In recent years, the Tooele County Recorder's Office faced a dramatic increase in document volume, tripling the amount of work while maintaining the same staff size. The complexity of the documents being processed also grew, with more subdivisions and development projects adding to the workload. 

Furthermore, the office was grappling with manual processes that led to inefficiencies for both residents and internal team members, data entry errors, and delays in document processing. Residents expected faster service, akin to the speed and convenience they experienced in other areas of life, such as online shopping. 

The challenge was clear: Tooele County needed to enhance its document processing efficiency without sacrificing accuracy or customer service.

“The public is demanding that it happen faster, and we need to make it happen,” said Jerry Houghton, Recorder.

To tackle these challenges, the Tooele County Recorder’s Office partnered with Polimorphic to implement a suite of automation tools that drastically improved document processing and management. These solutions included:

Electronic Recording: The office added electronic recording capabilities, allowing developers, title companies, and even individual residents to submit documents online, anytime, and from anywhere. This reduced the need for in-person visits and streamlined the submission process.

Automated Forms and Payment Systems: Polimorphic helped build automated forms for services like radius requests, which allowed residents and developers to submit their requests, pay fees online, and receive documents without ever stepping foot in the office.

“We have an office standard of a two-day turnaround for requests, but we’re able to get to in half that time,” said Jones.

Flexible Staff Workflows: With staff working remotely from various locations, including other states, the new systems ensured that workflows could continue uninterrupted. This flexibility allowed staff to process documents and respond to requests around the clock, improving both efficiency and employee satisfaction.

AI-Assisted Document Processing: The office is working on utilizing AI to assist with the identification and indexing of legal descriptions and other essential data in documents. This reduced the need for manual data entry, allowing staff to focus on verification rather than processing.

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Watch our webinar, Avoiding Document Disasters in the Recorder's Office.

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Results

The implementation of Polimorphic and other automation tools led to significant improvements in the Tooele County Recorder’s Office. Key results included:

Tripled Document Processing Capacity: Despite the workload tripling, the office was able to maintain high levels of efficiency without increasing staff.

“The processes are super user-friendly, both for residents and staff. They’ve been very easy for everyone to adapt to,” said Emily Jones, Director of Operations.

Improved Customer Experience: With the large size of the County, it was not unusual for residents to have to drive more than an hour to visit the Recorders Office to submit an application. If there was an error with the application, such as a missing signature or forgotten payment, the applicant would have to spend more time and return to the office. 

Now, with everything online and automated, residents don’t have to make the hike to the office. And, if they still prefer to, errors are spotted right away so a second trip isn’t needed.  

24/7 Document Submissions: Residents and developers can now submit documents anytime, with many processed after traditional business hours. This flexibility has reduced turnaround times and increased customer satisfaction.

Reduction in Data Entry Errors: By leveraging AI to assist with document indexing and processing, the office saw a notable reduction in errors, improving the overall accuracy of the work.

“Thanks to automation, we will become more of a verifier and look for some of those nuances instead of indexing, and then having another team member verify what was just put in. It allows us to be more efficient and spend our time elsewhere than correcting those data errors. The result is there's fewer errors being made because of the standards we have in the workflow that we're trying to keep,” said Houghton.

Increased Transparency and Reporting: With Polimorphic’s tools, the office can now track the progress of requests in real-time, providing better reporting and transparency to both internal staff and the public.

“How many requests are we getting? What’s the impact? We can now dig deep into the reporting and numbers, share them with Council and say why it’s important,” says Jones.

Enhanced Remote Work Capabilities: Staff members can now work from any location, allowing the office to retain valuable employees who relocated out of the area. This has helped improve job satisfaction and retention.

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What’s next?

Through these innovations, the Tooele County Recorder's Office has set a new standard for how local government recorders and clerks can enhance efficiency, improve service delivery, and meet the evolving needs of the community.

And, when personalized in-office help is needed, the team has the capacity to give the customer the attention they deserve. 

“There is still that need for human interaction, and we’re able to deliver thanks to improved efficiency across the office,” said Houghton.

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