Version control records each change to a file or body of work, along with who made it and when. Instead of copies named final, final2 and really-final, there is one item with a complete, ordered history. Any earlier state can be viewed, compared with the current one, or restored if a change turns out to be a mistake.
Software teams rely on it so several people can work at once without overwriting each other, and so a faulty change can be undone. The same idea helps with procedures, contracts and price lists: you can see what the text said last quarter and who approved the change. It supports an audit trail and safer updates.