Enterprise content management (ECM) is a vital tool to employ when your organization is seeking the most efficient document management setup possible. With so many systems available, choosing the best one that can manage your increasing volume of documentation can be a challenge. Finding ECM software that is affordable while also meeting everyday demands is critical, and these features should take precedence when you explore your options. 

Content services are advanced measures that are transforming the enterprise content management (ECM) industry. These are a set of services and micro-services that are separate applications sharing common APIs or repositories. Content services have added a more holistic approach to solving content-related problems. Businesses can capitalize on their investments while extending their capabilities to remote workers, partners, and clients making the content process more transparent. Various elements make content service more reliable so that they will improve organizational productivity.

Why Is It Important?

Though more companies are embracing content management practices at varying levels, some still fail to understand the terminology. Some companies also struggle to take a comprehensive strategic approach with these practices. It speaks to their lack of understanding of ECM – a centralized platform used to consolidate digital content storage – and how it functions.

When you’re planning to implement an enterprise level content management system, you need a flawless plan that will make sure the transition goes smoothly. When tens, if not hundreds, of employees rely on a content management program or software to do their jobs correctly, transitioning to a new program could result in a huge financial loss if errors occur. When you begin this transition, consider the following:

If you’re considering implementing ECM software, there are many things you need to consider. This change is major in an organization, and forces employees to adapt to a new system that they may or may not be comfortable with. When you are thinking of this change, fully assess your company’s need for ECM software by utilizing the following steps.

1. Save money on paper and shipping – and reduce your environmental footprint at the same time. A study of four customers by Oracle Corporation (a sponsor of the AIIM Green ECM site) quantified the direct cost and environmental savings from driving paper out of core processes through deployment of document management technologies.

Organization	Paper cost savings	Shipping cost savings	Trees saved	Barrels of oil saved	Pounds of carbon emissions avoided
Embry Riddle University	$47,324	$100,000	309	882	176,264
Swedish Medical	$36,000	$200,000	235	1,764	352,527
Emerson Process	$574,354	$158,074	3,754	1,395	278,627
Standard Forwarding	$15,668	$60,932	102	538	107,401

2. Increase the effectiveness of core processes. Think about the benefits of document management technologies in a single core process – finance. Driving paper from financial processes allows an accounts payable group to pay invoices faster, taking advantage of discounts for early payment. It allows an accounts receivable group to improve cash flows and reduce the days that sales are outstanding. The cost of processing an invoice can typically be cut by a factor of 10, creating savings that drop directly to the bottom line. These kinds of savings can usually be replicated in other paper‐intensive processes, yielding BOTH bottom line AND green benefits.

3. Truly integrate your field operations. The application of distributed capture technologies – using a scanner in a field office to process locally created paper and electronically store it in a central location – is a true no‐brainer for most organizations. Distributed capture solutions often pay for themselves just through savings in courier and shipping costs. But taking courier and overnight services off the road also translates into significant direct environmental benefits.

4. Reduce real estate costs. Less paper means fewer filing cabinets means less real estate ‐‐ which reduces cost, but also significantly reduces your environmental footprint.

5. Improve employee productivity. By digitizing as much information as possible, you set the stage for allowing employees much greater flexibility in their working arrangements and for much more effective collaboration independent of geography. Which also translates into less real estate and less travel and a reduced carbon footprint – and happier employees.

6. Reduce off‐site storage costs. Off‐site storage of paper is expensive, often requiring rental and maintenance fees as well as significant transportation costs to the facility. All of which represent a significant burden on the environment compared to a document management solution.

This article was original written and shared with permission by AIIM.org. For more information on Green ECM, visit http://www.aiim.org/green‐ecm

Want to make sure your document management/ECM solution is a success? Join Kevin D'Arcy, VP of MES Hybrid Document Systems, as he outlines 8 key points to make your document management project a success.