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- The Benefits of Document Management Software
- Considerations in Choosing or Upgrading to a Document Management System
- Using the DMS System Effectively
- Conclusion
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Using the DMS System Effectively
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Using the DMS System Effectively
Once a DMS system has been chosen and installed and you have migrated the data, now comes the hard part[md]getting your employees to use it! A DMS system is only as successful as the adoption within an organization. The following are key suggestions to engage employees in utilizing a DMS system.
- Provide training. As with any new IT system, the more comfortable users feel with using functionality, the more likelihood they will use the system. Studies show that after two hours of IT training, most users have difficulty retaining any more knowledge thereafter. Consider having quarterly training sessions that will continually offer knowledge on the functionality of the DMS system.
- Create record and retention guidelines. It is vital that employees know what document retention is and realize what types of documents an employee is responsible to keep and maintain. Although this may seem like common knowledge within an organization, it is in fact one of the top reasons why companies lose important data. If employees are not clear on which data is important to retain, they often will delete and/or not keep the data well organized. Creating clear retention guidelines will also help the user input accurate data in the retention fields of the DMS system.
- Provide clarity of use between the DMS system and server. Users need to understand what type of documents should be saved in the DMS system versus on their hard drive, shared drive, and/or personal drive on the network system. Often companies will ask employees to save all personal information along with drafts and temporary data on their hard drive or personal drive to reduce the clutter within the DMS system.
- Show staff how to use the DMS system to reference documents. Instead of attaching documents to email, ask the staff to provide the location of the document and/or link in the email. This forces users to utilize the system as well as limit multiple versions. It’s an easy way to ask users to begin to navigate the DMS system.
- Gain feedback from employees. Conduct an employee survey bi-annually to discover challenges of the DMS system and frequency of use. This can help guide IT staff on what changes or customization is needed to improve and increase usage of the DMS system. Gaining feedback will also gauge which users might need additional training or assistance to use the system regularly.