Millfield Partnership Case Study

With a large business to manage across a considerable nationwide branch network, managing paperwork in the financial sector was becoming more and more time-consuming for Millfield Partnership Ltd, a leading national independent financial advisory company. Due to regulations, independent financial advisers need to keep copies of every document. However, storing and accessing documents in branch offices was a growing problem. With filing systems occupying 40% of branch office space, Millfield needed to fi nd an alternative solution.

It investigated the market to find a document management system that would allow advisers to scan every document and file them electronically. Not only would this dramatically reduce the office space required for storage, it would also improve customer service, since advisers could call up any document electronically and instantly, regardless of which branch they were visiting.

After evaluating a number of different document management systems Millfield decided to implement Invu 250. Millfield Project Manager Asim Tariq:

"After making a full assessment of document management products including SAP and Siebel, we decided to implement Invu's document management system. The product had good functionality, was easy to use, fitted our requirements and offered us good product support. It was also cost effective and could be easily rolled out across our national branches network."

Installation took place in two phases. The first phase included putting in place scanners and equipment at Millfield's centralised business centre in Hull and starting the process of storing documents electronically. This was done between September and December 2001. Following this the solution was rolled out to all branches during the first eight months of 2002 and training for all staff took place.

Now all documents received or produced by Millfield are scanned automatically and filed using Invu 250. Each document is automatically indexed, so that it can be brought up instantly by searching key words and using predefined file indexation. Not only has this reduced the amount of storage space required, it also means that advisers can easily access documents whenever customers call, so that enquiries can be answered more efficiently. Tariq:

"Following the implementation of Invu's document management system, we have managed to take around 200,000+ client files out of the sales locations. We estimate that this has led to a 23% increase in efficiency and time saving for our administrative staff."

Although the solution was up and running in a matter of months, for staff it meant a change in working practices, which took longer for advisers and administrative staff to get used to.

Tariq: "Introducing a document management system meant a culture change for the business. Many people liked having hard copies and so there was some initial resistance to the system. However, this disappeared once staff were fully trained and started to use it."

Having used Invu for three years, Millfield is currently merging with Inter-Alliance and the company will more than double in size. Tariq:

"Over the past three years, Invu has been invaluable to us. As our company merges with Inter-Alliance, we look forward to further extending the role of Invu across our business."

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