Stockport manufacturer adopts new document management solution to enable hybrid working

Stockport-based Woodbank Office Solutions have supported a local tableware manufacturer to implement new business systems to enable hybrid working.

Harfield Tableware, also based in Stockport, had wanted to be able to offer more employees the opportunity to work from home, however, needed to do so in a way that would not require the firm to undergo a costly overhaul of its internal processes.

Jo Cooper, Finance Director at Harfield explained the dilemma faced by the manufacturer in enabling hybrid working for colleagues:

“We were looking for a way to help our members of staff who could work remotely move to a hybrid role; however, because of the amount of paperwork that moves around the business, the sales and admin team had to be at the office. We wanted a digital solution so that our sales and admin team could have some flexibility.

“Our existing system meant everyone had to be on-location for the orders to process. We needed to find a solution that could scan documents and send them to the sales and admin team wherever they were located.”

Following a two-week trial period, Harfield Tableware have integrated the Filestar document management system, enabling colleagues to scan and send their documents securely and accurately to the cloud and eliminating the need for physical paperwork to be moved back and forth.

Jo Cooper continued:

“The new system has been fantastic from day one. There was no settle-in period; As soon as it went onto the system and the admin team were using it, they knew it was right. Biggest benefit for us is definitely the time-saving. It has improved all-round efficiency, and it gives accurate documents straight back to us. It’s also nice to be working with a local firm.”

Woodbank’s Account Manager for the Stockport and Greater Manchester region, Josh Kinder (pictured) added:

“When I spoke to Jo, it was about finding out about Harfield’s particular problem and then presenting her with a few options. From the very first call, I knew that we had the right solution that would help them.”