Electronic document management

There is a need for the effective management of electronic documents as a strategic corporate resource.

Electronic records are distinguished from electronic documents by the fact that they function as evidence of business transactions. An electronic document becomes an electronic record when it takes part in a business transaction. For example, a report prepared using a word processor remains a document until it is submitted, when it becomes a record.

Many electronic documents function as records and, consequently, sound electronic document management provides a measure of control and protection for these records.

The discipline of good electronic document management is vital for business. It will:

• Reduce costs associated with paper storage and photocopying
• Make sharing information between people, offices and continents easy
• Prevent the disruption of day-to-day business caused by natural disasters such as fire and flood and human misfiling.

Online document management provides instant document retrieval. Automated OCR and user-defined indexing reduce the risk of clerical mistakes, and comprehensive security protects digital archives from unauthorised access. You can scan paper and import electronic files into secure digital archives of unalterable documents and manage entire document repositories from workstations. Digital archiving also provides long-term document preservation.

Maximizing the value of information locked in an organization’s documents requires putting it in the hands of decision-makers when and where it’s needed most. Staff in remote offices can access information fast and work at peak levels of productivity.

Efficient electronic document management can be a simple, cost-effective time-saving way of sharing information within your organisation while also securing it from fire and flood and even theft. We have listed on the right of your screen links to a number of companies and to organisations that provide electronic document management solutions.