Document Management System for Renewable Portfolios

If you operate or own renewable portfolios, determining when to automate your document management can mean success or derailment of your assets. Every day, we meet people who are still using MS Outlook, Excel and such traditional tools. There is nothing wrong with these methods until a complication occurs. That’s when the importance of a modern document management system is appreciated. 

At QBI, we often receive this question: “What is the best time to adopt a modern document management system for renewable energy portfolios?” The answer is: “As early as now!” This may sound far-fetched, but there are reasons why you shouldn’t wait until it is too late. 

Daily Struggle with Document Management

You are an asset manager going about your daily routine when an urgent email comes. It is the regional boss and he needs the latest policy document for a meeting in the afternoon. You are upbeat because you are sure the document is in the share drive. 

Surprisingly, you don’t find the document even in the department folder. The search box is a great shortcut, but tens of document matches appear. You go through them but still do not find the policy document. Meanwhile, your boss is calling again as he has to prepare for the meeting. Instances such as this show how crucial a document management system is for renewable portfolios. 

Document management is a central feature of a renewable energy firm. If you miss something with documentation, you can be sure that your business will suffer. When team members have to peruse through volumes of documents, it means that other important tasks have to wait.

Renewable portfolios need a tool that can replace the challenges of traditional document management with safe, dependable and user-centric processes.

Key Challenges of Traditional Document Management 

• Security 

The security of documents and data for renewable portfolios is of utmost importance nowadays. Now and then, there is news of a major company that has lost confidential information due to a security breach. Whenever the security of company documents comes up, many people think about hacking from an outsider. However, this is not the only threat posed: A team member can accidentally find a confidential document. 

Affected companies usually have a hard time rebuilding their reputation and raising employee confidence levels again. Lawsuits and criminal charges can cause even bigger damage, especially for renewable companies that are still in the foundation stage. 

• Compliance Issues

Legal compliance in the energy sector is a serious element. Defaulting on document management processes for renewable portfolios may lead to legal tussles and heavy fines. Regulatory laws vary for different countries, but in most cases, there will be a need for compliance of some sort. To avoid confrontations with a third party regarding the mishandling of data, consider investing in a reliable document management system. 

• Lost Precious Resources

Every renewable energy company is looking to make as much money as possible. They cannot afford to waste time. Yet, traditional style document management eats the two resources. When you need a specific record and getting it will take someone close to an hour, it is not healthy for business. The impact will eventually show in direct and indirect costs. 

• Collaboration Lacking

It is unlikely that only one person handles a document for renewable portfolios. Most demanding tasks demand collaborative effort, whereby several team members tackle a single document. A lot happens between the people including communication, commenting and editing. Can a Word processor accommodate such? I highly doubt it. Not even off-the-shelf solutions will provide convenient enough tools. I am yet to find an electronic document management system that can support real-time document review and email exchange. 

QBI Solution

Knowing that document management is not the core business of renewable portfolios, QBI Solution offers packages that take away this burden. Let the professionals handle this part as you focus on other essential processes of your business. 

The business management tool is user-friendly, end-to-end, and customizable, but we don’t stop there. We can also support you with your daily document management tasks. This includes repetitive ones such as uploading and classifying documents and different tariffs or creating folder structures.

It doesn’t matter the type of professionals involved. Business developers & project managers, asset managers & performance analysts, or fund managers are all potential users of this management tool. We will be excited to demonstrate how this platform can improve your document management processes.

About QBI

QBI offers an end-to-end process optimization and information integration platform that allows our clients to manage their assets and operate optimally in all stages of the project: development, construction, asset management, and M&A. It is designed by, and for, renewable energy professionals, and is flexible and configurable by country, state or region, and technology, regardless of the energy source. Your projects, associated tasks, documentation, dashboards and other project-related information are centralized and digitized.

Additionally, we can connect to any peripheral information system, thus optimizing the use of your infrastructure and assets, reducing operational costs, driving energy efficiency initiatives and improving the financial return on your investment. If you want to join the more than 17 GW of Controlled Capacity managed through QBI, contact us here for a demo.