Enterprise-Wide Case Management: Why an All-in-One Solution is Best for Your Business

Does each of your organization’s departments use a different database? Enterprise-wide case management software will streamline investigations and makes collaboration far easier.

Is your organization using multiple databases to manage the many aspects of investigations and other workplace incidents? Does each department have its own system?

Smoother, more efficient collaboration across teams and departments can significantly boost overall efficiency by eliminating much of the “busy work.” Studies show that employees often spend as much as 50% of their weekly work time simply searching for the information needed to complete their tasks. Frequent duplication of efforts is another common problem.

Fortunately, there’s a ready solution: enterprise-wide case management software. This modern approach provides the quickest, most effective way to foster collaboration and facilitate a more productive workplace. Here’s how it works.

Learn how single sign on case management software improves workplace investigations with this free guide.

All Data in One Place

Do you ever find yourself scrambling to find the documents you need for a case? Sifting through local files and layers of subfolders can turn a quick task into a frustrating quest. With case management software like Case IQ, you never have to worry about misplacing evidence or losing data.

Team members with access to a case file can upload every document and piece of evidence right onto the platform. Storing everything in a single secure location eliminates the time wasted trying to track down information.

Keeping all case data in a centralized database is the perfect answer for organizations handling large caseloads. With a comprehensive dashboard, action alerts and control over who can access what information on which cases, any team can work more efficiently and effectively.

One of the most helpful features of great case management software is the ability to integrate smoothly with existing databases. For companies with separate databases for every department, this is a big deal. When you let the software do the work, it’s quick and easy to upload everything into the new central location. There’s no need to re-enter all of that information manually, which can eliminate hours of busywork. Accuracy is improved as well, because the element of human error is no longer a factor.

Easy Collaboration Across Departments

You’re all working within the same organization, so it only makes sense that you should be able to collaborate easily. Since many cases don’t fit perfectly into one specific department, cross-departmental insight is essential.

An all-in-one case management solution like Case IQ works for every department, easily connecting all investigations across the organization. With easy-to-use templates and remote access from any location with an Internet connection, you can also reduce reporting time while collaborating with others.

Each file includes a chronological timeline of all case activity. Users can see what actions were taken on the case, when, and by whom. This eliminates duplicated efforts (which can eat up six hours of employee time each week, according to one study) while keeping everyone on schedule – whether or not they work in the same department.

Another feature that helps departments collaborate on investigations? The ability to link cases, either manually or automatically, based on subjects, location or incident type,

Here’s an example: let’s say you’re investigating an employee based on a harassment complaint, and you’re able to see that this same employee was also investigated for theft. Or imagine a discrimination case and being aware that it may also require EEOC compliance consideration. Having this information available (even if it results from another department’s investigation) can provide you with valuable data to use in your current case.

Opening up lines of communication for broader collaboration definitely raises questions about information privacy. But Case IQ addresses this issue proactively, letting you set different access levels for each team member. Users can be blocked from accessing sensitive information on a case-by-case basis, or can be granted "view only" privileges. It’s a great way to ensure that data never falls into the wrong hands.

See how one customer leveraged case management software for multiple processes.

Faster, More Professional Reporting

Writing final investigation reports takes an enormous amount of time and effort. For anyone still relying on a collection of databases or a paper filing system, it can mean hours of work hunting down files and creating reports manually. Today’s best case management software lets you generate great-looking case reports in seconds.

With just a few clicks, the software pulls together everything you need to create a complete, fully compliant report. Case management automation reduces the risk of costly errors while eliminating administrative time that can be better spent on investigative tasks.

It’s a great feeling to know you always have thorough reports ready to go as soon as someone requests them. Finally, you can keep everyone on your team up to date on any investigation.

Reports are always available on demand. But you can also automate recurring reports, scheduling monthly, quarterly or annual reports to be sent out to select team members automatically. This means one less task to remember, which can eliminate the stress of pulling reports together at the last minute.

Better Compliance

Being investigated for noncompliance can be damaging to any organization's reputation, and can impact the bottom line as well. Adopting a case management solution like Case IQ ensures that all of your investigations will be compliant with privacy, security, human rights and other regulations.

Leading case management software also allows you to configure form templates to reflect your specific case management needs. These templates reduce your chances of leaving out important data or making reporting errors. Never again will you overlook some key detail required by the EEOC, CCOHS, OSHA, SEC or DOJ.

Another thing you can stop worrying about: the risk of a reputation-shattering security breach. Automatic daily backups, secure off-site storage and planned redundancy across multiple locations protects your sensitive files from getting lost, stolen or copied.

RELATED: Why You Need Powerful Purpose-Built Case Management Software

Trend Monitoring

Risk management is now a major priority for most organizations. Case management software can help, both by identifying emerging trends and by making them easier to visualize.

Using a simple drag-and-drop report generator, you can quickly bring trend data to life using pie charts, bar graphs, heat maps and more. Create visual data analysis according to incident type, subject, date range and more. The results can even be overlaid with maps, helping you spot any specific trouble areas that require attention.

Without a modern case management solution, analyzing data in this way could take days. And even then, human error might cause you to miss a key insight. Case management software eliminates these blind spots, helping your organization stay on top of trends so you can address issues before they escalate (or even start).

Configurable Features

Every organization has different needs, and each has its own unique procedures and workflows. That’s why it’s important that you don’t settle for a cookie-cutter case management solution.

You’ll be glad you chose a solution that lets you tailor everything from reports and templates to drop-down menu options. Another important feature: the flexibility to reflect your organization’s branding. This adds a level of professionalism while helping employees feel even better about their employer’s commitment to doing the right thing.

Configurability offers far more value when you’re able to make changes yourself, without having to reach out to tech support or IT every time you need to add or delete employees from the system, or change a user’s access settings. This can eliminate the pain and frustration you might otherwise experience when adapting and scaling your system over time.

Your Organization Needs Enterprise-Wide Case Management Software

Adopting an enterprise-wide case management solution into your organization gives you the power to streamline investigations across departments while improving cross-functional oversight.

Faster reporting, better compliance and easy collaboration are just some of the benefits you’ll reap. Once you begin using it, you will wonder how you ever managed to get by without it.

Download our buyer's guide to learn more about what case management software can do for your organization.