In many businesses someone spends hours each week copying information from one place to another: orders into the system, timesheets into payroll, invoices into the accounts. It’s slow, it’s boring, and it’s where mistakes happen. Often, it doesn’t need to be done by hand at all.
Spot the double typing
Ask your team: “What do you type in that already exists somewhere else?” Common answers include:
- orders from emails or phone calls typed into the main system;
- paper job sheets or delivery notes typed up in the office;
- timesheets or rotas re-typed into payroll;
- supplier invoices typed into the accounts;
- the same customer details entered in several places.
Three common fixes
1. Connect the systems you already have
Many business systems can share information with each other. When they’re connected, a sale, order or timesheet entered once can appear everywhere it’s needed.
2. Capture it digitally at the start
If information starts on paper, it has to be typed up later. Capturing it on a phone or tablet instead, such as job sheets, checklists or delivery signatures, means it’s already in the system.
3. Let the computer do the routine bits
Simple rules can handle routine jobs, like sending a reminder when an invoice is overdue, or reading orders that always arrive in the same format. A person still checks anything unusual.
Work out what it’s worth
Add up roughly how many hours a week are spent on double typing, and multiply by what those hours cost. That tells you how much it’s worth spending to fix it, and how quickly a fix would pay for itself.
We can help you find it
Our free savings check looks at staff time as well as bills. We’ll tell you where the double typing is, what it would cost to fix, and whether it’s worth it.
