Best ways of Successful ECM Implementation

Summary
Implementation of a document management system is a herculean task and you need to keep many aspects in mind for doing it successfully. Here are some useful tips.

In today’s data-driven world, the exponential rise in the number of documents on a daily basis can create an unorganized administrative mess. It can make your business processes more complex and restrict the management to make an informed decision based on data analysis. There, an enterprise content management (ECM) solution lends a helping hand and enables the company to streamline the operation.

The ECM solution can store, manage, and organize corporate documents. It also improves safety and facilitates real-time access to critical data. Companies can save big bucks as the enterprise content management helps them to get rid of spending on expensive digital infrastructure. Also, the organization can support the ‘Go Green’ initiative by eliminating the need for paper.

But then, many companies find it difficult to integrate ECM at their workplace, but you can get a great reward in the long run. You can consult a document management company to ensure a seamless transition from traditional to an advanced system.

Here we give a list of ten critical steps that can assist you to integrate document management system.

1. Identification of key goals
Like any other project, you need to make a roadmap for implementing ECM. Your plan should include pain points, possible solutions, and risks or concerns. You can also plan the scope and outcome to avoid any distractions from objectives. You can identify trivial tasks that can delay the migration of critical data to the advanced ECM solution.

The content management system also enables you to determine the current content and its location. You can leverage this benefit while eliminating duplication and other issues with the proper identification of key goals.

2. Measuring results
Quantification of results is also important when you implement the enterprise content management system. You need to measure the outcome from financial and practical aspects. Some of the measurable aspects include savings on infrastructure, security safeguards, improved collaboration and customer service measurements.

Quantification of results can help you determine whether your project goes in the right direction and you can take necessary action on the basis of a measured outcome.

3. Take support
This is also a necessary step to leverage the benefits of an ECM in the full swing. When you implement a document management system, the whole organization will have its impact. Therefore, while making a roadmap, you should ask representatives of various departments like a legal cell, records management, the executive board, and other experts to make the most effective plan.

4. Effective communication
You need to ensure effective communication while implementing an ECM at your workplace. If you fail to make the document management company understand your vision, expectations, and desired outcome, then you may end up having a mediocre solution. Also, it is necessary for your company to remain transparent in sharing necessary information while implementing the ECM system.

You can conduct training, discuss potential tools, and share important information to facilitate your employees to remain engaged and involved in the process.

5. Find out needs
A customized Alfresco enterprise content management solution needs equally robust systems. Also, you need to make sure that which of the existing systems are useful and which are outdated to determine the infrastructural need. You can count on an ECM executive of a reliable service provider company to assess the capability of your current IT components. The service provider can align the existing and new tools to meet the desired goals.

Apart from this, it is better to define the needs of customized cloud solutions.

6. Ownership
After making everything clear, you need a team of dedicated professionals who can take ownership of initiatives and help you make the ECM implementation a bit easy. ECM and IT design, system configuration, testing and support, maintenance and data migration are some of the areas where ownership is appreciable.

Taking ownership of the tasks can make the process straightforward and keep everything in order.

7. Define access policies
Data security is one of the key areas that need a top priority. If you want to make the data management system secure, you need to establish safety standards and implement access policies. For example, you can build a permission system based on a hierarchy pattern. Also, you can plan a security policy that includes data or documents to be discarded safely once their lifecycle is over.

8. Opt for testing
Now, this is important after you get an enterprise content management solution. You need to test it among a group of selected people. You can test in a real scenario before implementing the system in the entire company. Constructive feedback and suggestions can help you find out the mistakes or loopholes of the document management system, and you can resolve these issues right away.

Testing is also necessary to involve selected employees and key persons in the process to implement the ECM system.

9. Ensure flexibility
Adjustment and flexibility are necessary characteristics you need to keep in mind while implementing the enterprise-grade content management system at your workplace. The ECM system needs to be scalable and flexible to manage the entire system. Once everything gets ready, you can launch your customized ECM solution while continuing effective communication and continuous collaboration.

Concluding Lines
Are you ready to start your journey toward improved business processes and take your company to the next level of efficiency and productivity? A customized enterprise content management solution can certainly help you out while saving a lot of time and effort. All you need to find a reliable service provider.

Tridhya Tech is a renowned document management company. We provide top-notch ECM solutions to global corporate clients using Alfresco and Liferay platforms. If you want to know more about ECM implementation at your workplace, simply send us an email at [email protected], and our executives will get back to you soon.