Technology use is becoming more prevalent, but the Harvard Business Review has found two graphs from MIT and the New York Times that say it all — growth involving these innovations is happening faster than ever.

Inventions like the telephone took about 64 years to become a part of 40 percent of American households, while smartphones accomplished that same level of use within a 10-year period. Businesses that want to remain competitive in a more electronic market may need to implement electronic document management solutions sooner than later.

The supply chain industry, specifically, has the chance to grow beyond the American market. Consumers are looking to purchase goods from a variety of sources, which can make inventory management difficult. The ARC Advisory Group explained that not taking steps toward more automation and active monitoring can greatly improve the bottom line.

"Under pressure to improve safety and reduce environmental impact, industrial organizations [should] continue to invest in reliability software and services, which can provide measurable improvements in maintenance effectiveness, resulting in improved product quality, reduced maintenance costs, and reduced downtime," the Group's researchers writes on Supply Chain Brain.

Because manufacturers may have multiple factories building goods at once, a client-service cloud platform can help these businesses be more organized than they were previously. Departments can update inventory and assets in real-time. The adoption cost may be higher than other technologies up-front, but these servers do not take up room on computers or other devices and they increase productivity — two substantial benefits that save far more than the cost of these systems.

Companies that are looking to maximize digital space and overall efficiency can reach out to OptiDoc, an electronic document management solutions provider.

As businesses are working on finding ways to improve their bottom line, some executives are considering implementing a company-wide electronic document management system. This program can increase work efficiency and has the capacity to host a large amount of documents.

Construction companies, like many other organizations, utilize many files like permits, contracts and financial statements on a daily basis. However, these firms face lawsuits for reasons like delay of progress or malpractice. Because many of these senior staff members do not have an organized document management system in place, a myriad of these companies settle out of court, which largely impacts their revenue.

If more construction firms utilized an electronic document management program to classify the paperwork in specific areas, then they could represent themselves better.

"Those working on the project must have a clear understanding of the repository's structure," Pepper Hamilton LLP lawyers explained. "Otherwise, when a dispute arises, a company may be forced to search the entire repository if the custodians are not storing the project data in the appropriate sub-file."

Administrative staff members can establish a well-organized database if they apply the paperwork into specific folders. For example, one section could be dedicated to communication between clients while another could be full of permits for upcoming or past projects.

Actively keeping track of all this documentation will be beneficial to the construction business. Not only does the sector have evidence a need for specific exchanges, but they also must  comply to their state's document retention policy. Businesses that do not safely store or destroy private records could be subjected to fines or jail time.