Document management has both literal and practical meaning. What are you managing? Why? Is it strictly for large companies? Why should you care?

Document management itself, is a tricky term. It’s about the data in the document. For a long time “document” referred to paper. Today’s documents never have to be printed, so no paper.

So, what are you managing if it’s not the paper?

A document freezes a particular business activity. It’s proof something happened. It records the history of a business transaction. Not all content meets these criteria.

The first step is to identify which documents need managing. You must map the document lifecycle from creation to destruction. And you must do this for each document type.

Consider (after filing/saving), how you need to retrieve that document. Much of your strategy is defined when you identify who needs to access the document. And why. As well as how they will search for it. Finally, consider the impact if a document can’t be found. 

Document Management Lifecycle: The Stages

Let’s look at document lifecycles. First, how does your organization create documents?  Next, identify the business processes the document is involved in. Then, file the documents until your business requirements state they are no longer needed. Finally, determine the document disposition. Document disposition is how you dispose of the document once it is no longer needed. Some companies choose to shred their documents.  When this happens, they receive a certificate of destruction. Other companies move them to offsite storage.  These stages and the definitions regarding files are the cornerstones of your document management strategy. 

Creation

When creating documents, sometimes secondary documents are necessary. There might be multiple revisions. Do business requirements require you to keep every version? Can you reduce documents under your new strategy? Do you need:

• the document you sent,
• the redlined version you got back,
• and the final signed document?

This is how you progress as you create your system. 

Management

Document management creates a repeatable process for information management. This enhances business process management. Once you complete the original document, that can kick off business processes that create other documents. These documents are tied to the original document and need to be defined under your document management strategy. These ties give you information to use later. 

Filing & Retrieval

After these tasks have been completed, it’s time to file the documents. Think about why you need to find it later and how users will search for and find the document. Let’s consider customer service, an audit, or an accounting inquiry.

• Customer service? Search by customer or account name.
• Audits are retrieved by date.
• An accounting inquiry might mean you search by invoice or PO number.

Think about all of these when structuring your document management system metadata and final filing structure.

Is Document Management For Me? 

Yes! You can implement a digital document management system with and for many components. Document management is ultimately a system of procedures and policies. Many of these can be automated, but they don’t all have to be.

Many customers implement a system to address final filing initially, and then back it up to business processes, and ultimately, document creation. Properly planned, document management, and the costs associated with managing your files, will be greatly reduced using affordable tools.  These cost savings are reflected in companies of all sizes, and you can project them ahead of time to see the size of your problem and what you should invest to solve it. 

To get started, a simple document study identifies areas that would benefit from a document management strategy.

We offer worksheets which illustrate where a system can provide value.  Contact us today for free worksheets to get started.