Customer Success: RMI

RMI looks to PaperWise to solve frustrations with managing documents

Certified Development Companies (CDCs) are non-profit organizations certified by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to provide financing to small businesses through the Certified Development Company Economic Development Loan Program also known as the SBA 504 Loan Program. This program is an economic development financing program designed to provide funding to businesses in an effort to create jobs and stimulate local economic growth. As with most financial service offerings, CDC processes utilize a large of amount paper which eventually leads to large files to manage. In the case of PaperWise customer RMI, the paper intensive nature of the work performed created obstacles to overcome.

RMI was founded in 1966 to receive grant funding from the U.S. Department of Labor to provide on-the-job and classroom training on a statewide basis for migrant and seasonal farm workers throughout Missouri. In 1983, RMI expanded their horizon into the field of commercial lending and became certified by the U.S. Small Business Administration as the Missouri statewide CDC. Today RMI is no longer administering the U.S. Department of Labor farm worker grant; rather their focus is solely on lending to businesses, not only statewide in Missouri, but also statewide in Kansas and seven counties in Illinois. Located through Missouri and Kansas, a team of 13 provides the delivery system that reaches out to small business clients and bank partners. The RMI staff has over 100 years of combined lending experience which contributes to their continued success as being the #1 CDC in Region 7 and ranked in the top 10% of CDCs in the nation. Despite years of continued success, new regulations and increased paperwork began to battle with their mission to provide the highest level of service possible.

Challenges of Processing with Paper

Outside of RMI's existing Loan Management System (LMS), processes were physically managed in paper form. SBA 504 Loans require a great deal of paperwork, which quickly fill filing cabinets and take up large amounts of space. Each file contains a multitude of pages that make searching and extracting information within a folder extremely difficult. As time progressed, RMI found laws and government regulations changed, producing more paperwork and further increasing the size of folders. This issue created an obvious need for more space; however, the impact of increased paper volume expanded beyond space to time costs and other expenses such as mailing, filing, and faxing.

Another pressing challenge for RMI tied back to industry regulations. For CDCs this means mandatory audits conducted every two to three years. During this period, auditors come in with the anticipation of immediate access to complete files they require. In an effort to remedy inefficiencies, RMI turned to scanning software as an initial source of document management. Shortly after choosing this avenue, it was apparent the program had only further complicated their processes. The solution they required would need to guarantee easy access, increased security, and the integrity of all documents. They needed peace of mind during audits, and there was no denying the need for a more reliable solution.

Moving Forward in Efficiency

After looking at options to improve efficiency, RMI selected PaperWise as their document management solution. "We chose PaperWise because of their professionalism, their knowledge of the type of system we needed, and their experience in the business," said Director of Finance Programs, Zola Finch. RMI's installation took place in March 2009 and became fully operational in May 2009. "We have customized PaperWise to fit the needs of electronically storing and indexing 70 separate documents for over 800 loan files with an average loan file size of 1,000 pages each," explained Finch. Integrating seamlessly with LMS, the solution provided an easy method of transferring information from RMI's loan database into PaperWise, making the transition to the new system easier. Since the same information was shared by both LMS and PaperWise, document tracking was made simple.

The biggest obstacle RMI faced during the transition to working with PaperWise surrounded the sheer volume of information that existed. "We had several loan files that needed to be scanned so the backlog was quite extensive and somewhat ominous," explained Finch. "It was a challenge to find the manpower and hours to handle the process; however, in the end we contracted the backlog scanning by utilizing a part-time, hourly employee which proved successful." Additionally, there was difficulty transitioning to electronic files after having handled paper for so many years.

The Picture of Success

Currently RMI has experienced successes with the installment of PaperWise. According to Finch, customer service is heightened. "As borrowers contact us for information about their loan file, the process of recalling documents electronically through the PaperWise system is much quicker and easier than walking to a file room, pulling a large paper file, and manually going through hundreds of pages to gather the requested information," Finch said. While time and cost savings, as well as quick response turnaround to customers, were important increases in efficiency the true test was how well their PaperWise system would perform during a compliance audit with SBA.

When RMI underwent an audit review in late 2009, the results were very positive. "During the exit conference of our SBA audit/review using PaperWise, the audit team leader stated that our solution was one of the best imaging systems utilized by a CDC she had seen," expressed Finch. "This speaks very highly of the software and support!"

While the CDC is still on the road to complete efficiency, the relationship built between RMI and PaperWise will continue to grow as they gain even more control of their paper files. Their goals for now focus on fully minimizing any handling of paper, reducing storage costs, and improving efficiencies. As time progresses, Finch anticipates their system will greatly improve efficiency and be much more cost effective than the old paper system. When asked what the future holds for RMI's use of PaperWise, Finch explained, "Once we have these elements completely under control, we may consider other uses."