Today, an automated electronic document management system is an integral part of the work of any successful enterprise. Let’s look at the features of workflow automation, and what benefits it brings to any enterprise.
No modern organization can operate without computers, networks, work applications, and more. The transition from paper documents to electronic ones, on the one hand, greatly simplifies management and control, and on the other hand, it does not make it possible to properly control them. Files are stored on different media, at the right moment, they are difficult to find, if not impossible. Can the chaos of electronic papers be dealt with? Yes, and this is what an automated electronic document management system is designed for.
What is this system?
Almost every electronic document management system performs several standard functions:
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Create new documents, both according to prepared templates, and without them;
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Download documents downloaded from various systems (scanner, email, file system);
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Document flow in the enterprise allows you to compare revision versions and track version updates;
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Organize document catalogs and store them;
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Form tasks and monitor their implementation;
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Collectively work with documents using the internal network;
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Maintain a distribution log.
Providing functionality
On the Internet, you can find a lot of reviews on the comparison of various eDMS. Since most of these reviews were commissioned by one or another developer, you should not take too seriously the conclusions that this or that system is superior in functionality to all others. Currently, a generally accepted terminology for denoting the functionality of the eDMS is still being formed. Also, the implementation of the same features claimed by different vendors can vary greatly.
The full functionality of modern eDMS may interest only large corporate clients or government agencies and is unlikely to be in demand, for example, by clients from small and medium-sized businesses. Therefore, preference should be given to vendors offering modular system licensing. You choose modules that are designed to solve only your problems.
Who needs an eDMS?
Difficulty locating and sharing documents still rates as one of the principal irritations and challenges of many workers’ daily lives. But for some companies, it is a literal block on winning new business and scaling up effectively. At the same time, inadequate security infrastructure reflecting the sensitivity of the data you control can lead to system breaches with serious commercial and reputational repercussions.
Most digital filing tools (such as a simple Google Drive) can bring immediate benefits to a growing business through structuring your storage more sensibly and accessing shared spaces for document collaboration. But not all of them are designed to face every kind of business challenge.