About the client

Microcredit Foundation EKI and Microcredit Company EKI are specialized in providing microfinance services. They operate in Bosnia and Herzegovina and provide various financial products and services to a large number of clients. Considering the business sector, their operations are additionally regulated by various competent organizations, which requires additional efforts for efficient administration management. Contract processing forms a significant part of their annual documentation, including contracts with suppliers, financial institutions, tenants and clients, further complicating their administrative processes.

Problem

The microcredit organization faced a number of challenges in managing its own processes and related content. One of the key documents that arise in the business of any organization is the contract. Although there are internal procedures and a continuous effort to standardize them, both flow and content, in practice it is quite difficult to do so. The result is ad hoc solutions that deviate to a greater (more often) or lesser (less often) extent from what was determined on paper. Ultimately, we are faced with slow processing, lack of transparency and errors that bring us back to square one. The implementation of the OWIS system enabled the solution of the mentioned problems through the digitization of the process and its modeling according to the established rules.

Before the implementation of the OWIS system, the client had several key problems in contract management:

Contract Receipt: Handling large volumes of incoming mail and supporting documentation was manual and error prone. Contracts went through protocol books along with other mail, which allowed recording key moments for the document, but not the entire process.
Agreeing the contract: The drafts of the contract had to be initially agreed between the responsible persons, which required a revision of the document and a collaborative element in order for everyone to agree on the final version.
Contract approval: The approval process involved distributing the document to the right people and tracking the approval status, which was not possible through the tools used at the time.
Recording of the finalized contract: Lack of centralized records after the document would have been signed by both parties.

Solution

Step 1: Analysis and planning

The OWIS team began the project by analyzing existing processes and identifying key issues. Based on the analysis and proposals of the process manager in front of the client, a plan was developed for the digitization and automation of the contract management process, including all stages - reconciliation, approval and recording of contracts. In this step, it was important to clearly define all business rules and participants in the process, including their responsibilities.

Step 2: Implementation of the OWIS system

The OWIS system was integrated into the client's workflows, which made it possible to automate the process of creating, approving and recording contracts. The implementation involved the following key steps:

Process creation: Business processes for contract management are defined, including all steps from initiation to finalization. Processes are modeled according to specific client requirements, including reconciliation, approval and recording of contracts.
Configuration of user rights: User rights are defined for all participants in the process, enabling access control and management of actions that users can take. Each participant in the process was given appropriate powers according to their role.
Entering internal classifications: A system for entering internal classifications of contracts has been implemented, enabling the categorization of contracts by type and content. This involved creating a taxonomy for the different types of contracts and metadata for each type.
Creation of forms for entering metadata: Specific forms for entering metadata have been created, enabling accurate entry of all relevant information for each type of contract. Forms have been customized to facilitate data entry and ensure consistency.

Step 3: Training and support

After the implementation, trainings were held for all users of the system to ensure that all participants were familiar with the new way of working. The support team was available to solve any problems and questions, thus ensuring a smooth transition to the new system.

Technology and tools

The following tools and technologies of the OWIS system were used for implementation:

Workflow Designer: Internal OWIS tool for creating process flow diagrams along with all business rules related to user rights, process routing, participant filtering, document typing and metadata form mapping.
Forms Designer: OWIS tool for creating data entry forms, which in this case are completely different for each of the document types.
Reports: A reporting module in the OWIS system in which custom reports are created that can be exported outside the system in Excel (.xlsx) format and used for further data processing.
OOS: The Office Online Server was used as part of the OWIS platform for the purpose of enabling document viewing in Office format (.docx), and, more importantly, its collaborative modification in real time.

Results

The implementation of the OWIS system resulted in significant improvements in contract management:

Increased efficiency: The time required to create and approve contracts has been significantly reduced thanks to the automation and digitization of the process.
Cost reduction: Contract management costs are reduced due to the elimination of paper documentation and more efficient use of resources.
Increased transparency: Real-time monitoring of contract status was enabled, which improved transparency and enabled better process monitoring and management.
Feedback from the client: The client expressed high satisfaction with the implementation of the OWIS system, noting that the new system significantly improved their business processes and resource management. The biggest improvement that has been highlighted is the establishment of a process that corresponds to actual practice and enables further improvements through the analysis of own processes based on real indicators.

Contract processing in the OWIS system: EKI

About the client

Problem

Solution

Results