Grace Records Management

Here’s a case study on a company that was looking to efficiently and accurately manage millions of cartons, files and tapes nationally in multiple warehouses. They were able to do that partnering with O’Neil Software.

The Technology User: Grace Records Management

Let’s face it...not too many people are around to see their 100th year, much less a company surviving long enough to experience this type of successful existence.

So suffice to say that Grace Records Management must be doing something right as they celebrate this huge milestone.

The company currently operates in 20 state and regional branches located in, or servicing every capital city and major regional center within Australia. Today, Grace Records Management employs 160 staff and has over 7,000 Level 1 account customers.

Grace Records Management is part of the Grace Group of Companies. Grace itself began business in 1911 as a removals and storage company. Grace Records, a division of the Grace Group of Companies, was incorporated 10 years ago.

Challenge 1: Easily, Efficiently and Accurately Manage Millions of Records Nationally…

...all types of business information - cartons, files and tapes located in multiple warehouses.

Grace Records Management went looking for a market leader, whose technology solutions would help them automate their records management process. They wanted quick and reliable access to these records throughout their lifecycle, from creation through destruction; the ability to provide a complete audit trail with no gaps; the assurance that they would be able to maintain data integrity and secure technological upgrades and advances from whichever company they selected as their software partner. In 2001, their search ended and they partnered with O’Neil.

Challenge 2: Streamline Business Operations, Enable Greater Productivity, Cost Savings and Improve Customer Service.

“Anyone who finds themselves in this business knows that there is more to records management than simply storage and retrieval,” notes Jeanine Hind, National Sales Manager for Grace Records Management.

“It’s about speeding the pace of your business operations; reducing human error and operational costs while boosting the productivity of your staff; decreasing decision cycle times; streamlining how content is shared and accessed throughout your organization; bringing accuracy, systematic control, consistency and standardization throughout your business processes; and enhancing the customer service experience.”

Jeanine continues: “As more and more people turn to the Web for service and information, you want to be able to provide your customers with the information they need, when they need it. O’Neil Software not only manages our warehouse inventory, but also has a customizable, user-friendly Web front end that enables our customers to request service, run reports, upload data and manage their records quicker and better.”

“Grace Records Management operates its entire business on the O’Neil Software platform. From customer service, order entry, business operations, data integrity and account management, it maintains our customer data as well as our operating data (activities, audits, exceptions, holdings). At any point in time, we are able to interrogate data from the system, enabling management to forecast growth and warehouse capacity, leaving us to manage the business better by improving productivity through management of costs and labor. Customer service is able to provide immediate action to customer queries, making GRM the records management leader in Australia for service and quality.”

Challenge 3: Simplify, Optimize & Customize Invoice Processing & Reporting.

As Grace Records Management continued to grow in size, activity and success, accurate and automated invoice creation took longer and longer, which could have a direct effect on their revenue, cash flow and labor costs. Instead of cumbersome processes, they wanted a better way to handle their record centre invoicing, avoid risks related to inaccurate business information and better manage their customer relationships.

“With O’Neil Software’s RS-SQL we could control and streamline our invoicing process for faster and more accurate billing. For example, it gave us the capability to set up a three tier account structure; clone rates to eliminate repetition and reduce manual errors; and set up automated report templates for end-of-month reporting,” notes Jeanine. “This, in turn, enhanced the timeliness of payments and optimized cash flow.”

The Solution: Go Beyond the Expected & Set New Standards in the Industry.

You don’t become the preferred records manager in Australia by just doing what is expected.

To stay on top , you have to continue to implement state-of-the art tools and marketing strategies—much like Grace Records Management has done.

Now because GRM has always been keen to utilize innovative technologies to enhance their end user clients’ records storage experience, they will be one of the first to employ an exciting new technology breakthrough from O’Neil, called the O’Neil Connector-Cloud™.

O’Neil Software has developed this new capability to increase opportunities for software connectivity and the first service to utilize the Connector-Cloud is known as RMBridge™. This will allow GRM’s end users to simply, securely and seamlessly access and manage their assets at GRM locations directly from their RMBridge-Certified ECM (Enterprise Content Management) software. This capability will result in customers’ increased productivity, efficiency and accuracy.

Little wonder that GRM has remained ahead of the curve, provided 100 years of quality and service and is dedicated to keeping it that way.