Streamlining Report Approvals using SharePoint and InfoPath

May, 2007

SharePoint and InfoPath provide a very effective platform for streamlining common business processes. Paper-intensive flows can be readily adapted to these technologies using InfoPath forms and SharePoint workflows. As an example, a company that does a variety of engineering tests at construction sites for its clients and produces reports detailing the results of their tests converted their old, paper-based process into a more efficient, automated one.

The company serves the real estate needs of a multi-national corporation and its various operating companies. During the course of their project delivery process, the company would complete various paper forms; define routine tasks; collect key signatures from both within the organization and from their business customers; and produce a monthly activity report detailing all projects, their respective statuses, key upcoming milestones, and the roles of the individuals on the project.

After experiencing significant growth in recent years, the company was forced to make changes. The current process was resulting in many problems:

• Field technicians would often have multiple site visits in a single day, resulting in lost reports and/or delays in turning them in.
• Paper reports were often hard to read, resulting in data entry errors when administrators would key them in.
• Heavy loads on the administrators would result in delays in getting reports to the project manager for approval, along with delays in distributing reports to clients, resulting in lower customer satisfaction rates.
• Administrative time spent entering information that was already captured by field technicians, along with filing reports after distribution, meant additional costs billed to the clients, which limited the company.s ability to be competitive in the marketplace.
• Administrative time spent tracking down lost reports resulted in non-billable time and, thus, greater costs for the company.

By implementing Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 (MOSS) and InfoPath 2007, the company was able to establish an automated system to streamline this process, reduce the costs, and expedite the delivery of reports to clients.

Under the new process, field technicians complete reports while at the project site using tablet PCs, configured with InfoPath 2007. Reports are instantly submitted to a SharePoint site, where project managers can review them, and immediately route them electronically to administrators for distribution.

The new process has provided several immediate benefits to the company and others that will be recognized in the first few months following production implementation:

• Since reports are immediately submitted to the system, they are available in the office before the field technician even leaves the work site.
• Because report data is entered directly into InfoPath, administrators no longer need to spend time re-keying information, so reports can be sent immediately to project managers for review.
• A customized dashboard, with web parts targeted to employees based on their role within the organization, let.s everyone know which reports are currently assigned to them.
• Data entry errors are dramatically reduced since information is directly input by the subject matter expert.
• Quicker turn-around time for report delivery resulted in higher customer satisfaction rates.
• Reports no longer need to be manually filed, since they are permanently stored in SharePoint, resulting in less administrative overhead for the company.
• Since information is captured in the system, reports are never lost or misfiled.

With a SharePoint infrastructure in place, developing business solutions such as the one described in this Tip can be accomplished with relatively low incremental investment.