DocuPhase Review

Why DocuPhase Is Best for Productivity

DocuPhase offers a range of tools that can help small businesses get more done, from digitizing paper records quickly to categorizing and indexing them automatically for later retrieval. Teams can also use DocuPhase to actively work within any document, making changes as needed and pulling up old versions to reference any edits. Users can also e-sign documents with DocuPhase, making it simple to finalize agreements, purchase orders (POs), payroll or any other process that requires approval.

DocuPhase makes it easy to search for specific files and records so you can find exactly what you’re looking for in your digital cabinets. Image source: DocuPhase

While especially powerful for small businesses, DocuPhase offers comprehensive document management software for businesses of all sizes. The software supports a large number of documents while reducing the costs of hardware, information technology (IT) support and on-site storage. We especially liked DocuPhase’s proprietary artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) capabilities, which businesses can use to create preset tags and indexing terms to index documents uploaded to the system automatically. This saves time and effort on the part of the user.

Usability

After users cited DocuPhase’s learning curve as a challenge, the company moved to offer guided training to get new users up to speed. This training can also be tailored to support individual use cases, so no matter how DocuPhase plugs into your workflow, you’ll be able to learn how to integrate the software. However, a learning curve should be expected with DocuPhase and some users will need time to acclimate. Expect a slight delay as everyone gets up to speed, but once training is completed and your team members are proficient with the software, its tools can go a long way to boosting productivity.

Navigating DocuPhase’s tools is easy. Click DocuPhase Main Navigation Menu Bar — featured on all major pages in DocuPhase — and use the grouping tabs to select and navigate to the functionality submenus and operational pages you’re looking for. To get a sense of how to get the most out of your document management software, watch one of DocuPhase’s webinars on topics like document sharing and collaboration and becoming a paperless business.

DocuPhase’s interface allows you to view, annotate and save a variety of file types quickly and easily. Image source: DocuPhase

DocuPhase also offers hundreds of integrations with key business software, such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) platforms like Oracle NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics and Sage. These integrations are key for sharing information across all the software a business uses. For example, when an invoice is created and sent, it can be stored in DocuPhase while simultaneously updating your business accounting software, preventing the need for double entry of data and reducing the risk of human error. Additionally, businesses have the option to set up customizable security protocols that store sensitive information and grant access with user-indicated tiered permissions.

DocuPhase Features

OCR data capture

DocuPhase’s approach to data capture expedites the records digitization process and helps reduce errors, which can be costly to identify and resolve. Using OCR, DocuPhase is able to recognize the content of any scanned paper document and contextualize it as it is uploaded into the system as a digital file. That means keywords and phrases can be easily recognized and make the documents available automatically for search once uploaded.

According to a case study on the company’s website, Central Florida Quality Care (CFQC) was using a multistep manual process that DocuPhase’s OCR capture tool was able to solve by digitizing its paper forms, resulting in a 200% boost in efficiency for the CFQC team.

Automatic metadata and tagging

Building on its OCR data capture feature, DocuPhase’s automatic file routing and indexing allow customers to better manage documents in a paperless environment. With some of the other document management software solutions we reviewed, users need to affix metadata and tags to documents manually when they are uploaded, which takes time and opens the door for errors. Additionally, if multiple users are managing the upload process, there could be conflicts in the labeling conventions each use; DocuPhase’s automated file routing and indexing resolves these problems and saves time. The use of AI and ML brings DocuPhase’s automatic routing and indexing capabilities a cut above the rest for increasing efficiency, productivity and organization.

With DocuPhase’s versioning list, you can see exactly who accessed and edited any file. Image source: DocuPhase

Advanced search tool

The software’s advanced search functionality is beneficial to larger teams with hundreds or thousands of filed documents. Configurable search functions allow your team to search by keyword for the exact piece of information they need rather than combing through folders, files and stacks of paper manually to find what they need. Combined with the OCR data capture and automatic metadata and tagging features, the advanced search tool enables users to drill down into the specifics of a document, quickly finding precisely the one they need. As your digital archive grows, this capability is especially important to keep your team productive.

If you need to make a change to a document, you can search for it using DocuPhase’s search functions, then put in a change order to ensure revisions are made in a timely manner. Image source: DocuPhase

User permissions and roles

Larger teams with many departments will benefit from DocuPhase’s highly customizable permission protocols. By configuring user permissions and then setting users up accordingly, you can gate documents so only those who need access can view or edit them. You can also include tiered permissions for additional security. This means, for example, you can store your HR documents in the same place as your finance documents but restrict visibility to only the personnel that need to see these sensitive files to do their jobs.

Integrations

Arguably one of the most important features of a document management system is its ability to seamlessly integrate with other systems. DocuPhase works well as both an independent document management system and an integrated tool that creates a single source of information across multiple business software platforms. For example, document management software often needs to integrate with business accounting software so things like POs and invoices can live in both environments. A seamless integration means less work entering data and fewer chances for mistakes to happen.

Cloud hosting option

While many document management systems boast a cloud-hosted automation feature, DocuPhase evolves document management with 24/7 secured access to files and increased platform stability. DocuPhase also takes the support burden of technical issues off your IT team to let them optimize more important solutions for in-house issues. Cloud hosting is a necessity among leading document management software providers, as many small businesses likely do not have the technical capacity and budget to support the required maintenance and security considerations that an on-premises solution demands.

DocuPhase Cost

DocuPhase is a highly customizable solution, so the company does not make pricing or tier information readily available on its website. Instead, interested parties will need to speak with a sales representative and provide basic information about their business and its document management needs to receive a quote.

In our conversation with a DocuPhase representative, we learned that the lowest tier started at around $11,000 per year in total and offered a maximum of five user licenses. That equates to about $183 per month, per user, which is on the higher end of the price range we found when reviewing the best document management software. We were also told we could add “limited user” accounts without full administrative privileges for a lower per-user cost.

DocuPhase Setup

DocuPhase offers a Professional Services Team to assist with implementation of the platform. You can select either on-site or remote implementation support, although this will affect the upfront cost of the system.

Implementation can range from three weeks to several months, depending on the scope of your project and the size of your business. To expedite implementation to as few as three weeks, be prepared with your necessary documents, user permissions and roles and other information needed by the implementation team. Complicated projects, including custom configurations, data migration or personalized features — or for clients with limited availability — will take longer.

After implementation, you may choose to schedule training. Given DocuPhase’s wide range of features and tools, we highly recommend you opt for training for any team member that will use the system. DocuPhase will host monthly on-site training sessions, which can help your team get up to speed much more quickly than figuring out the system with self-guided learning materials.

DocuPhase’s dashboard gives you an overview of your digital archive and helps you navigate to the files you need. Image source: DocuPhase

DocuPhase charges an additional fee for issues caused by third-party software, hardware or network configurations that do not meet system requirements. It recommends that your team upgrades its software each time a new version of DocuPhase is released. To facilitate upgrade transitions, current DocuPhase clients can sign up for a free upgrade assessment.

DocuPhase Customer Service

When adopting new software, customer service remains a top priority for many. We found that DocuPhase strives to provide comprehensive support to its clients — with its website claiming “DocuPhase prides itself on developing lasting relationships with our customers.”

While the functionality of the “help desk” leaves a bit to be desired from its name, DocuPhase does provide phone and email support from Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. We admired DocuPhase’s transparent communication of the services included in a customer’s support contract. On the support page, DocuPhase outlines both included (like product support for the suite of software) and additional-fee support services (support for sunset versions or issues caused by third-party software).

DocuPhase indicates that after-hours support (outside of the Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET window) is a billable service.

DocuPhase Drawbacks

DocuPhase offers a streamlined and intuitive document management system. However, businesses interested in adopting DocuPhase should be aware of a few of its drawbacks.

Unlike other document management systems, DocuPhase’s customer service falters around update seasons. DocuPhase tends to “hand-hold” users through updates and rollouts because it’s too cumbersome to figure out in-house. Additionally, the support team is helpful but has trouble identifying issues caused by bugs in the updates. Often, patches take too long and become more of a hassle. Lastly, DocuPhase does not feature an online chat feature for issue resolution, meaning every challenge, no matter the size, must go through a support ticket.

In addition to issues surrounding updates, past and current clients of DocuPhase cite some temperament with pieces of the software, particularly iLink. In turn, some of these issues turn into a support ticket, which feeds into the issues mentioned above.

Methodology

To help you find the right document management system, we researched and analyzed dozens of options. Our research began with each of the companies on our Best Document Management Software list. We investigated the services of each vendor by watching tutorials, how-to videos, engaging in free trials or demos whenever possible and reviewing user feedback. We also considered each product’s ease of use, pricing and features.

When it came to the best document management system for productivity, we looked for a system that offered efficient tools, such as automation features and the ability to quickly find and retrieve files even in a sprawling digital archive. We found DocuPhase to be the best for productivity because, despite its learning curve, it offered a strong slate of features that could reduce the work needed to digitize and engage with the files in the system. It also offered impressive integrations that could help it support the other business software that organizations rely on.

Overall Value

We recommend DocuPhase for …

• Businesses looking to integrate their document management systems with ERP systems.
• Business owners who have used document management software before.
• Business owners in the market for a cloud-based document management solution that scales as they do.

We don’t recommend DocuPhase for …

• Businesses that won’t benefit from a fully-paperless document management process.
• Business owners seeking an in-office or on-premise document management solution.