Automate Public Sector Document Processing with AI

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. The Goal of Intelligent Document Processing
   1. Applying AI to Process Paperwork
   2. Speeding up Decision Making
3. How AI Helps in Processing Documents
   1. Recognizing Document Completeness
   2. Reducing the Need for Human Help
4. The Process of Document Classification
   1. Source and Formats of Incoming Documents
   2. Classifying the Types of Documents
   3. Human Review for Low Confidence Scores
5. Extracting Key Information from forms
   1. Reading Key Value Pairs
   2. Structuring Results for Downstream Use
   3. Handling Handwritten and Varied Forms
6. Simplifying Information Extraction
   1. Extracting Specific Information
   2. Finding Relevant Information
   3. Understanding Unlabeled Fields
7. Challenges in Working with Complex Documents
   1. Organizing Information from Bank Statements
   2. Extracting Data from Tables
   3. Setting Up Business Rules
8. Quality Checks and Next Steps in the Process
   1. Completing Quality Checks
   2. Sending Information to the Next Steps
9. Learn More and Connect with Document Processing Specialist

The Goal of Intelligent Document Processing

🎯 Applying AI to Process Paperwork

In today's fast-paced world, public sector organizations often find themselves burdened with large volumes of paperwork such as application forms, invoices, and financial records. The goal of intelligent document processing is to leverage the power of AI technologies to help these organizations make faster and more accurate decisions. By automating the processing of documents, AI can significantly speed up decision-making processes and reduce the dependence on manual intervention.

🎯 Speeding up Decision Making

One of the key advantages of AI in document processing is its ability to recognize if a set of documents is complete and contains all the necessary information for a decision to be made. As the AI systems improve over time, the amount of human help required to process documents is significantly reduced. This not only saves time but also increases the accuracy and efficiency of decision-making processes.

How AI Helps in Processing Documents

🔍 Recognizing Document Completeness

When documents are received from multiple channels such as mailrooms, email portals, and faxes, they can come in various file formats. The first step in the document processing workflow is to figure out the types of documents received. With the help of AI, document classification becomes easier and more accurate. However, in cases where a document does not meet the required confidence score, a human review is still necessary.

🔍 Reducing the Need for Human Help

AI technology can efficiently process various types and versions of forms, eliminating the need to maintain document templates. Even handwritten responses and check boxes can be accurately extracted. The AI understands the structure of forms and can identify key value pairs, such as addresses, names, and payment amounts, which can then be easily used by downstream business systems or databases.

The Process of Document Classification

📂 Source and Formats of Incoming Documents

Documents can be received from multiple channels, including mailrooms, email portals, and faxes. Each channel may introduce different file formats, making the processing task complex. However, AI systems excel at handling diverse formats and can adapt to the requirements of document processing.

📂 Classifying the Types of Documents

Using AI, document classification becomes automated. The AI system can analyze the content of the documents and classify them based on pre-defined categories. This step helps in determining the next actions to be taken on each document.

📂 Human Review for Low Confidence Scores

Despite the accuracy of AI systems, there are instances where the confidence score falls below a certain threshold. In such cases, a human review is required to ensure the accuracy of document classification. This collaboration between the AI and human reviewers helps fine-tune the system over time, improving its performance.

Extracting Key Information from Forms

📝 Reading Key Value Pairs

AI systems excel at reading and extracting key information from forms. For example, they can identify street addresses, names, payment amounts, and other relevant data. By extracting this information, the AI makes it easier for downstream systems to process and utilize the data efficiently.

📝 Structuring Results for Downstream Use

Once the key information is extracted, the AI system structures the results in a format that can be easily used by downstream business systems or databases. This ensures that the extracted data is readily available for use in decision-making processes or further analysis.

📝 Handling Handwritten and Varied Forms

The AI technology employed in intelligent document processing is capable of handling a wide variety of form types and versions. It can accurately extract information even from handwritten responses and check boxes. This eliminates the need for manual data entry and significantly speeds up the processing of forms.

Simplifying Information Extraction

❓ Extracting Specific Information

In many cases, there is a need to extract specific pieces of information from documents, such as a person's name, address, or payment amount. AI systems can answer such questions by analyzing the document and providing the required information accurately and swiftly. This eliminates the need to manually search through documents for specific information.

❓ Finding Relevant Information

AI systems are trained to identify and locate relevant information on a document, even if it is not explicitly labeled. For example, they can identify the recipient of a utility bill or the name of the person associated with a particular document. This ability to find information based on context makes the document processing workflow more streamlined and efficient.

❓ Understanding Unlabeled Fields

Sometimes, documents may contain fields that are not labeled or have inconsistent labeling. However, AI systems can still understand the context and meaning of these fields. For example, they can determine that a field labeled "123 Any Street" refers to a street address, even if the field itself is not explicitly labeled as such. This flexibility allows AI systems to accurately extract information from a wide range of documents.

Challenges in Working with Complex Documents

🔧 Organizing Information from Bank Statements

Working with complex documents such as bank statements can pose challenges in organizing the information. AI systems, as a first step, produce the raw text from bank statements. However, without the context provided by the document layout, it can be difficult to find the relevant information. Advanced AI algorithms can overcome these challenges and extract the required information accurately.

🔧 Extracting Data from Tables

Tables Present another challenge in document processing. AI systems can save developers' time by keeping table headers, rows, and columns organized. This ensures that account names, numbers, and balances present in tables can be accurately extracted based on the organization's specific requirements.

🔧 Setting Up Business Rules

To further enhance the accuracy of document processing, business rules can be set up in the AI system. These rules can match customer names or application numbers across multiple documents, ensuring consistency and accuracy. By automating these processes, organizations can significantly reduce errors and improve efficiency.

Quality Checks and Next Steps in the Process

✅ Completing Quality Checks

Before sending the extracted information to the next steps in the business process, quality checks are essential. These checks ensure that the information has been accurately extracted and meets the required standards. AI systems can perform automated quality checks, saving valuable time and reducing the chances of errors.

✅ Sending Information to the Next Steps

Once the quality checks are complete, the document processing workflow moves to the next steps in the business process. The extracted information, in a structured format, is ready to be utilized by downstream systems for further analysis, decision-making, or any other required actions.

To learn more about intelligent document processing and connect with a document processing specialist, please visit our webpage.

Highlights

• Intelligent document processing leverages AI to make faster and more accurate decisions.
• AI recognizes document completeness and reduces the need for human intervention.
• Document classification and extraction of key information are automated with AI.
• AI handles various document formats, including handwritten responses.
• Simplified information extraction saves time and improves efficiency.
• Challenges in processing complex documents are overcome by advanced AI algorithms.
• Quality checks ensure accurate extraction before proceeding to the next steps.

FAQ

Q: Can AI accurately extract information from handwritten forms? A: Yes, AI systems used in intelligent document processing can accurately extract information from handwritten forms and responses.

Q: How can AI recognize relevant information without explicit labeling? A: AI systems understand the context and meaning of fields in documents, allowing them to accurately extract information even from unlabeled or inconsistently labeled fields.

Q: Can AI process complex documents like bank statements? A: Yes, AI systems can process complex documents like bank statements by analyzing the raw text and applying advanced algorithms to extract relevant information accurately.

Q: What are the benefits of automating document processing with AI? A: Automating document processing with AI saves time, improves accuracy, reduces manual effort, and enables faster decision-making processes.

Q: How can AI systems ensure the accuracy of the extracted information? A: AI systems perform quality checks on the extracted information to ensure its accuracy before proceeding to the next steps in the business process.

Q: Can AI match customer names or application numbers across multiple documents? A: Yes, AI systems can be configured with business rules to match customer names or application numbers across multiple documents, ensuring consistency and accuracy in the document processing workflow.