We have heard it said that time is money. Let's think about the time value of money. A dollar in your hand today is worth more than a dollar in your hand in a year from now. As an example, if we invest that dollar in a secure financial vehicle, over a period of one year that dollar will gain interest of 3%. So a dollar today, in time, is worth $1.03 next year. This is a familiar demonstration of the fact that time is money.
Let's talk about the money value of time. Specifically, let's talk about how it affects the Corporate Secretary department and its preparation of board packets for the Board of Directors.
As a sales consultant selling an online board portal solution for the last several years, I have had the opportunity to witness the workflow for preparing a paper-based board packet in various sizes of organizations. On average, the Corporate Secretary's department spends 40 hours preparing board and committee materials every month. If we consider an average hourly rate of $25 per hour for the Legal Administrator preparing these documents, the money value of this time spent is $12,000 per year.
Having worked through over 50 implementations of an online board portal solution, I have witnessed an average time
savings of at least 60%, sometimes 80%. That's a cost-saving of $7,000 to $10,000 each year, notwithstanding the additional savings of eliminating printing, binding and courier costs! An online board portal solution eliminates paper, streamlines the packet creation process and allows multiple users to collaborate and compile materials into one concise document. Additionally, an online board portal solution provides the intangible benefit of peace of mind. Peace of mind in that board packets arrive on time, all the time, and don't get lost in the mailing/couriering process; Priceless.
When choosing a solution partner be sure to work through a cost-savings calculator with your sales consultant. The budget for the purchase of a board portal is not about funds that are available for new projects, rather it is about the current budget allocated to the packet creation process and how this budget can be re-allocated more effectively, more efficiently.
We've always known that time is money. It's time we recognize that money is time. An online board portal saves us both!