, tax forms (e.g., W-2s, 1099s), and direct deposit authorizations. It also provides secure storage for generated documents so they are readily accessible when needed for audits, employee inquiries, or other purposes.

Performance Evaluation Forms

Imagine your employees could simply log into an HR portal, fill out a performance self-evaluation, and submit it to your team who then creates a report based on their input. Simple, right?

A defense agency needed this type of solution for over 500k users on the Salesforce platform — they decided on the S-Docs document automation platform. Department personnel can now log into the agency’s portal to access and sign human resources documents — like physical and employee evaluation forms — in minutes. These documents are automatically and securely stored in Salesforce or external repositories for easy retrieval and management.

Ramp Up HR Efficiency with S-Docs

HR automation software isn't just about reducing paperwork; it's about reimagining your processes and supporting a future where administrative burdens are minimal. By automating key human resources documents and processes, you can focus on what truly matters —- building a thriving, engaged workforce.

Ready to get your team on the court? Contact S-Docs for a demonstration of how document automation can make HR life a breeze.

How AI Is Transforming Digital Agreements

Watching the demise of paperwork over the last decade or two has been a joy for knowledge workers everywhere. Filled with fantasies of reliving the destruction of the printer from the movie, “Office Space,” individuals in varying positions in offices across the globe have embraced and cheered on digital transformation as they seek ways to drop the monotony of day-to-day clerical work.

Digital agreements and contracts have been at the heart of this escape from the filing cabinet. No matter what industry your business operates in, it cannot grow and expand without legal documents and signed agreements with partners, vendors, employees, customers, and other entities — and the value of using AI to manage these documents and contracts cannot be ignored.

While AI already has its roots in business processes everywhere, it has even greater potential to help you simplify the creation and distribution of digital agreements and contracts in the decades to come (and eliminate those bad cases of the Mondays). Let’s look at where our need for contracts began, how digitization and AI are already revitalizing these processes, and where AI may take us in the future.

History of Contracts and Agreements

The bartering system might be considered the earliest form of a “contract.” Goods and services were exchanged between individuals face-to-face, leaving little need for any kind of physical or binding record. One of the first uses of paper contracts was in ancient Egypt where contracts for sales, labor, and partnerships were recorded on papyrus scrolls and subject to the Egyptian legal system.

The Industrial Revolution brought a whole new wave of paper contracts to manage complex employment agreements, international trade, and disputes between organizations or individuals. You might say this was just the beginning of what would become an endless loop of TPS reports. Is all this paperwork necessary? Only Milton knows. 

While digital agreements and signatures are decades old, they received official legal recognition in the U.S. in 2000 through the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce (E-SIGN) Act. This technological advancement paved the way for organizations worldwide to minimize manual contract creation and paperwork.

What AI for Digital Agreements Looks Like Now

Fast forward to today. Technology has continued to evolve and artificial intelligence (AI) has begun transforming traditional operations in unexpected ways, including in digital agreements. 

Using AI for digital agreements gives organizations the benefit of automating repetitive tasks such as contract drafting, distribution, and signing. In addition, intelligent templates can make contract clause recommendations based on previous data analysis and use dynamic content to fill in customer details. As a result, businesses are able to streamline these formerly tedious processes. (Lumbergh would have surely lamented this kind of efficiency — no more coming in on Sunday?)

There's also been traction in the contract review process with AI contract review software. This software uses AI contract analysis to spot issues that could cause disputes later on.

The Benefits of Using AI in Digital Agreements

Of course, AI technology is only helpful if it provides tangible benefits. Here’s the rub: automating document management with AI creates significant speed, efficiency, and operational ROI across your entire organization. Let’s look at the top ways you benefit.

Smarter Decision-Making and Insights

AI-powered tools can analyze and process vast amounts of contract data much faster than humans. This efficiency gives you access to critical information promptly so you can make informed choices in real time. AI contract analysis can also use historical contract data to help you predict future trends, such as contract renewal rates, negotiation outcomes, potential areas of disputes, or Hawaiian Shirt Day. 

Increased Efficiency and Productivity

AI-driven workflows can streamline contract management processes, ensuring that your stakeholders are informed and involved at the appropriate stages. With dynamic content, data can be pulled directly from other systems, such as your CRM, to customize and personalize contracts and communications — complete with 37 pieces of flair. In addition, AI templates and clause libraries enable users to quickly generate contracts by selecting pre-approved clauses and templates. 

Smoother Contract Execution and E-Signature Processes

AI contract review software can intelligently route contracts to the appropriate parties (your eight bosses, for example) for review and approval.

It can determine who needs to sign or approve a contract based on predefined rules and roles within your organization, ensuring that the right people are involved at the right time. With automated alerts, approval workflows, and one-click e-signatures, digital agreements flow smoothly from start to finish in days, hours, or even minutes.

Contract Management and Compliance

The application of smart AI contract analysis tools automatically stores, tracks, and manages every stage of your digital agreements — ensuring you maintain full transparency throughout each transaction. It assists in verifying the identity of signatories and ensuring the security and authenticity of e-signatures. It can also track and document the entire e-signature process for compliance purposes.

What AI for Digital Agreements Looks Like in the Future

In an ideal world, AI will eventually be capable of writing the contracts themselves, rather than just analyzing them. But this is likely a ways in the future still. In the shorter term, this technology has the potential to be able to:

• Generate and negotiate the terms of an agreement by collecting and analyzing data throughout the process
• Self-learn and self-update digitally connected assets, adapting in real-time to changing conditions and inputs
• Build robust risk assessment models that can help refine new contracts
• Help you find the red stapler

The outlook is good for professionals managing digital agreements and contracts — but plenty of tools are available now to give you the benefits of AI and automation. 

Consider S-Docs for automated document management. With S-Docs, you’ll never have to look at a TPS report again because, with one click, you can create a new contract from a template, merge it with customer data from Salesforce, and send it off for e-signature with a dynamic, customized email. 

And it’s 100% Salesforce-native so you don’t have to worry about the security of your documents or your data. Contact us today for a demo.

5 Types of Consumer Goods Technology to Improve the Customer Experience

Delighting customers in the consumer goods industry requires much more than simply delivering superior products. Of course, amazing products are important, but exceptional customer experiences play a pivotal role in success. At a time when 94% of consumers say their purchase decisions are influenced by how a company treats its customers, it’s a smart business decision to streamline communication and deliver personalized services. Advances in consumer goods technology can reshape the way brands like yours engage with customers and improve the buying journey. 

What Are the New Technologies for Consumer Goods?

The consumer goods industry has already faced digital disruption, with the rise of e-commerce platforms and online retailers. Additional technologies today are reshaping the consumer goods customer journey end-to-end. Some of today’s promising new technologies include: 

• Artificial intelligence (AI): AI has many functions, including intelligent automation and round-the-clock chatbots for customer service that are making significant strides towards enriching customer communication. 
• Cloud-based applications: Cloud computing is the perfect ally for businesses. Consumer goods cloud platforms offer rapid implementation and predictable costs, and their quick, on-demand nature makes it easy for businesses to scale up and implement other customer support solutions like AI and machine learning. 
• Advanced analytics: Data analytics help consumer goods companies harness valuable insights from vast pools of data, enabling them to analyze patterns, predict trends, and personalize offerings accordingly. 

Value of Consumer Goods Technology in Customer Communication

Leaders in the consumer goods industry estimate that technology budgets will grow by 34% over the next three years. In addition, 81% of customers expect faster customer service as a result of advances in technology. Consumer goods software allows your company to meet these expectations by personalizing customer experiences and creating targeted communications built around customer preferences. 

You can also benefit from automation tools which save time and resources while elevating efficiency. You no longer have to drown in manual processes and repetitive tasks. Instead, you can focus on what truly matters — the customers.

5 Consumer Goods Technologies That Will Delight Your Customers

Several technologies can significantly enhance your customer satisfaction so they keep coming back for your products and services. 

Consumer Goods Technology #1: Automated Paperwork

Automated paperwork reduces the time spent on monotonous administrative tasks. Document automation technology provides digital templates and auto-fill features that cut down on paper documents and improve efficiency. Opt for a system that integrates with a customer relationship management (CRM) platform like Salesforce so you can merge data and pre-fill fields in documents to create personalized communication with minimal effort. This frees up you and your employees to focus on high-value, customer-centric tasks while increasing overall engagement and productivity.

Consumer Goods Technology #2: Multi-Language Templates

As your consumer goods company expands its global footprint, the ability to communicate in multiple languages becomes essential. Multi-language templates integrated with your CRM help you engage customers from different regions by allowing you to create product descriptions, marketing materials, and customer support documents in various languages with the click of a button, without the need for extensive outsourced translation efforts.

Consumer Goods Technology #3: E-Commerce Portal Integration

E-commerce portal integration connects your company's internal systems with various online marketplaces, making it easier for customers to find and purchase products. These systems work by synchronizing data from your website with your warehouse and distribution processes. E-commerce portals remember users and display content unique to them, creating a unique, personalized shopping experience for each customer. In addition, portals enable real-time inventory management, order tracking, and streamlined payment processes, ultimately reducing friction in the customer's buying journey and strengthening their trust in your organization.

Consumer Goods Technology #4: Fast, Personalized Customer Communication

Customers appreciate fast and personalized communication. Advanced CRM systems equipped with machine learning algorithms can analyze your customer data to provide personalized recommendations and targeted promotions. Additionally, these systems enable efficient tracking of customer interactions so you can address concerns promptly and efficiently.

Consumer Goods Technology #5: Compliance Automation

Compliance is a critical aspect of the consumer goods industry, where standards can vary by product or region. You may have reporting requirements that dictate how you handle materials, label packages, ship goods, or address complaints. 

Compliance automation technology makes it easier to adhere to these regulations and ensures that your products meet all required standards. By automating compliance checks and processes like email notifications or compliance document generation, you can mitigate risk, avoid costly fines, and maintain a positive brand image. 

Create Happy Customers with S-Docs Document Automation

The above-mentioned technologies play significant roles in improving the customer experience within your organization. Tie them all together with S-Docs, a document automation and e-signature platform, and your consumer goods company will be empowered to create, deliver, and manage documents efficiently — creating lasting positive experiences with your customers.

Let us help improve your customer journey with consumer goods technology! Request a demo today.

Putting “Service” Back into Financial Services with Automation

When a customer visits a financial, insurance, or banking institution’s website, the experience they receive should be very similar to an in-person visit. Instead, customers often get lost in a sea of websites, apps, and web forms — and it’s easy for financial services companies to lose true, one-on-one customer connection.

But technology does not need to be the enemy of good customer service. The reality is, that if financial services companies prioritize the adoption of advanced technology like automation, they position themselves to deliver the highest level of customer experience to their clients — both in-person and online — by creating process efficiencies, communicating quickly and effectively, and keeping their data updated and safe.

With smart automation, you can give your clients the convenience and efficiency of digital tools while also delivering a personalized, catered customer experience.

This is the true meaning of “service” — fast, accurate, and empathetic. Financial services automation is the most effective way to create this experience for your customers and employees so you can grow your business.       

What is Financial Services Automation?

Financial services automation refers to the use of technology and software systems to streamline and optimize various processes within the financial services industry like loan applications, insurance claims, and portfolio management. This automation can encompass a wide range of tasks and functions, with the ultimate goal of improving efficiency, reducing costs, minimizing errors, and enhancing the overall customer experience.

Challenges in the Financial Services Industry

The financial services sector grapples with a set of unique difficulties that can negatively impact the customer satisfaction, efficiency, and profitability of your organization. Without the support of automation, the friction created by these manual tasks slows the pace and growth of business.

• Extensive paperwork: While many financial services organizations have transitioned to digital documentation, many are still wrestling with spreadsheets, static pdfs, and manual data entry, slowing business processes and delaying revenue.
• Regulatory compliance: The industry operates under strict regulations. Financial institutions constantly need to update their practices to stay compliant with these evolving policies and avoid fines or penalties.
• Economic volatility: Inflation and rising interest rates have slowed consumer investments, loans, and deposits. Financial services companies must build operational efficiencies, competitive service offerings, and new business models to remain profitable.
• Consumer expectations: Demand for convenience, simplicity, and personalization — all while protecting client privacy — are higher than ever. Consumers expect to have accurate information and action at their fingertips at all times without the risk of exposure.

These are just a few of the challenges in the financial services industry, but they hit hard. And with the right strategy and tactics, automation can turn these challenges into opportunities.

Financial Services Automation That Can Change the Game

Automation promises to change traditional financial services from a world of long lines and transferred calls to efficient workflows that accelerate client services. Here are a few key innovations that can help build client trust and satisfaction.

Robotic Process Automation

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) helps employees perform monotonous tasks such as data entry, client communications, or transaction processing at top speed and with little error. Compared to human efforts, this type of financial services automation boasts unmatchable productivity, which translates to faster customer service and eliminates the risks associated with human error or fatigue. One bank experienced a 27% increase in tasks completed correctly on the first try due to RPA.

AI and Machine Learning

Artificial intelligence has broad applications across financial services from generating targeted customer communications to automating compliance. Machine learning algorithms excel in identifying patterns within large data sets — far surpassing manual analysis capabilities. They play an integral role in areas like fraud detection to keep your customer’s accounts safe, and risk assessment to ensure your clients are making investments they can back. They can also predict consumer behavior so financial institutions can offer personalized recommendations and deals.

Document Automation

Financial services institutions manage countless documents daily — from loan applications to policy agreements. Handling these files manually or with basic word-processing apps is both time-consuming and prone to errors. Through centralized digital storage systems along with automated document creation, retrieval, data entry, editing, and signing, administrative burdens are lifted so workers can focus on creating a stand-out customer experience. Automatically pulling data from Salesforce — and updating it bi-directionally — also ensures the details in each document are accurate, bolstering your reliability and consistency.

Automated Personalization

Consumers expect personalized service whether they are on location or online. Advisory chatbots, educational content suggestions, and personalized financial analysis give customers detailed information that helps them make decisions — while also building trust with your institution. 

In addition, with a financial services digital transformation platform that syncs with Salesforce, you can create dynamic content like loan applications, client contracts, engagement notices, and emails that are populated with client-specific information pulled from your CRM. You can even set up triggers to send new forms or documents when old ones expire or circumstances change. 

Cybersecurity and Compliance Automation

Protecting the data and privacy of your customers is table stakes for building trust. Your clients rely on you to keep their information and funds safe from cyber predators. Choosing financial services automation platforms that store all your client data in a single location like Salesforce, encrypt the data, provide detailed access control, and comply with Zero Trust policies will give both you and your customers peace of mind.

Balancing Technology and the Human Touch

Many theorize that our ever-increasing use of technology is thwarting opportunities for human connection and service. However, in financial services, the opposite is true: Financial services digital transformation automates and speeds the pace of business, giving employees more time to spend with clients, engage in strategic discussions, and provide a personalized experience.

While addressing the human and technological challenges in the financial services industry can be daunting, your efforts are much more likely to be successful with financial services automation with S-Docs. S-Docs is your financial efficiency partner, helping your organization streamline operations, enhance compliance, and accelerate client service with our document automation and e-signature solutions. Spin up documents fast, pull data securely from Salesforce, and collect e-signatures without delay.

Let’s talk about how we can help you. Request an S-Docs demo today.