Electronic Document
Management System

Analyzing Your Information Needs

To take full advantage of the Image Executive EDMS search and retrieval capabilities, you must first have a working knowledge of how your organization manages and uses information. Perform an information needs analysis by answering the following questions:

What kinds of documents will be put into the system?
Who needs access to these documents?
How are the documents currently filed?
How are the documents retrieved?

What kinds of documents will be put into the system?

1. Any particular organization processes and files a wide variety of documents. When putting documents into an electronic filing system, it is often best to consider how these documents will be used - i.e., how they will be referred to and pulled from the system.

The Image Executive EDMS’s filing system enables users to group a wide variety of Documents relating to one topic, while allowing Documents of similar types to be pulled from various topics. As with a traditional filing system, the Imaging System uses Folders to group Documents relating to a particular client, product, or vendor. This may be considered a “topic-oriented” filing system. The Imaging System facilitates the use of a “function-oriented” filing system by allowing users to classify types of Documents with the application of Attributes, Categories, and Classes. System users constantly impress our trainers and software developers by devising creative and efficient uses of this multi-dimensional filing system.

Who needs access to these documents?

Organizations often have a variety of document access needs. One of these usually involves security. Any employee might be able to access a centrally located filing cabinet, raising security issues that are often resolved by splitting the filing system into public locations and secure locations. Another usually involves flexibility. Two users, for example, might need to access the same document, but they might begin their searches with completely different search criteria.

The Image Executive EDMS provides a very robust security system. Access to Documents can be limited both by Department and by a Security Level assigned to each Document. In addition, access to the Imaging System’s Functions may be limited by user permissions.

The Imaging System provides a flexible interface for accessing Documents. Users with access to more than one Department can use the same search criteria to retrieve Documents across several Departments. Multiple users (possibly from multiple locations!) can access the same Document simultaneously. The Imaging System has both routing list and copy for e-mail features that make sharing images easier and more efficient.

How are documents currently filed?

Take this opportunity to examine your current filing system. Most likely, your existing system can be easily adapted to the Image Executive EDMS. Electronic records, such as a payroll database or an electronic address book, might even be useful for importing data into the new system. Data from this import can be used to create and name Folders, allowing users to begin filing almost immediately.

Consider this an opportunity to improve your filing system. Bear in mind that the Image Executive EDMS is not subject to the physical limitations of file folders, filing cabinets, and paper documents.

The Image Executive EDMS, for example, allows the same Document to be filed in more than one Folder at once. The term “Folder” is really just a metaphor. Folders do not manage the locations where Documents are stored; more appropriately, Folders manage one of the many ways Documents can be accessed.

Figure 1 illustrates the way the Image Executive EDMS indexes a Document. It is important to note that Documents are not explicitly named. They are given Comments and Document Dates when filed - both of which are searchable fields. The most common searches are those done by Folder name, which gets its data from the Last Name field. Innovative users have employed the Notes and References fields to hold data that actually becomes part of the Document, such as the last mailing destination for a student’s transcript.

How are documents currently retrieved?

The Image Executive EDMS’s flexible search and retrieval system makes wading through previously disparate and unwieldy files a snap. Additional User Definable fields are provided to classify Folders by criteria particular to your organization. The topic-oriented classification scheme facilitated by Folders and the function-oriented classification scheme facilitated by Attributes allow users to focus on their search targets from many angles.