How Can AI Enhance Document Management?
With generative AI – in the shape of Copilot – landing in Microsoft 365 apps this year, document management systems are braced for impact. The arrival of AI in Microsoft products creates unprecedented opportunities for streamlined document workflows, increased productivity, and improved decision-making.
For organisations working with large volumes of documents and data – arguably most modern workplaces – AI has the potential to transform document workflows, and create cost-saving efficiencies. Here’s what it can do today, and what to expect tomorrow.
AI in document management explained
In document management, AI technologies are used to automate and optimize different aspects of document management processes. Tasks such as document classification, data extraction, content generation, and workflow automation can all be enhanced by AI. This allows organisations to intelligently organise, analyze, and retrieve documents, potentially resulting in increased accuracy and efficiency.
How AI benefits document management
Bringing AI into document management systems has the power to transform how documents are handled. Here are three key benefits:
- Reduces manual effort and errors
AI in document management systems can automate repetitive tasks, such as data entry and metadata tagging. This saves time, and also improves data accuracy and consistency. - Streamlines document workflows
With AI-enhanced workflow automation, organisations can streamline approval processes, track document changes, and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. - Facilitates smarter decision-making
Training AI on authoritative documents inside a repository can help uncover valuable patterns and trends, enabling better informed and more strategic decision-making.
Current uses of AI in document management
AI is revolutionizing document management practices:
- AI-based document classification can automatically categorize documents based on their content, making it easier to organise and retrieve information.
- AI-driven data extraction tools can intelligently parse documents and extract relevant information, such as customer details from invoices or key insights from reports. This saves time and enhances data accuracy and completeness.
- AI-powered content generation tools can assist in creating summaries, reports, and presentations by analyzing content and generating relevant insights and recommendations. This significantly accelerates content creation processes and improves document quality.
The future of AI in document management
Looking ahead, AI in document management has huge potential for innovation. As AI technologies continue to evolve, you can expect more sophisticated capabilities, including enhanced Natural Language Processing (NLP), multimodal document analysis, and intelligent document processing.
In the coming years, AI-powered document management systems are likely to become more context-based, anticipating individual user needs and providing personalized recommendations and suggestions. On top of that, as AI becomes more closely integrated into enterprise workflows, you can expect ever more seamless interoperability between document management systems and other AI-enabled applications and services. That includes other content types such as images and video.
AI has the power to revolutionize document management, offering unprecedented efficiency, accuracy, and intelligence inside organisations. By embracing AI-driven solutions, businesses can unlock new opportunities for growth, innovation, and competitive advantage.
AI document management with WorkPoint 365
One of the leading drivers for implementing document management is to add a layer of organisation over content to make information retrieval easier. The good news is that your best practices for document management also benefit AI, helping it to retrieve the right information at the right time.
An AI assistant, such as Copilot, is grounded in your company data, so your number one priority is to ensure it's fed with authoritative documents and data. That’s why it’s vital to have robust quality and approval systems in place. What’s essential for GDPR compliance is just as vital for AI-readiness.
A WorkPoint 365 solution helps your organisation stay in control of documents and data. Tools like WorkPoint Automate enable AI so you can auto-classify and tag content. This helps facilitate ‘just enough access’, so people only have access to the documents they need to get their job done, such as multiple authors working on different aspects of a project proposal.
At the same time, the output of generative AI is only as good as the input. To get the best results, all the content in your repository – or knowledge hub – needs to be accurate and authoritative. WorkPoint 365 gives you clear oversight and control over your Microsoft-based documents and data. Built on top of the Microsoft stack, WorkPoint 365 is well-positioned to integrate with third-party data from your CRM, for example.
AI has the potential to revolutionize how organisations manage documents. As we continue to harness its power, the future of document management looks set for increased efficiency, productivity, and innovation. WorkPoint 365 is your enabler on that journey.