Facing governance and traceability challenges caused by large volumes of physical and digital documents, 3corações implemented OnBase and complementary Hyland solutions to centralize, digitize, and automate enterprise-wide document management. As a result, the company improved compliance, accelerated critical processes, eliminated massive amounts of paper, and gained secure, organization-wide visibility into its information.
3corações is one of Brazil’s largest business groups, operating across multiple segments including coffee, corn derivatives, spices, chocolates, and soft drinks. Due to its size and complexity, the company faced significant challenges related to document management.
The organization maintained a very large volume of physical documents that, due to fiscal regulations, were required to be stored for long periods. Managing these documents was difficult and posed a considerable risk, as there was no traceability for highly sensitive information.
In 2020, the Brazilian government published Decree No. 10.278 under Archival Legislation, establishing a legal framework for the digitization of physical documents for both public and private institutions. The decree also determined that digital documents carry the same legal validity as original physical documents.
3corações recognized this regulatory change as an opportunity to finally digitize its document archive and store information securely in electronic form. As a result, the company decided to create a centralized Document Management department, responsible for managing all physical and digital data nationwide.
This department supports all corporate digital transformation initiatives and manages document-related inquiries from legal, tax, and both internal and external audit teams.
Systems integrated with OnBase
Physical documents eliminated
Documents available in the platform
The 3corações IT and Document Management teams worked closely with Hyland Services to design the solution they intended to implement. Based on the responsibilities of the new Document Management department, two major initial projects were defined.
Project 1: Physical Archive Digitization and Legacy Records
The first initiative focused on managing and digitizing physical files and inactive archives. Existing physical records were cleaned, organized, digitized, and imported into OnBase by the 3corações team. Once indexed and digitally stored, these documents became accessible at any time to authorized users.
Original physical documents that still needed to be retained due to regulatory requirements were transferred to extended storage facilities. By digitally storing its entire document repository, the organization gained access to customized query forms, dynamic folder structures, and annotation capabilities.
Using Hyland Advanced Capture, scanning processes and document template recognition were configured, enabling the company to digitize multiple document types simultaneously and automatically separate them based on preconfigured templates defined by the 3corações data team.
Workflows were also created to distribute mandatory-read documents to employees, allowing the organization to track visibility, acknowledgment, and acceptance at an enterprise level.
Project 2: Born-Digital Document Management
The second major initiative involved managing and centralizing documents that are created digitally, such as emails, attachments, and electronic forms. OnBase became the primary platform for document approvals and submissions, replacing email-based processes that previously made traceability difficult.
This automation added an additional layer of security and control while expanding document accessibility across employee workstations, ensuring that all authorized users could securely access content through OnBase.
During this phase, the company identified further opportunities to simplify internal processes using WorkView and electronic forms. One example was the validation process for B2B delivery confirmations. Previously, the organization had to wait for drivers to return with signed paper receipts, a process that could take up to two weeks depending on delivery location. After automating the electronic delivery receipt, validation now occurs within 40 minutes of delivery.
— Michelle Fernanda de Carvalho Souza, Document Management Manager, Grupo 3corações
By addressing both physical and digital sources of information, 3corações ensured federation and governance of its information in compliance with Brazilian Archival Legislation. The creation of an electronic archive significantly improved not only document management but also the efficiency of internal inquiries, audits, customer service operations, and human resources processes.
The company identified and indexed more than 800 document types, with 400 currently active, and integrated 10 different business systems into OnBase to centralize documentation in a secure environment. Over 13 workflows were launched to connect systems, departments, and functions, all while maintaining strict access controls, traceability, and visibility. In total, more than 126,000 documents were made available in the platform, and approximately 40 tons of physical documentation were eliminated, with only mandatory records sent to extended storage.
