How to Track Document Management Workflow Adoption

Most organizations invest in a document management system (DMS) to reduce manual tasks, strengthen compliance, and keep information moving securely.

However, when user adoption falls short, that system can become an invisible liability. Quiet signs—such as missed logins, incomplete workflows, or workarounds involving email and paper-based files—could signal that people are deviating from the intended workflow.

This isn’t simply a user problem—it’s a leak in your document management workflow itself! And it can create blind spots that introduce avoidable risk.

Spotting where this hidden leakage starts is only the beginning—that’s why we’re exploring how to uncover it, close the gaps, and protect the flow your system was built to enable.

The Role of Adoption Metrics

Too often, user adoption metrics are treated like a vanity scoreboard—login counts, daily active users, and impressive charts that hide what’s really happening underneath.

In reality, these numbers should act as an early warning system for your entire workflow automation effort. They indicate whether information is flowing as intended or whether manual tasks are creeping back in—through hidden workarounds that your document workflow automation was designed to eliminate.

A closer look at the right signals can reveal exactly where value leaks out—and where users quietly revert to old habits that stall the flow.

Three crucial metrics that can help you understand automation adoption rates include:

• Login Frequency: This shows who’s signing in and how often. On its own, it’s just a surface-level sign of usage—high logins don’t mean much if users aren’t completing tasks.
• Completion Rates: These indicate whether people are completing workflows within the system, rather than abandoning them halfway and reverting to side processes like email.
• Approval Cycle Times: Longer-than-expected approval steps point to bottlenecks. If an automated step drags on for days, it’s a sign that people may be manually moving files to expedite tasks.

Where the Workflow Breaks—Common Bottlenecks

Even with strong plans and modern tools, a document management workflow can quietly break down in unexpected places. Small gaps become hidden workarounds that weaken control, slow teams down, and reintroduce the very manual tasks you’re trying to eliminate.

When work leaks outside the system, it’s rarely because people don’t care. More often, a team member or project manager takes shortcuts to keep work moving when the workflow feels too rigid or slow. Over time, these shortcuts add up to real compliance risks and lost time.

Understanding these real friction points helps leaders address why the process stalls—instead of blaming staff for doing what it takes to get work done.

Here are three common points where bottlenecks appear:

• Version Control Fails: When version control is unclear or complicated, people often hoard files on their desktops or personal drives to feel secure. This can result in multiple versions circulating offline, creating confusion about which one is the final version.
• Approvals Get Bypassed: Project managers often bypass built-in approvals to “save time” and keep work moving, especially when the flow is slow or unclear. This creates blind spots in records and opens gaps in oversight.
• Cloud-Based Steps Are Skipped: Teams sometimes export documents instead of working in the cloud-based system. It feels faster in the moment—but it pulls tasks outside the controlled flow, making tracking and retrieval harder down the line.

Root Cause: Bad Fit Kills User Engagement

Low user adoption is rarely about resistance to change for its own sake.

When people quietly drop a workflow, it’s usually because it doesn’t align with how they actually work on a day-to-day basis. Instead of cutting down effort, a poor fit can double it—forcing a team member to complete tasks in the system and then redo steps outside of it to get things moving faster.

These friction points are what drain user engagement. If adopting your product feels like extra work with no clear payoff, the system quickly becomes an obstacle rather than an asset.

For example, approvals that drag out for days, forms that duplicate details people have already provided elsewhere, or clunky interfaces that complicate what used to be a quick process.

When the user experience is frustrating, people naturally seek shortcuts that feel more familiar—usually by reverting to email threads, manual edits, or informal chats outside the workflow. If a new workflow doesn’t genuinely reduce the time spent or streamline common tasks, trust in the system erodes quickly.

For any leader aiming to prove value, the fix isn’t to force adoption with reminders or more training alone—it’s to pinpoint where the flow breaks down and adjust it so that using the system feels easier than avoiding it.

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Workflow Automation Done Right: How It Should Feel

Workflow automation isn’t just software running in the background—it’s a practical way to remove the manual tasks that slow teams down and drain trust.

When done well, it doesn’t pile on extra steps. Instead, it quietly reduces the time people spend chasing files, approvals, or missing details.

A modern enterprise content management system (such as Mercury) helps support this by making the document workflow automation feel seamless, not forced.

Done right, workflow automation doesn’t just keep documents moving—it protects trust, saves valuable hours, and frees people up to focus on work that matters most.

The best systems focus on practical features that match how real work happens:

• Clear Roles: Everyone knows their responsibilities, when they’re due, and the reasons behind them.
• Automatic Routing: Moves documents forward without confusion or endless email threads.
• Real-Time Version Control: Helps teams work on the right file, every time. Changes are tracked, previous drafts are easy to find, and no one wastes hours piecing together edits from scattered copies.
• Integrated Approvals: Approvals occur where the work is done—within the system. Sign-offs align with real workflows, so no one feels compelled to bypass the process just to keep tasks moving.

Practical Fixes: Patch the Flow, Win Back Trust

Once you identify where your workflow slows down, targeted changes can unlock significant returns. The goal isn’t to overhaul everything at once—it’s to refine the workflow in ways that reduce wasted time, build trust, and demonstrate measurable increases in productivity.

Focused adjustments like these help rebuild trust in the system, making adoption stick long term and freeing people to work more efficiently—without side processes and manual shortcuts creeping back in.

Some key features of a smart fix include practical actions like these:

• Shorten Clunky Steps: Identify parts of the workflow that stall progress or duplicate effort. Even trimming one approval step can save time without sacrificing control.
• Train for Context: Show teams why each step matters—especially when tied to compliance. When people see the risk of bypassing the system, they’re more likely to stick with it.
• Pilot with Project Managers: Test tweaks with frontline roles first. A quick pilot can confirm if faster routing works before rolling it out more broadly.

Prove It Works: Metrics That Defend ROI

When it comes time to justify the investment, leaders expect proof that new workflows do more than generate login stats—they want to see clear numbers that connect user adoption to real results.

The strongest way to build that case is to track how well your improvements translate into tangible cost savings and measurable increased efficiency over the long term.

Together, these metrics can help defend your ROI story and clearly demonstrate that fixing the flow does more than just smooth operations—it protects the investment and proves that trust in the system pays off.

Some practical signs to monitor include:

• Manual Tasks Replaced: Count how many time-consuming steps now run automatically. Fewer manual edits and workarounds can result in significant cost savings by eliminating wasted hours.
• Fewer Errors, Lower Risk: Reducing rework cuts down hidden costs and strengthens regulatory compliance. Fewer mistakes directly translate to improved efficiency across teams.
• Better Customer Service: When workflows run as designed, teams respond faster, access information easily, and resolve questions quickly—all of which improve customer experience and strengthen trust in your customer service.

FAQs

How can I track who is actually using our workflow?

Review user activity logs for login and task completion events. Filter by team or role to see who’s active and who isn’t.

What if people start but don’t finish?

Measure drop-off points in the workflow. Identify where tasks are abandoned, and then examine for friction points such as unclear steps or slow approvals.

Why do approvals keep stalling?

Long cycle times can mean unclear roles, overloaded approvers, or too many required sign-offs. Audit the approval chain and remove extra steps where possible.

How do I know if staff are using side processes?

Compare system logs with email attachments, local file saves, or manually created duplicate files. Gaps in the audit trail often reveal hidden workarounds.

How do I explain low adoption to execs?

Use clear metrics that show where adoption drops, why it happens, and the cost. Back it up with a plan to fix gaps and protect ROI.

What do I fix first if adoption is dropping?

Focus on the biggest source of friction—usually a confusing step, a slow approval process, or a lack of training. Start where drop-offs are highest.