Electronic Document Management System Problems
Introducing an EDMS into the Business Can Lead to Business Problems
Jan 16, 2009
A business unit that has not used an electronic document management system before will find itself on a steep learning curve to use the EDMS and involved in a significant change to business working practices. This business change must be managed to ensure a successful introduction of an EDMS and transition to new business processes.
Electronic Document Management System Problems
A business unit will look to an EDMS to solve business document management problems. However, introducing an EDMS is not without its own problems and they include:
- Business need for EDMS is unclear or inconclusive to many stakeholders. If the business need is not clear then the business case and benefits will not be compelling. The alternative is for senior management to recognise the business themselves and make a strategic decision to adopt an EDMS. This decision must be followed through with active sponsorship and support for any potential project
- Current business working practices need to be changed and people are generally resistant to changes to working practices unless the benefits are clear, especially to themselves. Again the alternative is for significant senior management support
- Business community may have very different needs and expectations of an EDMS and what it can do for them. Those different needs range from infrequent users that will need an easy to use system because of their irregular usage pattern to the power users that will be using the system all day every day. Consequently the chosen EDMS must offer the flexibility to appeal to the full range of user types
- Existing documentation is not well organised. By the standards of an EDMS the existing documents on a network file-share or personal hard-drives will not be well organised. This creates the problem for the business of defining what exactly they need or want. For example, what document types are needed and what identifiers? How will documents be found and what attributes are needed? What business policies exist [or need to] such as retention of documentation and archiving that need to be applied to documentation
- Existing security model will be inadequate, what new security model is needed? File-shares may have a limited security model and typically an EDMS will have a much richer security model and definition of roles within the system. In short, who has access to the system and what can they do in it
- Under-estimation of level of business change to working practices. What new business processes need to be designed to integrate the new EDMS into the business? What new standard operating procedures are needed for the new EDMS and how does that relate to existing procedures and systems and, if needed, compliance status
- Under-estimation of the effort needed for practical implementation details such as training, decommissioning of existing systems, document migration to the EDMS
EDMS Problems
Introducing an EDMS comes with its own set of problems and understanding these will be an essential component for project initiation and planning. Whilst there are significant benefits to using an EDMS the work required to get to that point should not be under-estimated. Forewarned is forearmed.
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