By Mark Brousseau
An eye-popping 88 percent of attendees at a recent accounts payable (AP) forum sponsored by Ricoh identified manual data entry as their top AP challenge, providing further evidence of the need for automated invoice processing solutions. Manual data entry came in a whopping 25 percentage points higher than the second biggest challenge identified by attendees at the Houston event.
Routing invoices for approval was identified as a top AP challenge for 63 percent of forum attendees, while 54 percent of attendees stated that resolving errors and exceptions was among their top challenges. Lost or missing invoices (42 percent) and overall payment costs (29 percent) rounded out the list of top AP challenges identified by forum attendees.
What is your top AP challenge?
Showing posts with label workflow. Show all posts
Showing posts with label workflow. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
Best operations-improving strategies
By Mark Brousseau
During a pre-conference networking lunch at Fusion 2011 at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Florida, attendees were asked to share the best operations-improving strategy that their accounts payable (AP) department has implemented in the past 12 months. Here are the operations strategies that the luncheon attendees said were the most effective during the past year:
... Provided AP processors with two computer monitors, reducing errors and increasing efficiency
... Took the time to better understand AP processes (became "black belts" in evaluating processes) to weed out the processes that don't add value
... Migrated more payments from paper check and wire transfer to automated clearing house (ACH) transactions
... Separated straight-through and exceptions processors
... Deployed a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution
... Deployed a purchasing card program
... Became more open-minded to new ideas
... Started reimbursing via a debit card since some people won't take direct deposit and paper checks are too costly and inefficient
... Began measuring and improving input quality, in turn, increasing AP productivity without changing any processes
... Began e-mailing and faxing remittances to save time and postage associated with paper remittances
... Developed a proprietary travel and expense (T&E) reporting system
... Brought AP functions previously done in India back in-house, resulting in savings of $26,000 a month, largely from fewer mistakes
... Implemented an imaging and workflow solution, reducing processing time and enabling all staff to know where an invoice stands in the approval process
... Standardized on one system and one process whenever possible
... Implemented virtual card payments
... Automated accounts receivable (AR) refunds
... Consolidated various overnight shipping and cellular phone accounts into "master" accounts, allowing the company to negotiate discounts of 18 to 50 percent off list prices
... Automated payroll processing with ACH
... Eliminated duplicate vendors, in turn, eliminating many duplicate payments
What is the best operations-improving strategy your AP department has implemented in the past 12 months? Post it below.
During a pre-conference networking lunch at Fusion 2011 at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Florida, attendees were asked to share the best operations-improving strategy that their accounts payable (AP) department has implemented in the past 12 months. Here are the operations strategies that the luncheon attendees said were the most effective during the past year:
... Provided AP processors with two computer monitors, reducing errors and increasing efficiency
... Took the time to better understand AP processes (became "black belts" in evaluating processes) to weed out the processes that don't add value
... Migrated more payments from paper check and wire transfer to automated clearing house (ACH) transactions
... Separated straight-through and exceptions processors
... Deployed a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution
... Deployed a purchasing card program
... Became more open-minded to new ideas
... Started reimbursing via a debit card since some people won't take direct deposit and paper checks are too costly and inefficient
... Began measuring and improving input quality, in turn, increasing AP productivity without changing any processes
... Began e-mailing and faxing remittances to save time and postage associated with paper remittances
... Developed a proprietary travel and expense (T&E) reporting system
... Brought AP functions previously done in India back in-house, resulting in savings of $26,000 a month, largely from fewer mistakes
... Implemented an imaging and workflow solution, reducing processing time and enabling all staff to know where an invoice stands in the approval process
... Standardized on one system and one process whenever possible
... Implemented virtual card payments
... Automated accounts receivable (AR) refunds
... Consolidated various overnight shipping and cellular phone accounts into "master" accounts, allowing the company to negotiate discounts of 18 to 50 percent off list prices
... Automated payroll processing with ACH
... Eliminated duplicate vendors, in turn, eliminating many duplicate payments
What is the best operations-improving strategy your AP department has implemented in the past 12 months? Post it below.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Healthcare data management
Wendi Klein, Director of Marketing & Communication, North America, A2iA
Since reform and regulation have stirred the industry, it has become an even more complex environment, though the goal is to streamline processes. In the wake of healthcare reform, healthcare IT has been forced to comply with new regulations, and healthcare IT needs have shifted. The U.S. government has set forth dates and deadlines by which providers and payors must meet certain milestones, placing emphasis on obtaining meaningful use of patient data, the availability and recovery of data to increase productivity and enhance patient care, as well as the industry’s transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10.
Given this complex and changing environment, healthcare IT providers must focus on implementing solutions that will meet users’ needs today and in the future, while maximizing existing spending to deliver an ROI. But with so many vendors trying to make a name for themselves, how can one stand out from the competition yet still deliver technology that meets government mandates?
CCHIT certified solutions, for example, are becoming more and more common since this is how the Department of Health and Human Services deems a system a "qualified EMR." However, many CCHIT solutions today still require manual document sorting and data entry because of the complex nature of healthcare documents. Hospitals and clinics alike are looking for ways around this, as it is no secret that manual document handling is a time consuming and expensive task, and even allows for breaches in privacy with the involvement of third-parties.
By partnering with technology companies that provide advanced indexing and data lifting capabilities, CCHIT certified solutions can address these pain points by removing the human interaction and allowing for higher levels of productivity, consequently differentiating themselves from the competition. By allowing complex and even handwritten documents such as provider notes, clinical documentation, lab results or prescriptions to enter the workflow, automatic routing to EHR, EMR or PM solutions can occur, and the data can be automatically located and lifted. Tangible results are seen almost immediately, and the CCHIT solution stands out from seemingly similar applications by providing a greater level of automation for all documents, regardless of their type or complexity.
Once these complex documents are incorporated into the EHR, EMR or PM solution, the next steps, like coding and billing, can occur. According to a recent study, between 5 and 15 percent of a coder’s time is spent reading health information, and 50 percent of a record clerk’s time is spent looking for information. ICD-9 is currently an accepted set of codes to be used for reporting diagnoses and procedures on healthcare transactions, although it must be replaced by ICD-10 no later than October 2013.
Because ICD-10 contains nearly 5 times as many codes and sub-codes, the conversion from ICD-9 to ICD-10 is predicted to decrease productivity by a minimum of 25 percent for three to six months after the transition as coders adjust to new methodology, and become a more costly endeavor than Y2K in terms of both time and money.
Although the deadline to transition to ICD-10 is not until 2013, many have already started to look for solutions to counteract the predicted loss of efficiency. Computer Assisted Coding, or CAC solutions, can help, but many are still asking, “How will coders remain productive as they learn the new codes and sub-codes so that providers can submit and receive payments, and payors can process claims, at the same level of accuracy and speed that they are today?”
Because of these fears and the anticipated decrease in efficiency, there is a large opportunity for technology that can aid in the transition process. Newer, advanced solutions can bring greater levels of automation, help to increase processing times and accuracy, and even save money. By enhancing CAC solutions with capabilities that can automatically locate and lift medical terms and diagnoses from both printed and handwritten documents, such as providers notes and clinical documentation, the research process is sped up and manual labor decreased as codes are automatically assigned. All coded documents can then be indexed and routed with virtually no human interaction to the appropriate EHR, EMR or PM solution, speeding productivity, guaranteeing automation, and aiding in the research and coding process.
Healthcare data management is a complex world, and no one knows what changes are on the horizon. Current solutions can certainly aid in productivity, but combining them with the capabilities of newer, advanced technology, today’s pain points can be lessened, automation improved, and tomorrow’s fears calmed.
What do you think?
Since reform and regulation have stirred the industry, it has become an even more complex environment, though the goal is to streamline processes. In the wake of healthcare reform, healthcare IT has been forced to comply with new regulations, and healthcare IT needs have shifted. The U.S. government has set forth dates and deadlines by which providers and payors must meet certain milestones, placing emphasis on obtaining meaningful use of patient data, the availability and recovery of data to increase productivity and enhance patient care, as well as the industry’s transition from ICD-9 to ICD-10.
Given this complex and changing environment, healthcare IT providers must focus on implementing solutions that will meet users’ needs today and in the future, while maximizing existing spending to deliver an ROI. But with so many vendors trying to make a name for themselves, how can one stand out from the competition yet still deliver technology that meets government mandates?
CCHIT certified solutions, for example, are becoming more and more common since this is how the Department of Health and Human Services deems a system a "qualified EMR." However, many CCHIT solutions today still require manual document sorting and data entry because of the complex nature of healthcare documents. Hospitals and clinics alike are looking for ways around this, as it is no secret that manual document handling is a time consuming and expensive task, and even allows for breaches in privacy with the involvement of third-parties.
By partnering with technology companies that provide advanced indexing and data lifting capabilities, CCHIT certified solutions can address these pain points by removing the human interaction and allowing for higher levels of productivity, consequently differentiating themselves from the competition. By allowing complex and even handwritten documents such as provider notes, clinical documentation, lab results or prescriptions to enter the workflow, automatic routing to EHR, EMR or PM solutions can occur, and the data can be automatically located and lifted. Tangible results are seen almost immediately, and the CCHIT solution stands out from seemingly similar applications by providing a greater level of automation for all documents, regardless of their type or complexity.
Once these complex documents are incorporated into the EHR, EMR or PM solution, the next steps, like coding and billing, can occur. According to a recent study, between 5 and 15 percent of a coder’s time is spent reading health information, and 50 percent of a record clerk’s time is spent looking for information. ICD-9 is currently an accepted set of codes to be used for reporting diagnoses and procedures on healthcare transactions, although it must be replaced by ICD-10 no later than October 2013.
Because ICD-10 contains nearly 5 times as many codes and sub-codes, the conversion from ICD-9 to ICD-10 is predicted to decrease productivity by a minimum of 25 percent for three to six months after the transition as coders adjust to new methodology, and become a more costly endeavor than Y2K in terms of both time and money.
Although the deadline to transition to ICD-10 is not until 2013, many have already started to look for solutions to counteract the predicted loss of efficiency. Computer Assisted Coding, or CAC solutions, can help, but many are still asking, “How will coders remain productive as they learn the new codes and sub-codes so that providers can submit and receive payments, and payors can process claims, at the same level of accuracy and speed that they are today?”
Because of these fears and the anticipated decrease in efficiency, there is a large opportunity for technology that can aid in the transition process. Newer, advanced solutions can bring greater levels of automation, help to increase processing times and accuracy, and even save money. By enhancing CAC solutions with capabilities that can automatically locate and lift medical terms and diagnoses from both printed and handwritten documents, such as providers notes and clinical documentation, the research process is sped up and manual labor decreased as codes are automatically assigned. All coded documents can then be indexed and routed with virtually no human interaction to the appropriate EHR, EMR or PM solution, speeding productivity, guaranteeing automation, and aiding in the research and coding process.
Healthcare data management is a complex world, and no one knows what changes are on the horizon. Current solutions can certainly aid in productivity, but combining them with the capabilities of newer, advanced technology, today’s pain points can be lessened, automation improved, and tomorrow’s fears calmed.
What do you think?
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Inspire 2011 kicks off in Las Vegas
By Mark Brousseau
More than 900 document automation professionals have descended upon Las Vegas this week for Perceptive Software’s Inspire 2011 user conference at the Wynn.
This is the fifth year that Perceptive Software has held its Inspire event.
The attendance at this year’s Inspire user conference is a record, Jeremy McNeive, Perceptive Software’s public relations manager told me yesterday, topping the crowd of about 700 that attended Inspire 2010 in Kansas City. McNeive attributes the growth to the improving economy, the continuing pressure within organizations to improve efficiency, and the value that end-users perceive from the content. For instance, yesterday’s keynote address on the state of the company by Perceptive Software President and CEO Scott Coons was “very well received,” McNeive said.
Inspire 2011 includes more than 60 educational sessions (more than ever before at an Inspire event), with learning tracks dedicated to higher education, healthcare, financial services, the back-office, and product and platform information. There also is a large resource center where end-users can try out Perceptive Software products and get answers to technical and product questions from the company’s experts.
Eight of Perceptive Software’s partners also are exhibiting at the event: Lexmark (Perceptive Software’s parent company), Fujitsu, Napersoft, Scanning America, CSP Group, Docucon, Global Information Distribution, and HyBridge Solutions. Many of these partners provide various components for Perceptive Software’s solutions.
One of the hot topics among attendees is the anticipated release next year of ImageNow 6.7, which will offer “a little bit of everything” for end-users, McNeive said, including records information management and foldering capabilities. It will help end-users move towards collaboration in an even bigger way, McNeive added.
“There is lots of energy here and lots of excitement,” McNeive concluded.
Going to school on workflow
By Mark Brousseau
Kansas State University (KSU) has increased productivity, raised efficiency and reallocated staff by deploying Perceptive Software’s ImageNow enterprise content platform in its admissions office. Rhiannon Englert of application manager and ImageNow client administrator, undergraduate admissions, shared the university’s story yesterday at Perceptive Software’s Inspire 2011 user conference in Las Vegas.
Founded in 1863 and located in Manhattan, Kansas, KSU offers more than 250 majors and programs and serves over 23,500 students. The university’s admissions office has about 50 ImageNow users, and holds about 30 seat licenses at a time.
The university processes about 20,000 applications and 20,000 transcripts per year.
Before deploying ImageNow in 2002, the university previously used a “very large and very loud filing-drawer system” for managing its admissions documents. “It was a very clunky system and took up a lot of space,” Englert said. “By deploying ImageNow, we were able to replace that system with three workstations.”
Until three years ago, KSU used its ImageNow solution primarily for electronic document storage. The school’s workflow was used largely for basic tasks and was centered on an in-house routing slip and back-end document scanning
In this paper-driven environment, the university would date-stamp incoming admissions documents and then send them to its document processing staff, who would perform data entry and make any necessary notations directly on the original documents. The documents then would go to an evaluator-level employee for more processing, and any action that needed to be taken. Once this step was complete, the documents would be scanned and electronically linked to a student ID number.
This process created some challenges, Englert said, starting with the labor involved in manual data entry. “We also were concerned about the location of documents during processing: the only person who knew the location of a document was the person who was processing it,” Englert explained. Similarly, there was no way to quantify the processing workload. “Employees would say, ‘We have a huge stack of transcripts to process,’ but they could didn’t know how many,” Englert said.
That all changed in 2009 when the university upgraded to version 6.3 of ImageNow.
As part of its upgrade to the new version of software, the university evaluated its business process, looking for ways to improve efficiency and eliminate the “vicious cycle” of paper-driven processes, Englert said. Not surprisingly, the university decided to implement a paperless workflow in its admissions office. As a result, incoming documents – including applications and supporting documents – are now scanned upon receipt and then enter electronic workflow queues based on the document type or business process. The electronic documents are then linked to a student identification number in KSU’s PeopleSoft system, processed and archived.
With such a big change in how work is managed, it’s not surprising that Englert’s team had some concerns early on, including: how information would be displayed on monitors; whether they could make electronic annotations on documents: the clarity of document images (for determining the authenticity of transcripts); and the impact on processing turnaround. Some employees also were anxious about the system’s workload monitoring tools, and that someone would be watching them.
The university tackled these issues head-on (i.e. providing all employees with two monitors for easy image viewing) and kept communication to staff flowing.
The benefits have been significant. As a result of moving to a paperless workflow, the university increased efficiency, improved turnaround times, and reallocated staff – all at a time when its budgets are extremely tight. The workload tracking has proven to be a powerful tool for supervisors, helping them better understand staff workloads and turnaround times, and prioritize work when necessary. Englert said it is also easier to locate documents with ImageNow’s search capabilities. .
“During high-volume times, documents are now available in ImageNow within hours or a few days as opposed to several days or weeks,” Englert commented.
Now, the university is looking for more ways to take its processes to the next level.
Kansas State University (KSU) has increased productivity, raised efficiency and reallocated staff by deploying Perceptive Software’s ImageNow enterprise content platform in its admissions office. Rhiannon Englert of application manager and ImageNow client administrator, undergraduate admissions, shared the university’s story yesterday at Perceptive Software’s Inspire 2011 user conference in Las Vegas.
Founded in 1863 and located in Manhattan, Kansas, KSU offers more than 250 majors and programs and serves over 23,500 students. The university’s admissions office has about 50 ImageNow users, and holds about 30 seat licenses at a time.
The university processes about 20,000 applications and 20,000 transcripts per year.
Before deploying ImageNow in 2002, the university previously used a “very large and very loud filing-drawer system” for managing its admissions documents. “It was a very clunky system and took up a lot of space,” Englert said. “By deploying ImageNow, we were able to replace that system with three workstations.”
Until three years ago, KSU used its ImageNow solution primarily for electronic document storage. The school’s workflow was used largely for basic tasks and was centered on an in-house routing slip and back-end document scanning
In this paper-driven environment, the university would date-stamp incoming admissions documents and then send them to its document processing staff, who would perform data entry and make any necessary notations directly on the original documents. The documents then would go to an evaluator-level employee for more processing, and any action that needed to be taken. Once this step was complete, the documents would be scanned and electronically linked to a student ID number.
This process created some challenges, Englert said, starting with the labor involved in manual data entry. “We also were concerned about the location of documents during processing: the only person who knew the location of a document was the person who was processing it,” Englert explained. Similarly, there was no way to quantify the processing workload. “Employees would say, ‘We have a huge stack of transcripts to process,’ but they could didn’t know how many,” Englert said.
That all changed in 2009 when the university upgraded to version 6.3 of ImageNow.
As part of its upgrade to the new version of software, the university evaluated its business process, looking for ways to improve efficiency and eliminate the “vicious cycle” of paper-driven processes, Englert said. Not surprisingly, the university decided to implement a paperless workflow in its admissions office. As a result, incoming documents – including applications and supporting documents – are now scanned upon receipt and then enter electronic workflow queues based on the document type or business process. The electronic documents are then linked to a student identification number in KSU’s PeopleSoft system, processed and archived.
With such a big change in how work is managed, it’s not surprising that Englert’s team had some concerns early on, including: how information would be displayed on monitors; whether they could make electronic annotations on documents: the clarity of document images (for determining the authenticity of transcripts); and the impact on processing turnaround. Some employees also were anxious about the system’s workload monitoring tools, and that someone would be watching them.
The university tackled these issues head-on (i.e. providing all employees with two monitors for easy image viewing) and kept communication to staff flowing.
The benefits have been significant. As a result of moving to a paperless workflow, the university increased efficiency, improved turnaround times, and reallocated staff – all at a time when its budgets are extremely tight. The workload tracking has proven to be a powerful tool for supervisors, helping them better understand staff workloads and turnaround times, and prioritize work when necessary. Englert said it is also easier to locate documents with ImageNow’s search capabilities. .
“During high-volume times, documents are now available in ImageNow within hours or a few days as opposed to several days or weeks,” Englert commented.
Now, the university is looking for more ways to take its processes to the next level.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
info360 wrap-up
Posted by Mark Brousseau
Some odds and ends from AIIM’s info360 event this week in Washington, D.C.:
… d.velop technologies announced the launch of its ecspand for SharePoint enterprise content management (ECM) solution in the United States. Over the past two years, d.velop also introduced ecspand in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. d.velop exhibited in the info360 Microsoft pavilion.
… Colligo Networks and GimmalSoft forged a partnership and will integrate Colligo’s email management software into GimmalSoft’s SharePoint-based records management solution. The partnership will fulfill the DoD 5015.2 design criteria in GimmalSoft’s solution. DoD 5015.2 is the U.S. Department of Defense’s design criteria standard for electronic records management solutions.
… Document collaboration provider Workshare said it was awarded Microsoft Certified Gold ISV Partner status in the Microsoft Partner Program. The Gold ISV certification requires the highest level of competence and expertise with Microsoft technologies. By achieving Gold competency, partners receive benefits such as increased customer visibility through branding and accessibility, as well as training and support. Workshare has been a Microsoft Gold partner since 2005.
… Laserfiche demonstrated its DOD 5015.2-certified records management solution for SharePoint 2010. Laserfiche claims that its SharePoint 2010 integration was the first to obtain DoD 5015.2 certification. With the joint certification, Laserfiche now works with SharePoint 2010 to provide a unified business collaboration platform with enterprise content management (ECM) functionality.
… Datawatch released an enhanced version of its enterprise report management, archive and distribution solution. Called Datawatch BDS V8, the software adds certification for Red Hat LINUX, several new security features, and report and document redaction and translation.
What did you see at AIIM’s info360?
Some odds and ends from AIIM’s info360 event this week in Washington, D.C.:
… d.velop technologies announced the launch of its ecspand for SharePoint enterprise content management (ECM) solution in the United States. Over the past two years, d.velop also introduced ecspand in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. d.velop exhibited in the info360 Microsoft pavilion.
… Colligo Networks and GimmalSoft forged a partnership and will integrate Colligo’s email management software into GimmalSoft’s SharePoint-based records management solution. The partnership will fulfill the DoD 5015.2 design criteria in GimmalSoft’s solution. DoD 5015.2 is the U.S. Department of Defense’s design criteria standard for electronic records management solutions.
… Document collaboration provider Workshare said it was awarded Microsoft Certified Gold ISV Partner status in the Microsoft Partner Program. The Gold ISV certification requires the highest level of competence and expertise with Microsoft technologies. By achieving Gold competency, partners receive benefits such as increased customer visibility through branding and accessibility, as well as training and support. Workshare has been a Microsoft Gold partner since 2005.
… Laserfiche demonstrated its DOD 5015.2-certified records management solution for SharePoint 2010. Laserfiche claims that its SharePoint 2010 integration was the first to obtain DoD 5015.2 certification. With the joint certification, Laserfiche now works with SharePoint 2010 to provide a unified business collaboration platform with enterprise content management (ECM) functionality.
… Datawatch released an enhanced version of its enterprise report management, archive and distribution solution. Called Datawatch BDS V8, the software adds certification for Red Hat LINUX, several new security features, and report and document redaction and translation.
What did you see at AIIM’s info360?
AIIM/info360 lint in the cranial vent
By Steve Weissman of the Holly Group
After spending more than three days at the AIIM Conference/Info360 event in Washington, D.C., my brain is clogged with all kinds of interesting nuggets.
Here are but a few of the more intriguing story lines that stuck following my ECM Practitioner class, my series of show-floor briefings, and my numerous in-the-corridor-and-press-room perspective checks with buyers, vendors, and integrator/reseller types:
Misuse/overuse of the word “new”
This itself isn’t, well, new in terms of vendor marketing, but it kept surfacing in places where the principals really ought to have known better. The lesson is to ask, “In what way is this new?” when you hear the word.
Is the feature/product/capability truly innovative? Never before seen in this particular market space? Never before offered by this particular vendor? I found much of what was touted as “new” either to be old client/server development techniques wrapped in ECM/BPM clothes or long-standard features finally being offered by the vendor in question. So as they said in ancient Rome, caveat emptor.
Emerging stratification in the world of mobility
All the talk of customer engagement intersected with the drive to enhance the mobile experience to surface an important distinction between enabling browser-based smartphone or tablet access to content and process activities on the one hand, and fielding true mobile apps for the purpose on the other.
The separation of these two tiers is still nascent, but the long-term ramifications are significant since they speak to new ways to think about information architecture, content structure, usability, security, and privacy. The use of “m.” sites and formatting is just the beginning.
Tendency to ignore the past (and thus the risk of being condemned to repeat it)
Specifically, is cloud computing a true innovation or merely a viable hosting alternative with its roots in 1970s timesharing and 1990s ASPs? (See prior point regarding new.)
To be sure, the underlying technology is hugely more flexible and accessible today than it was then, but the takeaway here isn’t one of semantics and definition – rather, it has to do with cutting away the hype, focusing on the practical, and, especially, looking to preceding market models and technology trends for guidance.
Black/white vs. shades of gray
Perhaps it’s a reflection of how commodity so much of the technology has become, and thus how competitive the market is today. But there was an awful lot of talk about good tools vs. bad, all users vs. none wanting certain features, old technologies being dead vs. new ones being saviors.
Well, the world isn’t a binary place. Tools that do x vs. y aren’t better of worse; they’re merely different, and depending upon what you need to accomplish, they may be absolutely perfect for you. Just as, say, and “old” technology like microfiche is very much alive, and perhaps critical for archivists needing to think in terms of centuries-long retention schedules.
Conclusion
My mother-in-law used to say, “Remember who you are!” when the kids would go out, and so you should remember who you are when you attend conferences and exhibitions. There’ll be plenty that will stick in your brain, and you’ll best make sense of it only by using your own organization and needs as the touchstone.
What do you think?
Steve Weissman, ECMp, ECMs, BPMp, can be reached at 617-383-4655.
After spending more than three days at the AIIM Conference/Info360 event in Washington, D.C., my brain is clogged with all kinds of interesting nuggets.
Here are but a few of the more intriguing story lines that stuck following my ECM Practitioner class, my series of show-floor briefings, and my numerous in-the-corridor-and-press-room perspective checks with buyers, vendors, and integrator/reseller types:
Misuse/overuse of the word “new”
This itself isn’t, well, new in terms of vendor marketing, but it kept surfacing in places where the principals really ought to have known better. The lesson is to ask, “In what way is this new?” when you hear the word.
Is the feature/product/capability truly innovative? Never before seen in this particular market space? Never before offered by this particular vendor? I found much of what was touted as “new” either to be old client/server development techniques wrapped in ECM/BPM clothes or long-standard features finally being offered by the vendor in question. So as they said in ancient Rome, caveat emptor.
Emerging stratification in the world of mobility
All the talk of customer engagement intersected with the drive to enhance the mobile experience to surface an important distinction between enabling browser-based smartphone or tablet access to content and process activities on the one hand, and fielding true mobile apps for the purpose on the other.
The separation of these two tiers is still nascent, but the long-term ramifications are significant since they speak to new ways to think about information architecture, content structure, usability, security, and privacy. The use of “m.” sites and formatting is just the beginning.
Tendency to ignore the past (and thus the risk of being condemned to repeat it)
Specifically, is cloud computing a true innovation or merely a viable hosting alternative with its roots in 1970s timesharing and 1990s ASPs? (See prior point regarding new.)
To be sure, the underlying technology is hugely more flexible and accessible today than it was then, but the takeaway here isn’t one of semantics and definition – rather, it has to do with cutting away the hype, focusing on the practical, and, especially, looking to preceding market models and technology trends for guidance.
Black/white vs. shades of gray
Perhaps it’s a reflection of how commodity so much of the technology has become, and thus how competitive the market is today. But there was an awful lot of talk about good tools vs. bad, all users vs. none wanting certain features, old technologies being dead vs. new ones being saviors.
Well, the world isn’t a binary place. Tools that do x vs. y aren’t better of worse; they’re merely different, and depending upon what you need to accomplish, they may be absolutely perfect for you. Just as, say, and “old” technology like microfiche is very much alive, and perhaps critical for archivists needing to think in terms of centuries-long retention schedules.
Conclusion
My mother-in-law used to say, “Remember who you are!” when the kids would go out, and so you should remember who you are when you attend conferences and exhibitions. There’ll be plenty that will stick in your brain, and you’ll best make sense of it only by using your own organization and needs as the touchstone.
What do you think?
Steve Weissman, ECMp, ECMs, BPMp, can be reached at 617-383-4655.
Monday, March 21, 2011
The business value of managed content
Posted by Mark Brousseau
Managed content can deliver 30 percent productivity gains and a 25 percent in efficiency improvements, according to new research co-sponsored by OpenText and AIIM.
One of the more notable findings from the survey of more than 450 information technology professionals and business managers is that the productivity of professional staff would be improved by 30 percent if they could only find internal information and documents as quickly and as easily as they find information on the Web. Along the same lines, respondents said customer service levels and response times could be improved by 33 percent if all customer-facing staff could immediately access and share all of the customer-related and case-related information.
Additional opportunities for improvement included:
• The productivity of administrative staff could be increased on average by 33 percent through use of workflow, scanned forms and automated data capture.
• Changing to a culture of electronic-only filing would reduce the office space allocated to filing storage from 14.5 percent to 5.9 percent – a 60-percent reduction.
• The size of server farms dedicated to unstructured content and emails could be reduced by between a third and a half if each document or email attachment was stored only once.
• A collaborative, widely accessible team-site environment could improve project delivery by 23 percent on average in terms of time and project costs.
• Respondents indicated they believe that Enterprise 2.0 applications could improve staff productivity and engagement by about 18 percent.
• The improved efficiency from providing office staff with comprehensive mobile access to company information would likely be between 20 and 25 percent.
While the survey indicates a compelling case for adopting enterprise content management (ECM) technologies, it also exposes the significant challenges for companies that get overwhelmed by the sheer volume of documents and content accumulating on shared drives, email, laptops and mobile device and paper files.
According to 61 percent of the survey respondents, organizational knowledge is the first thing to suffer in a badly managed environment, causing the organization to lose its competitive position due to poor decisions and a lack of accumulated corporate expertise. Innovation is considered to be another significant victim of poor collaboration and restricted knowledge-sharing, followed by the productivity impact of information search fatigue.
Compliance breaches and information and data leaks also weighed heavily on the minds of the survey respondents. For instance, 40 percent of organizations would take a financial hit from a compliance breach while fully 66 percent would suffer bad – and costly – publicity. Over a third of organizations reported they would have no way of finding out who was responsible if sensitive data was “leaked” to a competitor or to the press by a trusted employee. Only a quarter could readily point to a specific employee based on activity logs. For 60 percent of the largest organizations, the potential impact of such a leak would be high, and for 13 percent it would be “disastrous.”
“As the research confirms, companies that claim, control and capitalize on content increase their people’s contribution, deliver better customer service, and save money – all of which leads to better business,” said James Latham, chief marketing officer, OpenText. “At the same time, succumbing to fast-growing unstructured content inside the enterprise will increase risk, stifle innovation, or worse yet, leak sensitive documents. The case for ECM has never been stronger.”
What do you think?
Managed content can deliver 30 percent productivity gains and a 25 percent in efficiency improvements, according to new research co-sponsored by OpenText and AIIM.
One of the more notable findings from the survey of more than 450 information technology professionals and business managers is that the productivity of professional staff would be improved by 30 percent if they could only find internal information and documents as quickly and as easily as they find information on the Web. Along the same lines, respondents said customer service levels and response times could be improved by 33 percent if all customer-facing staff could immediately access and share all of the customer-related and case-related information.
Additional opportunities for improvement included:
• The productivity of administrative staff could be increased on average by 33 percent through use of workflow, scanned forms and automated data capture.
• Changing to a culture of electronic-only filing would reduce the office space allocated to filing storage from 14.5 percent to 5.9 percent – a 60-percent reduction.
• The size of server farms dedicated to unstructured content and emails could be reduced by between a third and a half if each document or email attachment was stored only once.
• A collaborative, widely accessible team-site environment could improve project delivery by 23 percent on average in terms of time and project costs.
• Respondents indicated they believe that Enterprise 2.0 applications could improve staff productivity and engagement by about 18 percent.
• The improved efficiency from providing office staff with comprehensive mobile access to company information would likely be between 20 and 25 percent.
While the survey indicates a compelling case for adopting enterprise content management (ECM) technologies, it also exposes the significant challenges for companies that get overwhelmed by the sheer volume of documents and content accumulating on shared drives, email, laptops and mobile device and paper files.
According to 61 percent of the survey respondents, organizational knowledge is the first thing to suffer in a badly managed environment, causing the organization to lose its competitive position due to poor decisions and a lack of accumulated corporate expertise. Innovation is considered to be another significant victim of poor collaboration and restricted knowledge-sharing, followed by the productivity impact of information search fatigue.
Compliance breaches and information and data leaks also weighed heavily on the minds of the survey respondents. For instance, 40 percent of organizations would take a financial hit from a compliance breach while fully 66 percent would suffer bad – and costly – publicity. Over a third of organizations reported they would have no way of finding out who was responsible if sensitive data was “leaked” to a competitor or to the press by a trusted employee. Only a quarter could readily point to a specific employee based on activity logs. For 60 percent of the largest organizations, the potential impact of such a leak would be high, and for 13 percent it would be “disastrous.”
“As the research confirms, companies that claim, control and capitalize on content increase their people’s contribution, deliver better customer service, and save money – all of which leads to better business,” said James Latham, chief marketing officer, OpenText. “At the same time, succumbing to fast-growing unstructured content inside the enterprise will increase risk, stifle innovation, or worse yet, leak sensitive documents. The case for ECM has never been stronger.”
What do you think?
Monday, January 17, 2011
Information explosion driving capture growth
Posted by Mark Brousseau
There continues to be an enormous explosion of information, Alan Kerr, executive vice president of field operations, Kofax, said this morning during Kofax Transform 2011 Americas in San Diego. There also are “more and more ways” that information is coming into an organization, Kerr added.
It’s for these reasons that capture solutions are becoming more strategic, Kerr said. “People have to be able to increase service, meet compliance demands, and take costs out of the business,” Kerr said.
Not surprisingly, Kofax thinks the future is bright for capture solutions. “The capture market is about $2 billion a year and is expected to grow at an 11 percent compound annual growth rate through 2013,” Kofax CEO Reynolds Bish told attendees during his opening address.
Why the growth in capture solutions? Bish identified several driving factors:
… “As we improve our products, we continue to growth the market,” he said.
… “There is an increasing realization on the part of our customers that the paper will not go away,” Bish said. “Users have concluded that the only way to make it go away is to scan it.”
… “Paper is a compliance risk,” he noted.
… “There is a desire to convert all of that unstructured content into accessible information,” Bish said.
… “We have seeded the market for enterprise solutions with our tactical installations,” he said.
… “We can deliver proven short-term return on investments, often through the elimination of manual processes,” Bish said.
The growth of capture solutions represents “a lot of potential, as well as some challenges,” for Kofax Transform 2011 Americas attendees, Bish said.
For end-users, the challenge is to unlock the data stuck in their paper-driven business processes. “Improving business processes starts with information,” Kerr noted. “How do you capture this information? How do you transform it to make it useful? And how do you exchange it across the enterprise?”
For their part, capture vendors have to be able to provide departmental solutions, enterprise solutions, big batch back-office solutions, and knowledge solutions, Kerr said. “You have to be able to scale up and across. You must also be able to support global capabilities,” Kerr added.
So what else are end-users looking for from a capture solutions provider? Kerr said there are several key criteria:
… Partners that understand the end-user’s business problems and enterprise
… A financially stable company that is investing in the marketplace
… A strategic business relationship
… Return on investment
Against this backdrop, Bish concluded: “I really believe that the future is really bright here at Kofax and there is a tremendous opportunity for us to engage with end-users and our channel partners.”
What do you think?
There continues to be an enormous explosion of information, Alan Kerr, executive vice president of field operations, Kofax, said this morning during Kofax Transform 2011 Americas in San Diego. There also are “more and more ways” that information is coming into an organization, Kerr added.
It’s for these reasons that capture solutions are becoming more strategic, Kerr said. “People have to be able to increase service, meet compliance demands, and take costs out of the business,” Kerr said.
Not surprisingly, Kofax thinks the future is bright for capture solutions. “The capture market is about $2 billion a year and is expected to grow at an 11 percent compound annual growth rate through 2013,” Kofax CEO Reynolds Bish told attendees during his opening address.
Why the growth in capture solutions? Bish identified several driving factors:
… “As we improve our products, we continue to growth the market,” he said.
… “There is an increasing realization on the part of our customers that the paper will not go away,” Bish said. “Users have concluded that the only way to make it go away is to scan it.”
… “Paper is a compliance risk,” he noted.
… “There is a desire to convert all of that unstructured content into accessible information,” Bish said.
… “We have seeded the market for enterprise solutions with our tactical installations,” he said.
… “We can deliver proven short-term return on investments, often through the elimination of manual processes,” Bish said.
The growth of capture solutions represents “a lot of potential, as well as some challenges,” for Kofax Transform 2011 Americas attendees, Bish said.
For end-users, the challenge is to unlock the data stuck in their paper-driven business processes. “Improving business processes starts with information,” Kerr noted. “How do you capture this information? How do you transform it to make it useful? And how do you exchange it across the enterprise?”
For their part, capture vendors have to be able to provide departmental solutions, enterprise solutions, big batch back-office solutions, and knowledge solutions, Kerr said. “You have to be able to scale up and across. You must also be able to support global capabilities,” Kerr added.
So what else are end-users looking for from a capture solutions provider? Kerr said there are several key criteria:
… Partners that understand the end-user’s business problems and enterprise
… A financially stable company that is investing in the marketplace
… A strategic business relationship
… Return on investment
Against this backdrop, Bish concluded: “I really believe that the future is really bright here at Kofax and there is a tremendous opportunity for us to engage with end-users and our channel partners.”
What do you think?
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Why It's a Great Time to Look for a Job
Posted by Mark Brousseau
You've been on the job hunt for months—maybe even all year—and you're looking forward to the coming respite from search-related stress and disappointment. The holidays are here, after all. And it's "common knowledge" that nothing happens on the hiring front from Thanksgiving to New Year's. You might as well give the pavement pounding a rest and focus on decking the halls for a while...right?
Wong. In fact, says Kate Wendleton, now is exactly the time to hit your job search the hardest.
"Although most job seekers don't realize it, conditions are ideal for them this time of year," confirms Wendleton, president of The Five O'Clock Club (www.fiveoclockclub.com), a career coaching and outplacement network. "While they won't 'officially' tell you, many organizations are planning to hire in January. That means now is the perfect time to put yourself on their radar."
Wendleton knows all about helping people navigate the complicated job market, regardless of the season. Hers is the only career program in which members meet with professional coaches and peers on a weekly basis in a friendly, club-type format. It offers small group career coaching across the U.S. and Canada. And its website—www.fiveoclockclub.com—provides hundreds of free articles and audio recordings on job searching and career development.
"It may come as a big surprise, but looking for a job this time of year actually increases your chances of getting hired," Wendleton promises. "You have less competition, and many companies are in a hiring mood. It's the perfect storm—in a good way—for job seekers."
Read on for the case as to why you should keep on keepin' on...and some suggestions from The Five O'Clock Club for how you can maximize your momentum amidst the merriment:
Why you shouldn't wait 'til January:
'Tis the season for your competition to take a breather. Nearly everyone believes the "no one gets hired during the holidays" myth, so the majority of your competition is taking a break while you're still filling out applications. The fact is, it's much easier to out-class and out-perform the competition when there's next to none of it!
"It's amazing how many people retire from the job-hunt battle this time of year and leave the field wide open," Wendleton says. "At no other time will it be easier for you to really distinguish yourself from the pack. For one thing, hiring managers will have fewer résumés to distract them; plus, they'll be impressed by your drive and persistence, because most of your peers are taking it easy."
Managers are planning their post-Auld Lang Syne moves now. Here's a valuable tip for job hunters: January is often one of the biggest hiring months of the year. However, no organization will say that it plans to hire in January—right now, all you'll hear is that there are no openings at present (which is technically true). And guess what? Those upcoming positions won't go to folks who kicked back by the fire with a cup of eggnog—they'll be offered to the people who expressed interest and met with hiring managers in December.
"Right now, organizations are doing their budgeting for 2011," Wendleton explains. "For example, one company The Five O'Clock Club spoke with said they will not do any more hiring this year because they want to keep the numbers looking good, but they will fill those positions ASAP in the New Year, and they might even consider making offers now. Who is going to get those jobs? The folks who throw their hats into the ring during the holidays!"
The business world isn't pressing pause just because the halls are decked. The fact that the annual alcohol-laced karaoke party has been scheduled doesn't mean that business as usual stops. Think about it: The stock market is trading. Stores are still open. Deals are still being negotiated. And—shocker!—hiring managers are still reading résumés that land on their desks. (If anything, the seasonal good cheer will put them in a better mood when they do.)
"No hiring manager in his or her right mind would ever say, 'Okay, it's December, so I can't look at any résumés or communicate with any prospective applicants until January,'" Wendleton points out. "Certainly, this time of year comes with a special set of distractions, but underneath the trimmings, it's business as usual. If there's hiring to be done, it will be done."
Your momentum won't sustain itself through the merriment. Unless your job hunt started last week, you've built up some amount of momentum. You've made contacts. You've gotten your foot in some doors. You've started to prove how wonderful you are. Don't let all of that effort go to waste by slacking off now! If you do, it'll take you weeks to make up the lost ground.
"I can categorically say that the slackening of momentum is one of the greatest job-hunt saboteurs we see in The Five O'Clock Club," Wendleton shares. "When people fail to have lots of things in the works, they concentrate on the one great job that they really want—and they're devastated when they come in second or the company puts a freeze on hiring. Then, it takes them two or three weeks to dig out of the depression...and who knows how many great opportunities have slipped by in the meantime?"
What you can do to improve your job search:
The Five O'Clock Club says that there are three stages to a job search: 1) being in touch with six to ten people in your target market on an ongoing basis, 2) getting those people to actively express interest in having someone like you on board, and 3) inspiring them to discuss real jobs with you. The following strategies will help you get to Stage Two (which means you're approaching the right people and positioning yourself correctly)—and once you're there, Five O'Clockers promise, Stage Three will take care of itself.
Reconnect with the year's contacts. You've sent out cards and good wishes to friends and family...so why not extend that tradition to all of the job-search contacts you've made throughout the year? Send a card or email thanking each person for his or her help, wishing them a Happy New Year and include an update on your situation. You never know when the right memory might be sparked!
"Reconnecting with the year's contacts in a friendly, well-wishing way will remind them of who you are, what you do, and what you're trying to accomplish," Wendleton explains. "One of your main goals should be to stay on the radar of as many people in your network as possible. It takes hard work and discipline, yes, but as was the case recently for one Five O'Clock Club member, a friendly email can prompt a contact to forward your résumé to someone else, which might lead to an interview...and a job."
Expand, define, and redefine your targets. You may have a short—or long—list of companies on which you're focusing, but that list isn't definitive by a long shot. The last thing you want is a skimpy or sloppy group of targets that lacks breadth and depth. Plus, you never know when you might discover a new company you never knew about that's an ideal fit.
"You can expand your list of targets by revisiting what your skills and strengths are (maybe there's something you've overlooked!), brainstorming with friends, and doing more internet research," suggests Wendleton. "Many people are amazed to discover, after months of job hunting, an organization that isn't rich or famous but is nevertheless a great place to work."
Focus on avenues you've neglected. Everyone has a preferred method of getting meetings, whether it's through ads, search firms, networking, or direct contacts. During the next few weeks, focus on the avenues you normally skimp on. You'll probably identify new hiring trends, new contacts, and new positions. And (as we've established) now's the ideal time to get your name out there.
"Many people neglect networking and direct contacts, because they're the most labor-intensive," Wendleton shares. "If you fall into that category, challenge yourself to launch a targeted mail campaign this holiday season. Imagine what the impact might be if you send out ten intelligent cover letters per week, and then make follow-up phone calls a few days later. At the very least, you'll be a familiar name to a bevy of hiring managers."
Don't withdraw from your support network. Five O'Clock Club members attend a weekly meeting in order to receive support, advice, and help in their job searches. If you belong to such a group, don't use the holidays as an excuse to skip meetings. One of your primary goals should always be to make sure your search is moving forward.
"Accountability and outside input are crucial in helping you stay on track, and they also ensure that your job search doesn't lose originality and momentum," Wendleton says. "If you don't have a support network and are worried that you'll slack off despite your best intentions, ask a friend or family member to serve as a sounding board and check in on your progress."
Accept those party invitations! You might be tempted to become a hermit because you don't want to field questions about "what you're doing right now" or "how your job search is going." To some extent, that's understandable, especially if your situation hasn't changed in a long time—but avoidance is the wrong attitude to have. This is a party time of year, so get out there and network! Tell people you're looking for your next situation, and be sure to tell them the kind of job you're looking for.
"Take advantage of as many opportunities to meet new people as possible, and be ready to share your 30-second pitch on what you're looking for," advises Wendleton. "And if it's appropriate, ask for a more formal meeting at a new contact's office in the near future. Also, remember that those who are in a direct position to hire aren't your only allies. If you favorably impress a project manager, for example, she might mention you to her boss...and bingo—you've got an interview."
"Remember, keep adding to your job-search to-do list...and check it twice," concludes Wendleton. "There's absolutely no reason why you can't start out the New Year with one resolution already crossed off your list—a job you're excited to accept."
What do you think?
You've been on the job hunt for months—maybe even all year—and you're looking forward to the coming respite from search-related stress and disappointment. The holidays are here, after all. And it's "common knowledge" that nothing happens on the hiring front from Thanksgiving to New Year's. You might as well give the pavement pounding a rest and focus on decking the halls for a while...right?
Wong. In fact, says Kate Wendleton, now is exactly the time to hit your job search the hardest.
"Although most job seekers don't realize it, conditions are ideal for them this time of year," confirms Wendleton, president of The Five O'Clock Club (www.fiveoclockclub.com), a career coaching and outplacement network. "While they won't 'officially' tell you, many organizations are planning to hire in January. That means now is the perfect time to put yourself on their radar."
Wendleton knows all about helping people navigate the complicated job market, regardless of the season. Hers is the only career program in which members meet with professional coaches and peers on a weekly basis in a friendly, club-type format. It offers small group career coaching across the U.S. and Canada. And its website—www.fiveoclockclub.com—provides hundreds of free articles and audio recordings on job searching and career development.
"It may come as a big surprise, but looking for a job this time of year actually increases your chances of getting hired," Wendleton promises. "You have less competition, and many companies are in a hiring mood. It's the perfect storm—in a good way—for job seekers."
Read on for the case as to why you should keep on keepin' on...and some suggestions from The Five O'Clock Club for how you can maximize your momentum amidst the merriment:
Why you shouldn't wait 'til January:
'Tis the season for your competition to take a breather. Nearly everyone believes the "no one gets hired during the holidays" myth, so the majority of your competition is taking a break while you're still filling out applications. The fact is, it's much easier to out-class and out-perform the competition when there's next to none of it!
"It's amazing how many people retire from the job-hunt battle this time of year and leave the field wide open," Wendleton says. "At no other time will it be easier for you to really distinguish yourself from the pack. For one thing, hiring managers will have fewer résumés to distract them; plus, they'll be impressed by your drive and persistence, because most of your peers are taking it easy."
Managers are planning their post-Auld Lang Syne moves now. Here's a valuable tip for job hunters: January is often one of the biggest hiring months of the year. However, no organization will say that it plans to hire in January—right now, all you'll hear is that there are no openings at present (which is technically true). And guess what? Those upcoming positions won't go to folks who kicked back by the fire with a cup of eggnog—they'll be offered to the people who expressed interest and met with hiring managers in December.
"Right now, organizations are doing their budgeting for 2011," Wendleton explains. "For example, one company The Five O'Clock Club spoke with said they will not do any more hiring this year because they want to keep the numbers looking good, but they will fill those positions ASAP in the New Year, and they might even consider making offers now. Who is going to get those jobs? The folks who throw their hats into the ring during the holidays!"
The business world isn't pressing pause just because the halls are decked. The fact that the annual alcohol-laced karaoke party has been scheduled doesn't mean that business as usual stops. Think about it: The stock market is trading. Stores are still open. Deals are still being negotiated. And—shocker!—hiring managers are still reading résumés that land on their desks. (If anything, the seasonal good cheer will put them in a better mood when they do.)
"No hiring manager in his or her right mind would ever say, 'Okay, it's December, so I can't look at any résumés or communicate with any prospective applicants until January,'" Wendleton points out. "Certainly, this time of year comes with a special set of distractions, but underneath the trimmings, it's business as usual. If there's hiring to be done, it will be done."
Your momentum won't sustain itself through the merriment. Unless your job hunt started last week, you've built up some amount of momentum. You've made contacts. You've gotten your foot in some doors. You've started to prove how wonderful you are. Don't let all of that effort go to waste by slacking off now! If you do, it'll take you weeks to make up the lost ground.
"I can categorically say that the slackening of momentum is one of the greatest job-hunt saboteurs we see in The Five O'Clock Club," Wendleton shares. "When people fail to have lots of things in the works, they concentrate on the one great job that they really want—and they're devastated when they come in second or the company puts a freeze on hiring. Then, it takes them two or three weeks to dig out of the depression...and who knows how many great opportunities have slipped by in the meantime?"
What you can do to improve your job search:
The Five O'Clock Club says that there are three stages to a job search: 1) being in touch with six to ten people in your target market on an ongoing basis, 2) getting those people to actively express interest in having someone like you on board, and 3) inspiring them to discuss real jobs with you. The following strategies will help you get to Stage Two (which means you're approaching the right people and positioning yourself correctly)—and once you're there, Five O'Clockers promise, Stage Three will take care of itself.
Reconnect with the year's contacts. You've sent out cards and good wishes to friends and family...so why not extend that tradition to all of the job-search contacts you've made throughout the year? Send a card or email thanking each person for his or her help, wishing them a Happy New Year and include an update on your situation. You never know when the right memory might be sparked!
"Reconnecting with the year's contacts in a friendly, well-wishing way will remind them of who you are, what you do, and what you're trying to accomplish," Wendleton explains. "One of your main goals should be to stay on the radar of as many people in your network as possible. It takes hard work and discipline, yes, but as was the case recently for one Five O'Clock Club member, a friendly email can prompt a contact to forward your résumé to someone else, which might lead to an interview...and a job."
Expand, define, and redefine your targets. You may have a short—or long—list of companies on which you're focusing, but that list isn't definitive by a long shot. The last thing you want is a skimpy or sloppy group of targets that lacks breadth and depth. Plus, you never know when you might discover a new company you never knew about that's an ideal fit.
"You can expand your list of targets by revisiting what your skills and strengths are (maybe there's something you've overlooked!), brainstorming with friends, and doing more internet research," suggests Wendleton. "Many people are amazed to discover, after months of job hunting, an organization that isn't rich or famous but is nevertheless a great place to work."
Focus on avenues you've neglected. Everyone has a preferred method of getting meetings, whether it's through ads, search firms, networking, or direct contacts. During the next few weeks, focus on the avenues you normally skimp on. You'll probably identify new hiring trends, new contacts, and new positions. And (as we've established) now's the ideal time to get your name out there.
"Many people neglect networking and direct contacts, because they're the most labor-intensive," Wendleton shares. "If you fall into that category, challenge yourself to launch a targeted mail campaign this holiday season. Imagine what the impact might be if you send out ten intelligent cover letters per week, and then make follow-up phone calls a few days later. At the very least, you'll be a familiar name to a bevy of hiring managers."
Don't withdraw from your support network. Five O'Clock Club members attend a weekly meeting in order to receive support, advice, and help in their job searches. If you belong to such a group, don't use the holidays as an excuse to skip meetings. One of your primary goals should always be to make sure your search is moving forward.
"Accountability and outside input are crucial in helping you stay on track, and they also ensure that your job search doesn't lose originality and momentum," Wendleton says. "If you don't have a support network and are worried that you'll slack off despite your best intentions, ask a friend or family member to serve as a sounding board and check in on your progress."
Accept those party invitations! You might be tempted to become a hermit because you don't want to field questions about "what you're doing right now" or "how your job search is going." To some extent, that's understandable, especially if your situation hasn't changed in a long time—but avoidance is the wrong attitude to have. This is a party time of year, so get out there and network! Tell people you're looking for your next situation, and be sure to tell them the kind of job you're looking for.
"Take advantage of as many opportunities to meet new people as possible, and be ready to share your 30-second pitch on what you're looking for," advises Wendleton. "And if it's appropriate, ask for a more formal meeting at a new contact's office in the near future. Also, remember that those who are in a direct position to hire aren't your only allies. If you favorably impress a project manager, for example, she might mention you to her boss...and bingo—you've got an interview."
"Remember, keep adding to your job-search to-do list...and check it twice," concludes Wendleton. "There's absolutely no reason why you can't start out the New Year with one resolution already crossed off your list—a job you're excited to accept."
What do you think?
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Going Green with ECM
By Derrick Murphy of ibml
There's no doubt that reducing or eliminating paper-based processes presents clear and sizeable economic advantages. In large part, these cost savings have driven the demand for enterprise content management (ECM) solutions. But digitizing paper-driven processes is also an essential component of the sustainability, or "green," initiatives now underway at companies large and small.
By its nature, ECM promotes efficiency and optimal use of resources. By replacing paper-based processing with electronic processes -- and eliminating paper-related transportation, storage and handling -- ECM solutions can help organizations more quickly realize their green initiatives.
In fact, when you consider the hefty environmental impact of office paper (the U.S. alone consumes about 100 million tons of paper each year, according to the Forest Stewardship Council, or FSC), ECM is a great way to get your organization started down the path to sustainable and green practices.
ECM and the 'Green Movement'
Information and communication technology account for about 2 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions, according to the Energy Information Administration. That might not seem like a lot, but it can easily be reduced. ECM solutions support green initiatives by providing users the ability to:
Reduce paper consumption -- The average worker generates an estimated 45 to 15,000 sheets of paper every day, according to the American Records Management Association (ARMA). ECM solutions allow documents to be processed, managed and stored electronically, including delivery via e-mail, which significantly reduces the amount of paper the average worker consumes each day.
Automate paper-based processes -- Compared to electronic processes, processing paper documents is slow and expensive. ARMA and IDC estimate that the average company spends between 7 to 14 percent of its total costs on document processing in a paper environment. By digitizing document-driven business processes, ECM solutions can automatically identify and route content, such as invoices requiring approval, to the appropriate users or applications, eliminating the need for transportation or multiple copies as well as downstream document storage or shredding/destruction.
Reduce document shipping -- Studies have shown that the average document in an organization is photocopied 19 times. ECM solutions allow organizations to distribute electronic documents securely via intranets, extranets and broadband connection. The more work organizations perform online, the shorter paper trail and the less waste produced. Additionally, this real-time 24/7 access enables employees to review, approve or collaborate on documents without printing or shipping.
Reduce document storage -- Storage requirements for hard copy documents double every three years, according to ARMA and IDC. Storing documents electronically helps companies reduce their carbon footprint by reducing real estate/facilities needs and the associated energy consumption.
Less paper waste -- The average American office worker disposes of 100 to 200 pounds of paper per year, studies show. OB10 cites estimates that production of paper invoices would take up as much space as 10 football fields stacked 100 feet deep (and this doesn't count the storage space before they get to the landfill). ECM solutions address the paper trail that follows many people around and reduce the amount of waste employees generate as well as the energy they consume shredding.
The Financial Benefit
Each of the "green" benefits of ECM solutions mentioned above has an economic benefit:
Reduced paper consumption -- It costs almost $10,000 to fill a four-drawer file cabinet. By leveraging technologies such as e-invoicing, companies can eliminate these paper expenses. For instance, one company is saving $8,000 to $10,000 a month in paper and toner by using ECM.
Reduced document shipping -- Without an ECM solution, an organization might have to copy a document to send to various people. By sharing documents electronically, companies avoid the expenses associated with transporting documents across sites, including courier fees, postage, gas, and vehicle upkeep. Similarly, sharing documents electronically also eliminates the 280 hours per employee that ARMA and IDC say companies spend each year tracking down lost documents.
Reduced document storage -- Paper storage costs an average of $0.14 per page or $1,400 per file cabinet, according to ARMA and IDC. Storing documents electronically eliminates this cost.
Less paper waste -- Digitizing documents reduces a company's costs for destruction/shredding. What's more, in a scanning environment, organizations can physically out-sort and re-use batch headers -- or eliminate them altogether depending on the scanner they use -- to reduce paper waste.
ECM in Action
These aren't hypothetical benefits. Organizations of all sizes, across industries, are achieving "green" benefits -- financial and environmental -- through digital technologies. Here are some examples:
... Banner Life Insurance eliminated the need to photocopy checks and oversized documents (to make them scanner-ready) by deploying scanners that can handle comingled documents of different sizes.
... Wyoming Medical Center (WMC) implemented a solution for scanning medical records. This will eliminate the energy consumption associated with storing its over 13 million pages of patient files in a 5,000 square-foot records room. Additionally, with all of its medical records available online, WMC no longer needs to fax information to physician offices, in turn, reducing paper consumption.
... Humana eliminated the need to insert paper separator sheets between the batches of work it scans by deploying intelligent scanners that can automatically identify different document types.
The bottom line? There's no need to worry that your organization will have to sacrifice operational efficiency or effectiveness to be environmentally friendly. ECM technology can help you do both.
What do you think?
There's no doubt that reducing or eliminating paper-based processes presents clear and sizeable economic advantages. In large part, these cost savings have driven the demand for enterprise content management (ECM) solutions. But digitizing paper-driven processes is also an essential component of the sustainability, or "green," initiatives now underway at companies large and small.
By its nature, ECM promotes efficiency and optimal use of resources. By replacing paper-based processing with electronic processes -- and eliminating paper-related transportation, storage and handling -- ECM solutions can help organizations more quickly realize their green initiatives.
In fact, when you consider the hefty environmental impact of office paper (the U.S. alone consumes about 100 million tons of paper each year, according to the Forest Stewardship Council, or FSC), ECM is a great way to get your organization started down the path to sustainable and green practices.
ECM and the 'Green Movement'
Information and communication technology account for about 2 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions, according to the Energy Information Administration. That might not seem like a lot, but it can easily be reduced. ECM solutions support green initiatives by providing users the ability to:
Reduce paper consumption -- The average worker generates an estimated 45 to 15,000 sheets of paper every day, according to the American Records Management Association (ARMA). ECM solutions allow documents to be processed, managed and stored electronically, including delivery via e-mail, which significantly reduces the amount of paper the average worker consumes each day.
Automate paper-based processes -- Compared to electronic processes, processing paper documents is slow and expensive. ARMA and IDC estimate that the average company spends between 7 to 14 percent of its total costs on document processing in a paper environment. By digitizing document-driven business processes, ECM solutions can automatically identify and route content, such as invoices requiring approval, to the appropriate users or applications, eliminating the need for transportation or multiple copies as well as downstream document storage or shredding/destruction.
Reduce document shipping -- Studies have shown that the average document in an organization is photocopied 19 times. ECM solutions allow organizations to distribute electronic documents securely via intranets, extranets and broadband connection. The more work organizations perform online, the shorter paper trail and the less waste produced. Additionally, this real-time 24/7 access enables employees to review, approve or collaborate on documents without printing or shipping.
Reduce document storage -- Storage requirements for hard copy documents double every three years, according to ARMA and IDC. Storing documents electronically helps companies reduce their carbon footprint by reducing real estate/facilities needs and the associated energy consumption.
Less paper waste -- The average American office worker disposes of 100 to 200 pounds of paper per year, studies show. OB10 cites estimates that production of paper invoices would take up as much space as 10 football fields stacked 100 feet deep (and this doesn't count the storage space before they get to the landfill). ECM solutions address the paper trail that follows many people around and reduce the amount of waste employees generate as well as the energy they consume shredding.
The Financial Benefit
Each of the "green" benefits of ECM solutions mentioned above has an economic benefit:
Reduced paper consumption -- It costs almost $10,000 to fill a four-drawer file cabinet. By leveraging technologies such as e-invoicing, companies can eliminate these paper expenses. For instance, one company is saving $8,000 to $10,000 a month in paper and toner by using ECM.
Reduced document shipping -- Without an ECM solution, an organization might have to copy a document to send to various people. By sharing documents electronically, companies avoid the expenses associated with transporting documents across sites, including courier fees, postage, gas, and vehicle upkeep. Similarly, sharing documents electronically also eliminates the 280 hours per employee that ARMA and IDC say companies spend each year tracking down lost documents.
Reduced document storage -- Paper storage costs an average of $0.14 per page or $1,400 per file cabinet, according to ARMA and IDC. Storing documents electronically eliminates this cost.
Less paper waste -- Digitizing documents reduces a company's costs for destruction/shredding. What's more, in a scanning environment, organizations can physically out-sort and re-use batch headers -- or eliminate them altogether depending on the scanner they use -- to reduce paper waste.
ECM in Action
These aren't hypothetical benefits. Organizations of all sizes, across industries, are achieving "green" benefits -- financial and environmental -- through digital technologies. Here are some examples:
... Banner Life Insurance eliminated the need to photocopy checks and oversized documents (to make them scanner-ready) by deploying scanners that can handle comingled documents of different sizes.
... Wyoming Medical Center (WMC) implemented a solution for scanning medical records. This will eliminate the energy consumption associated with storing its over 13 million pages of patient files in a 5,000 square-foot records room. Additionally, with all of its medical records available online, WMC no longer needs to fax information to physician offices, in turn, reducing paper consumption.
... Humana eliminated the need to insert paper separator sheets between the batches of work it scans by deploying intelligent scanners that can automatically identify different document types.
The bottom line? There's no need to worry that your organization will have to sacrifice operational efficiency or effectiveness to be environmentally friendly. ECM technology can help you do both.
What do you think?
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Beware of "enterprise surprise" with collaboration tools
Posted by Mark Brousseau
Enterprise social networking and collaboration tools that perform adequately at a departmental level can demonstrate surprising shortcomings when implemented enterprise wide, according to vendor evaluation research from independent analyst firm Real Story Group (formerly CMS Watch).
Organizations are increasingly attempting to extend pilot collaboration and social software efforts across the enterprise, but IT leaders typically run into unexpected scalability problems. “Functional shortcomings or missing administrative services that don’t crop up in a departmental pilot can provide significant challenges when a customer tries to scale a system enterprise wide,” explains Real Story Group Principal, Tony Byrne.
Real Story Group customer research uncovered significant common shortcomings, including:
... A lack of lifecycle management services, including archiving
... An absence of clustering and multi-instance management services
... Clumsy or non-existent configuration management services and testing environments
... An inability to integrate with enterprise role and group management (entitlements) systems
... User interfaces that are not internationalized or localized
“Not every vendor suffers from all of these weaknesses,” notes Real Story Group Analyst Adriaan Bloem, “but even the most platform-like offerings from the likes of Microsoft and IBM can come up short in one or more areas – much to the surprise of the customer assuming that a tool was explicitly designed for large-scale deployment.”
“Customers should remember that many of these products matured in departmental environments,” counsels Byrne, “so in addition to investing in essential governance, adoption, and education programs, organizations that must support enterprise-wide collaboration and networking should carefully simulate large-scale conditions before committing to any single vendor.”
What do you think?
Enterprise social networking and collaboration tools that perform adequately at a departmental level can demonstrate surprising shortcomings when implemented enterprise wide, according to vendor evaluation research from independent analyst firm Real Story Group (formerly CMS Watch).
Organizations are increasingly attempting to extend pilot collaboration and social software efforts across the enterprise, but IT leaders typically run into unexpected scalability problems. “Functional shortcomings or missing administrative services that don’t crop up in a departmental pilot can provide significant challenges when a customer tries to scale a system enterprise wide,” explains Real Story Group Principal, Tony Byrne.
Real Story Group customer research uncovered significant common shortcomings, including:
... A lack of lifecycle management services, including archiving
... An absence of clustering and multi-instance management services
... Clumsy or non-existent configuration management services and testing environments
... An inability to integrate with enterprise role and group management (entitlements) systems
... User interfaces that are not internationalized or localized
“Not every vendor suffers from all of these weaknesses,” notes Real Story Group Analyst Adriaan Bloem, “but even the most platform-like offerings from the likes of Microsoft and IBM can come up short in one or more areas – much to the surprise of the customer assuming that a tool was explicitly designed for large-scale deployment.”
“Customers should remember that many of these products matured in departmental environments,” counsels Byrne, “so in addition to investing in essential governance, adoption, and education programs, organizations that must support enterprise-wide collaboration and networking should carefully simulate large-scale conditions before committing to any single vendor.”
What do you think?
The OIT booth at ARMA 2010
Jim Thumma (left), vice president of sales and marketing for Optical Image Technology, Inc. (OIT), and Vijay Magon, technical director for ccube solutions, in the OIT booth at ARMA 2010 in San Francisco.
ibml's booth at ARMA 2010
ibml's booth at ARMA 2010 this week in San Francisco. ibml was demonstrating its ImageTrac Lite scanner at the conference.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
26 Tips to Remember When Classifying Documents
By Jim Thumma
Vice President of Sales and Marketing
Optical Image Technology
Before the inception of electronic document management (EDM), most of us organized documents alphabetically by subject. As EDM continues to redefine how we file and store important information—classifying documents by their type and use or by vital content that can be searched—alpha listings are slowly become obsolete. Yet humans often learn best by association. Thus, this alpha listing seems a viable way to provide useful tips for transitioning from a paper-based filing system to electronically indexed documents. The path is fairly straightforward, but unseen obstacles can play havoc with your intent.
With this cursory nod to the past and both eyes fixed on your future, we’re sharing our experience helping customers in the form of 26 ‘directives’. A bit presumptuous, perhaps? Maybe. After all, we can’t make you take these steps, but if you do, you’ll be off to a good start. If you don’t, well… that’s for another article. Take heed!
Analyze your document types. Who will use each? Which content is important to each type of end user in your department? Which content is valuable to users in other areas of the business?
Be a good listener. If you want your business to run smoothly, vital content must be available to the right people when they need it. To build a strong indexing plan, listen first and make decisions later.
Classify your information with process automation in mind. Which routine processes depend on each document type? What content must be available, and at what point in each process is it needed?
Don’t under- or over-index. Indexing too little information makes future search challenging or futile. Classifying extraneous information that no one cares about makes searches slow and cumbersome.
Educate your end users. Show them how EDM will help them to succeed in their jobs. Fear breeds doubt; insecurity promotes lackluster projects. Address users’ fears. Provide sufficient training.
Find an indexing structure that meets your needs. Should searches return direct hits or just narrow your search results? Consider your resources. Simplified indexing schemes help if resources are stretched.
Give workers adequate time for training. Although a configurable and user-friendly solution should demand minimal schooling, everyone’s needs are different. Hire temporary help to get other jobs done.
Hire outside know-how where you need it. Some vendors and consultants conduct document inventories, create indexing schemes, and more. Know your limitations. Plan accordingly.
Identify which documents are non-essential. If a doc type isn’t needed for business, legal, historical, or reference purposes, it’s probably not worth keeping. Streamline the clutter before you start indexing.
Join in the conversation. Employees need to see their managers stand behind and support document management projects they are expected to embrace. Don’t be invisible. Show enthusiasm.
Keep pace with project timelines. Everyday fires of business can draw workers away from a project. As business needs continue to advance and change, your project may risk becoming irrelevant.
Leverage all available resources to support discoverability. Capture and index pertinent emails, faxes, images, and documents into EDM. Indexing documents into one central repository eases search.
Minimize manual data entry. Wherever you can, standardize and automate indexing using data captured in document scans, bar codes, and online forms. This reduces the likelihood of human errors.
Note who needs access to which information and decide how they will be able to use it. Consider who should be allowed to list, amend, annotate, save, or delete documents. Configure security accordingly.
Organize documents by type. Use batch scanning to save time. Before indexing, consider whether each type should be scanned as-is, or whether pages should be combined or split into multiple documents.
Populate from existing sources and third-party apps such as customer/vendor databases and accounting systems. Re-use data during indexing to reduce duplication and conflicting or erroneous information.
Question your document types as well as your mode of filing them. Work with employees to determine more effective ways to file, search, and retrieve. Don’t assume the status quo still makes sense.
Remember that reports require specific content. Legislative requirements, audits, and quality control reports may require data you otherwise wouldn’t consider indexing. Revise your plans accordingly.
Standardize data collection by providing drop-down boxes, tips for data entry (i.e., the correct format for a date or number sequence), etc., to encourage accurate input. Your end users will appreciate it.
Test-drive your file plan parallel to existing systems before going fully digital. Ensure diverse users can find documents and information they need to work efficiently. Adjust your indexing scheme if needed.
Unearth inconsistencies between departments regarding data collection practices. Are middle names or initials used? Are PIN numbers a separate field or concatenated with last names? Standardize. Now.
Verify questionable scans and imported files immediately. Quality systems should identify problematic files; a smart indexing plan is worthless if it returns useless images. Re-scan/re-import, then index.
Weave an imaginary line through your business, showing where each doc type is used for decisions or processing. Understand how content is used. Then re-examine your plan to ensure successful search.
X-ray your documents: study them closely. Now is the time to streamline. Can document types be combined or eliminated to streamline data collection and reduce duplicate or conflicting information?
Yammer no more. With the advanced technology that’s available, there is no reason to lose a document…ever. Test, test, test. If you don’t get expected search results, go back to the drawing board.
Zero in on effective change management from day one. Communicate goals and plans. Collaborate. Ensure all ideas are heard. Train employees well. Mark milestones when they are met. Celebrate!
Vice President of Sales and Marketing
Optical Image Technology
Before the inception of electronic document management (EDM), most of us organized documents alphabetically by subject. As EDM continues to redefine how we file and store important information—classifying documents by their type and use or by vital content that can be searched—alpha listings are slowly become obsolete. Yet humans often learn best by association. Thus, this alpha listing seems a viable way to provide useful tips for transitioning from a paper-based filing system to electronically indexed documents. The path is fairly straightforward, but unseen obstacles can play havoc with your intent.
With this cursory nod to the past and both eyes fixed on your future, we’re sharing our experience helping customers in the form of 26 ‘directives’. A bit presumptuous, perhaps? Maybe. After all, we can’t make you take these steps, but if you do, you’ll be off to a good start. If you don’t, well… that’s for another article. Take heed!
Analyze your document types. Who will use each? Which content is important to each type of end user in your department? Which content is valuable to users in other areas of the business?
Be a good listener. If you want your business to run smoothly, vital content must be available to the right people when they need it. To build a strong indexing plan, listen first and make decisions later.
Classify your information with process automation in mind. Which routine processes depend on each document type? What content must be available, and at what point in each process is it needed?
Don’t under- or over-index. Indexing too little information makes future search challenging or futile. Classifying extraneous information that no one cares about makes searches slow and cumbersome.
Educate your end users. Show them how EDM will help them to succeed in their jobs. Fear breeds doubt; insecurity promotes lackluster projects. Address users’ fears. Provide sufficient training.
Find an indexing structure that meets your needs. Should searches return direct hits or just narrow your search results? Consider your resources. Simplified indexing schemes help if resources are stretched.
Give workers adequate time for training. Although a configurable and user-friendly solution should demand minimal schooling, everyone’s needs are different. Hire temporary help to get other jobs done.
Hire outside know-how where you need it. Some vendors and consultants conduct document inventories, create indexing schemes, and more. Know your limitations. Plan accordingly.
Identify which documents are non-essential. If a doc type isn’t needed for business, legal, historical, or reference purposes, it’s probably not worth keeping. Streamline the clutter before you start indexing.
Join in the conversation. Employees need to see their managers stand behind and support document management projects they are expected to embrace. Don’t be invisible. Show enthusiasm.
Keep pace with project timelines. Everyday fires of business can draw workers away from a project. As business needs continue to advance and change, your project may risk becoming irrelevant.
Leverage all available resources to support discoverability. Capture and index pertinent emails, faxes, images, and documents into EDM. Indexing documents into one central repository eases search.
Minimize manual data entry. Wherever you can, standardize and automate indexing using data captured in document scans, bar codes, and online forms. This reduces the likelihood of human errors.
Note who needs access to which information and decide how they will be able to use it. Consider who should be allowed to list, amend, annotate, save, or delete documents. Configure security accordingly.
Organize documents by type. Use batch scanning to save time. Before indexing, consider whether each type should be scanned as-is, or whether pages should be combined or split into multiple documents.
Populate from existing sources and third-party apps such as customer/vendor databases and accounting systems. Re-use data during indexing to reduce duplication and conflicting or erroneous information.
Question your document types as well as your mode of filing them. Work with employees to determine more effective ways to file, search, and retrieve. Don’t assume the status quo still makes sense.
Remember that reports require specific content. Legislative requirements, audits, and quality control reports may require data you otherwise wouldn’t consider indexing. Revise your plans accordingly.
Standardize data collection by providing drop-down boxes, tips for data entry (i.e., the correct format for a date or number sequence), etc., to encourage accurate input. Your end users will appreciate it.
Test-drive your file plan parallel to existing systems before going fully digital. Ensure diverse users can find documents and information they need to work efficiently. Adjust your indexing scheme if needed.
Unearth inconsistencies between departments regarding data collection practices. Are middle names or initials used? Are PIN numbers a separate field or concatenated with last names? Standardize. Now.
Verify questionable scans and imported files immediately. Quality systems should identify problematic files; a smart indexing plan is worthless if it returns useless images. Re-scan/re-import, then index.
Weave an imaginary line through your business, showing where each doc type is used for decisions or processing. Understand how content is used. Then re-examine your plan to ensure successful search.
X-ray your documents: study them closely. Now is the time to streamline. Can document types be combined or eliminated to streamline data collection and reduce duplicate or conflicting information?
Yammer no more. With the advanced technology that’s available, there is no reason to lose a document…ever. Test, test, test. If you don’t get expected search results, go back to the drawing board.
Zero in on effective change management from day one. Communicate goals and plans. Collaborate. Ensure all ideas are heard. Train employees well. Mark milestones when they are met. Celebrate!
How Technology Came to Rule the Legal World
By James D. Shook, Esq.
Director of E-Discovery and Compliance
EMC Corporation
Ten years ago, few people, even lawyers, knew much about electronic discovery (e-discovery)—the process of finding, preserving, processing, and producing electronic information that is relevant to a legal dispute. Today, it’s difficult to find anyone who is not at least conversant with the concept, thanks to many high-profile cases and countless articles in both IT and legal journals. And yet even with all of the changes that we have already seen, the next ten years are likely to produce even more.
An extra “e” transforms “discovery”
The U.S. legal system requires that each party in a civil dispute provide the other party with all information, both good and bad, that is relevant to the case. This part of the litigation process is called discovery.
In the “old days”—which in technology terms means before 2000—the discovery process focused primarily on paper documents such as contracts, notes, files, and correspondence, including letters and memoranda. As businesses began using more technology, especially e-mail, the majority of that information shifted from paper to electronic format, and e-discovery was born.
The rules of discovery never specifically included—or excluded—electronic data, creating inconsistencies and confusion. To address this issue, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure were amended in December 2006 to specifically include electronic data, defined as electronically stored information or ESI. Although the FRCP only governs disputes in federal courts, it strongly influences state courts, and the rules spread quickly.
Almost overnight, IT systems such as e-mail servers became concerns for lawyers, many of whom are notoriously techno-phobic. Organizations that failed to meet their e-discovery obligations faced the risk of embarrassing and costly sanctions from the courts. Simply collecting and preserving everything was cost-prohibitive. A frequently cited study found that it costs almost $20,000 to have lawyers review a single gigabyte of data (which may seem reasonable since 1 GB represents about 75,000 pages). Extrapolating those costs across hundreds of gigabytes, or even a terabyte or more of data, scared most organizations—and they started looking for a better way to manage both the e-discovery process and their electronic information.
E-discovery strategies at work, today
Organizations that lead the way in e-discovery best practices are attacking the problem in two ways. First, by managing data more centrally and efficiently, they can responsibly delete data that has no value, or which they are under no obligation to retain. Not only does this practice improve the e-discovery process, but it also creates significant savings for storage, backup, and personnel costs.
The second part of this strategy is to bring some—or all—of the e-discovery process in-house. To do this, organizations are creating cross-functional teams that include both IT and Legal, and then deploying technologies that enable fast and efficient in-place search and collection of their ESI.
Yet even today there are many organizations that have done little to address these requirements. Because e-discovery is not a voluntary process, many unprepared organizations perform “faux e-discovery”—they attempt to meet their obligations, but in reality miss significant amounts of relevant data. In doing so, they are taking on significant risk, without understanding or acknowledging it. Other organizations that fail to prepare are forced to turn to expert (and expensive) third-party vendors, frequently spending several hundred thousand to well over a million dollars to respond to a single case—without any ongoing benefit.
More data, more technologies, more challenges, more solutions
The continuing explosion in the amount and varying types of data will continue to significantly impact the e-discovery landscape. With studies noting that we will have 35 zetabytes of data created by 2020, even good processes may be totally overwhelmed by the sheer volume.
In addition, technologies that enhance the speed and efficiency of communication and businesses processes continue to be developed—and they are usually not e-discovery-friendly. Social media technologies such as Facebook and Twitter are further blurring the line between personal and business data, which can be difficult for organizations to locate and preserve. Cloud computing can put a company’s data in the hands of a third party, sometimes in a different country or jurisdiction, which also makes e-discovery more difficult.
But technology is also likely to provide solutions, such as intelligent filtering and review of data. There are tools today that can classify and determine whether documents are relevant to a case based on their similarity to other relevant documents or other criteria. But those technologies are new and complex, and their acceptance in actual court proceedings is not assured.
With all of these issues on the horizon—and certainly more that we cannot yet predict—the next 10 years in e-discovery will be every bit as interesting as the last.
As director of e-discovery and compliance at EMC Corporation, James D. Shook, Esq. works with customers to help them solve challenges related to e-discovery, compliance and privacy. James is a long-time member of The Sedona Conference, a well-known legal think tank, and is an active contributor on several of its committees.
Director of E-Discovery and Compliance
EMC Corporation
Ten years ago, few people, even lawyers, knew much about electronic discovery (e-discovery)—the process of finding, preserving, processing, and producing electronic information that is relevant to a legal dispute. Today, it’s difficult to find anyone who is not at least conversant with the concept, thanks to many high-profile cases and countless articles in both IT and legal journals. And yet even with all of the changes that we have already seen, the next ten years are likely to produce even more.
An extra “e” transforms “discovery”
The U.S. legal system requires that each party in a civil dispute provide the other party with all information, both good and bad, that is relevant to the case. This part of the litigation process is called discovery.
In the “old days”—which in technology terms means before 2000—the discovery process focused primarily on paper documents such as contracts, notes, files, and correspondence, including letters and memoranda. As businesses began using more technology, especially e-mail, the majority of that information shifted from paper to electronic format, and e-discovery was born.
The rules of discovery never specifically included—or excluded—electronic data, creating inconsistencies and confusion. To address this issue, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure were amended in December 2006 to specifically include electronic data, defined as electronically stored information or ESI. Although the FRCP only governs disputes in federal courts, it strongly influences state courts, and the rules spread quickly.
Almost overnight, IT systems such as e-mail servers became concerns for lawyers, many of whom are notoriously techno-phobic. Organizations that failed to meet their e-discovery obligations faced the risk of embarrassing and costly sanctions from the courts. Simply collecting and preserving everything was cost-prohibitive. A frequently cited study found that it costs almost $20,000 to have lawyers review a single gigabyte of data (which may seem reasonable since 1 GB represents about 75,000 pages). Extrapolating those costs across hundreds of gigabytes, or even a terabyte or more of data, scared most organizations—and they started looking for a better way to manage both the e-discovery process and their electronic information.
E-discovery strategies at work, today
Organizations that lead the way in e-discovery best practices are attacking the problem in two ways. First, by managing data more centrally and efficiently, they can responsibly delete data that has no value, or which they are under no obligation to retain. Not only does this practice improve the e-discovery process, but it also creates significant savings for storage, backup, and personnel costs.
The second part of this strategy is to bring some—or all—of the e-discovery process in-house. To do this, organizations are creating cross-functional teams that include both IT and Legal, and then deploying technologies that enable fast and efficient in-place search and collection of their ESI.
Yet even today there are many organizations that have done little to address these requirements. Because e-discovery is not a voluntary process, many unprepared organizations perform “faux e-discovery”—they attempt to meet their obligations, but in reality miss significant amounts of relevant data. In doing so, they are taking on significant risk, without understanding or acknowledging it. Other organizations that fail to prepare are forced to turn to expert (and expensive) third-party vendors, frequently spending several hundred thousand to well over a million dollars to respond to a single case—without any ongoing benefit.
More data, more technologies, more challenges, more solutions
The continuing explosion in the amount and varying types of data will continue to significantly impact the e-discovery landscape. With studies noting that we will have 35 zetabytes of data created by 2020, even good processes may be totally overwhelmed by the sheer volume.
In addition, technologies that enhance the speed and efficiency of communication and businesses processes continue to be developed—and they are usually not e-discovery-friendly. Social media technologies such as Facebook and Twitter are further blurring the line between personal and business data, which can be difficult for organizations to locate and preserve. Cloud computing can put a company’s data in the hands of a third party, sometimes in a different country or jurisdiction, which also makes e-discovery more difficult.
But technology is also likely to provide solutions, such as intelligent filtering and review of data. There are tools today that can classify and determine whether documents are relevant to a case based on their similarity to other relevant documents or other criteria. But those technologies are new and complex, and their acceptance in actual court proceedings is not assured.
With all of these issues on the horizon—and certainly more that we cannot yet predict—the next 10 years in e-discovery will be every bit as interesting as the last.
As director of e-discovery and compliance at EMC Corporation, James D. Shook, Esq. works with customers to help them solve challenges related to e-discovery, compliance and privacy. James is a long-time member of The Sedona Conference, a well-known legal think tank, and is an active contributor on several of its committees.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Scanner Demonstration Video
Posted by Mark Brousseau
Below is a link to a brand new video demonstrating ibml's scanners.
http://www.ibml.com/demovideo.php
Below is a link to a brand new video demonstrating ibml's scanners.
http://www.ibml.com/demovideo.php
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
eForms Checklist: Find the Right Fit for Your Business
By Laurel Sanders, Director of Public Relations and Communications, Optical Image Technology (lsanders@docfinity.com)
“Work faster.”
“Get everything right the first time.”
“Outperform our competitors with better service.”
In challenging economic times, these goals are imperative. Yet achieving all three simultaneously can be challenging.
According to AIIM’s State of the ECM Industry 2010 report, 41% of businesses aren’t confident their digital information (except emails) is accurate, accessible, and trustworthy — a severe obstacle to efficiency. Forms are a small part of the web of business information. Yet when content is captured accurately and managed properly, eForms address the challenges of accuracy, accessibility, and trustworthiness while transforming service, increasing profitability, and encouraging sustainability. How? By:
... Capturing data quickly, consistently, and cost-effectively.
... Offering self service.
... Making the information captured on forms useful instantly, enterprise-wide.
... Establishing a framework for information governance.
However, just implementing eForms software doesn’t guarantee results. You must understand your business objectives and ensure the solution you choose will meet those needs.
This checklist will help you to develop a customized requirements list to ensure your eforms solution meets your unique needs.
Form Design
Useful forms begin with good design, so the design function must be user friendly, flexible, and adaptable. Examine your broader organizational needs so your selected product meets requirements as your installation expands.
Will your solution let you:
___ Design custom forms, or will you be restricted to templates?
___ Add unlimited components to the design canvas, with form length expanding according to your needs?
___ Align, match, select, delete, or erase form components during the design process?
___ Decide the order in which form-related actions will be completed?
___ Save unfinished form designs so you can complete them later?
Also, are online user guides and tool tips available to guide you through every step of the process?
Applying Form Controls
Form controls help designers to ensure standardized documents are completed correctly. Ideally, they enforce behind-the-scenes rules, dictating how each form should be completed and used.
Can you apply:
___ Form controls wherever you want them, to regulate how forms are completed?
___ Data entry controls for each field you create, so you can ensure quality data input?
___ Validations that compare data entered on forms with pre-specified criteria for each field?
___ Data sources to the eForm, so data captured in pre-specified fields can be extracted from (or pushed to) other databases and applications, recycling information meaningfully and eliminating errors?
Data Management
Data — the specific fields of information that you collect, such as name, contact information, dates, terms, and more — drives processes forward, enabling smart and timely decision making.
Can you:
___ Apply validations that compare entered data on a form against specified criteria and alert users when entered data is invalid?
___ Extract pre-specified form data as variables within a business process, allowing specific content to be available without making entire forms visible to users? (This is essential if sensitive information is stored on the form, and some of the data needs to be processed by employees who shouldn’t see every detail.)
___ Configure your ECM system to store form data in a third-party database or other external location after a form has been completed or submitted?
Form Administration and Security
Regulations and internal policies demand controlled access to sensitive information. eForms that are part of an integrated electronic document management (EDM) solution let you secure sensitive information while making sure those who need it have appropriate access.
Will your solution let you:
___ Assign forms to specific groups, controlling who can access, view, delete, annotate, or sign them?
___ Hide specific text on forms so only specified user groups can view it?
___ Configure actions that should occur whenever a specific type of form is submitted (send an email, launch a business process, send data from a form to another source, convert a form to PDF), based on the needs for that form?
___ Configure validation criteria and specific datasources for each form type?
___ Apply hot keys to certain actions as desired, to make work more efficient?
Form Use
End user needs vary greatly, and an eForms product should be adaptable enough to meet diverse requirements.
Will your forms product:
___ Convert forms to PDF when desired?
___ Provide helpful online user guides and tool tips to guide you through form completion and submission?
___ Apply drag-and-drop design components to assist end users in completing forms?
___ Index completed forms as PDFs, forms, or both, as desired?
___ Add a form (or its PDF) into a package of documents and send the complete package into a business process?
___ Search for completed forms?
___ Resize your windows and workspaces so you can work efficiently?
Launch a Business Process
Ultimately, you will most likely want eForms to launch routine business processes and exponentially increase efficiency. Will your solution:
___ Automatically launch a pre-specified business process when a form is submitted?
___ Amend/manage form data within a business process?
___ Make specific forms viewable at the correct time within a business process?
___ Use a submission to trigger an email message, accompanied by a link to the form?
___ Create drop-down menus to guide data entry and ensure relevant, accurate data is collected?
End the content chaos
If you are already implementing EDM, eForms will help you to gain control over your content at the point of capture, where benefits are greatest. If you’re evaluating EDM for the first time, consider eForms and business process automation as part of your strategy from the beginning so you can extract the full value of digital information. Understand short- and longer term needs so the technology you select supports your goals. Make sure your vendor is as committed to your success as you are, since a strong partnership dramatically improves business outcomes.
Fast, accurate, and customer-friendly service is the aim of any business. eForms, EDM, and good planning can help you to achieve all three. Now…get started!
“Work faster.”
“Get everything right the first time.”
“Outperform our competitors with better service.”
In challenging economic times, these goals are imperative. Yet achieving all three simultaneously can be challenging.
According to AIIM’s State of the ECM Industry 2010 report, 41% of businesses aren’t confident their digital information (except emails) is accurate, accessible, and trustworthy — a severe obstacle to efficiency. Forms are a small part of the web of business information. Yet when content is captured accurately and managed properly, eForms address the challenges of accuracy, accessibility, and trustworthiness while transforming service, increasing profitability, and encouraging sustainability. How? By:
... Capturing data quickly, consistently, and cost-effectively.
... Offering self service.
... Making the information captured on forms useful instantly, enterprise-wide.
... Establishing a framework for information governance.
However, just implementing eForms software doesn’t guarantee results. You must understand your business objectives and ensure the solution you choose will meet those needs.
This checklist will help you to develop a customized requirements list to ensure your eforms solution meets your unique needs.
Form Design
Useful forms begin with good design, so the design function must be user friendly, flexible, and adaptable. Examine your broader organizational needs so your selected product meets requirements as your installation expands.
Will your solution let you:
___ Design custom forms, or will you be restricted to templates?
___ Add unlimited components to the design canvas, with form length expanding according to your needs?
___ Align, match, select, delete, or erase form components during the design process?
___ Decide the order in which form-related actions will be completed?
___ Save unfinished form designs so you can complete them later?
Also, are online user guides and tool tips available to guide you through every step of the process?
Applying Form Controls
Form controls help designers to ensure standardized documents are completed correctly. Ideally, they enforce behind-the-scenes rules, dictating how each form should be completed and used.
Can you apply:
___ Form controls wherever you want them, to regulate how forms are completed?
___ Data entry controls for each field you create, so you can ensure quality data input?
___ Validations that compare data entered on forms with pre-specified criteria for each field?
___ Data sources to the eForm, so data captured in pre-specified fields can be extracted from (or pushed to) other databases and applications, recycling information meaningfully and eliminating errors?
Data Management
Data — the specific fields of information that you collect, such as name, contact information, dates, terms, and more — drives processes forward, enabling smart and timely decision making.
Can you:
___ Apply validations that compare entered data on a form against specified criteria and alert users when entered data is invalid?
___ Extract pre-specified form data as variables within a business process, allowing specific content to be available without making entire forms visible to users? (This is essential if sensitive information is stored on the form, and some of the data needs to be processed by employees who shouldn’t see every detail.)
___ Configure your ECM system to store form data in a third-party database or other external location after a form has been completed or submitted?
Form Administration and Security
Regulations and internal policies demand controlled access to sensitive information. eForms that are part of an integrated electronic document management (EDM) solution let you secure sensitive information while making sure those who need it have appropriate access.
Will your solution let you:
___ Assign forms to specific groups, controlling who can access, view, delete, annotate, or sign them?
___ Hide specific text on forms so only specified user groups can view it?
___ Configure actions that should occur whenever a specific type of form is submitted (send an email, launch a business process, send data from a form to another source, convert a form to PDF), based on the needs for that form?
___ Configure validation criteria and specific datasources for each form type?
___ Apply hot keys to certain actions as desired, to make work more efficient?
Form Use
End user needs vary greatly, and an eForms product should be adaptable enough to meet diverse requirements.
Will your forms product:
___ Convert forms to PDF when desired?
___ Provide helpful online user guides and tool tips to guide you through form completion and submission?
___ Apply drag-and-drop design components to assist end users in completing forms?
___ Index completed forms as PDFs, forms, or both, as desired?
___ Add a form (or its PDF) into a package of documents and send the complete package into a business process?
___ Search for completed forms?
___ Resize your windows and workspaces so you can work efficiently?
Launch a Business Process
Ultimately, you will most likely want eForms to launch routine business processes and exponentially increase efficiency. Will your solution:
___ Automatically launch a pre-specified business process when a form is submitted?
___ Amend/manage form data within a business process?
___ Make specific forms viewable at the correct time within a business process?
___ Use a submission to trigger an email message, accompanied by a link to the form?
___ Create drop-down menus to guide data entry and ensure relevant, accurate data is collected?
End the content chaos
If you are already implementing EDM, eForms will help you to gain control over your content at the point of capture, where benefits are greatest. If you’re evaluating EDM for the first time, consider eForms and business process automation as part of your strategy from the beginning so you can extract the full value of digital information. Understand short- and longer term needs so the technology you select supports your goals. Make sure your vendor is as committed to your success as you are, since a strong partnership dramatically improves business outcomes.
Fast, accurate, and customer-friendly service is the aim of any business. eForms, EDM, and good planning can help you to achieve all three. Now…get started!
Friday, September 3, 2010
Meaningful RE-use
Posted by Mark Brousseau
Jim Thumma, vice president of sales and marketing at Optical Image Technology, says insurers can pick up the pace in underwriting, claims and more by re-using data meaningfully:
Recycling is vital as society seeks solutions for sustainable living. For insurers, however, the relevance of recycling lies in reusing valuable information meaningfully. Consider the information you collect from policyholders and others, and how many decisions are contingent on what they supply. How can you extract more value from what you have?
Understanding information value
Technology today is about building bridges so insurers can work efficiently, provide quality service, and compete successfully in a challenging marketplace. Trying to bridge existing gaps in the information flow isn’t new; insurers have discussed it for years. Business process management software tied to ECM is an effective enabler, but technology alone doesn’t guarantee meaningful use. Typically, gaps arise from a failure to understand—and manage—our information and its multiple uses.
Defining meaningful use
To make astute decisions, information must be accurate and timely. Knowledge workers need it whether they’re in the office, traveling, or visiting clients. If you want to capitalize on information value as it’s harvested, it should be captured digitally at the source and shared efficiently everywhere within your business where it could influence processes or outcomes.
Ideally:
Incoming mail, data captured via online forms, and email attachments launch pertinent business processes and advance appropriate actions.
Pertinent policyholder data feeds automatically into billing software as new policies are approved and issued, expediting billing and ensuring accuracy.
Data captured in rules-driven voice mail and faxes launches appropriate business processes.
For information to be worthy of reuse, it must be accurate and readable. Front-end capture makes it instantly useful, restricting human involvement to tasks requiring analytical thinking and decisions. Even the smartest knowledge workers are prone to mistakes when information must be gleaned, copied, or re-keyed.
By implementing rules-driven business process management software as part of your content management strategy, accurate information can be re-used logically, promoting actionable intelligence. Many clients of well-deployed ECM/BPM solutions that re-use meaningful information wisely underwrite upwards of 35% more policies; cut claims turnaround from weeks to days; and handle 30-40% more work using the same staff, increasing profitability significantly.
Discovering where meaning lies
Virtual communication can connect people and processes by enabling the seamless transfer of information to every place it has value. Yet like physical bridges, virtual conduits have requirements that plead to be satisfied. You need to:
... Understand the types of information that flow into your company ― which data is critical, in which business areas, and for which specific decisions.
Know all of the sources where that information is found (email, documents, eForms, faxes, handwritten correspondence, voice mails, images).
... Discover every place within your organization where the information has value.
Identify individuals who require access.
... Ensure the business rules you establish with your enterprise content management (ECM) software reflect your governance policies and controls.
Swift, seamless communication doesn’t happen by accident.
Masterminding meaningful use with BPM and smart integration
Consider the interrelationship between policy administration, claims, and accounts payable in a standard claim submission that is aided by a well-planned ECM and BPM implementation and integrated across all business areas:
Selma, a policyholder, returns from work. Someone has broken into her home, stealing valuable jewelry and small appliances. She contacts her agent to submit a claim.
Agent
· The agent completes the First Notice of Loss (FNOL) and faxes it to the insurer. The fax is imported automatically into the ECM system and key data is used to automatically index the document for immediate, secure retrieval. BPM assigns a unique number to the claim and sends the FNOL to the appropriate reviewer based on information detailing staff roles, current workloads, and schedules.
Claims reviewer
· The assigned reviewer sees the job as the top task in his queue. He clicks on the link to the FNOL and views policyholder’s information, selecting the policy pertinent to the claim. The next click packages the documents and sends them for supervisory review along with the appropriate, automatically generated email message.
Claims supervisor
· The supervisor views the policy via a link in her email. She compares it to the FNOL, verifies the match, and forwards it to the adjuster.
Adjuster
· The adjuster adds relevant photos to the file. He requests police reports. As they arrive, they are imported and indexed. When the file is complete, BPM packages the field survey, images, and reports, linking them to the policy and FNOL, and the folder is returned to the supervisor.
Claims supervisor
· The supervisor receives email notification the claim is ready for final review. She approves it for payment.
Accounting
· Relevant claim information is extracted electronically (name, policy number, contact information, deductible, payment due) and pushed by BPM into the A/P software, ensuring accuracy and expediting payment.
Customer service
· The claimant calls to inquire about the claim’s status. The answering service determines from voice response which claim is in question. The call is routed appropriately. Support views the up-to-date claim status, assuring the customer the check has been sent and providing details.
By integrating policy administration, claims, and billing with ECM and using BPM to orchestrate the flow of information wherever it’s needed according to business rules, Selma’s claim is processed quickly and cost effectively. Work is more efficient. Resources are used wisely. Fewer mistakes are made. The company gains financially and reduces its risk to legal exposure and unhappy clients.
Evaluate your routines
Contrast this with your everyday routines. How many opportunities for meaningful use are overlooked? How much time is wasted? How many customers are underserved? How much money is lost because of inefficiency?
Are the shortcomings acceptable, or are you ready to change?
Take steps toward improvement
Whenever you collect information from applicants, policyholders, staff, or third parties, it likely has value in more than one place. Analyze and understand the value of your business information. Use ECM and BPM to maximize the meaningful use of it. Your business will profit measurably.
What do you think?
Jim Thumma, vice president of sales and marketing at Optical Image Technology, says insurers can pick up the pace in underwriting, claims and more by re-using data meaningfully:
Recycling is vital as society seeks solutions for sustainable living. For insurers, however, the relevance of recycling lies in reusing valuable information meaningfully. Consider the information you collect from policyholders and others, and how many decisions are contingent on what they supply. How can you extract more value from what you have?
Understanding information value
Technology today is about building bridges so insurers can work efficiently, provide quality service, and compete successfully in a challenging marketplace. Trying to bridge existing gaps in the information flow isn’t new; insurers have discussed it for years. Business process management software tied to ECM is an effective enabler, but technology alone doesn’t guarantee meaningful use. Typically, gaps arise from a failure to understand—and manage—our information and its multiple uses.
Defining meaningful use
To make astute decisions, information must be accurate and timely. Knowledge workers need it whether they’re in the office, traveling, or visiting clients. If you want to capitalize on information value as it’s harvested, it should be captured digitally at the source and shared efficiently everywhere within your business where it could influence processes or outcomes.
Ideally:
Incoming mail, data captured via online forms, and email attachments launch pertinent business processes and advance appropriate actions.
Pertinent policyholder data feeds automatically into billing software as new policies are approved and issued, expediting billing and ensuring accuracy.
Data captured in rules-driven voice mail and faxes launches appropriate business processes.
For information to be worthy of reuse, it must be accurate and readable. Front-end capture makes it instantly useful, restricting human involvement to tasks requiring analytical thinking and decisions. Even the smartest knowledge workers are prone to mistakes when information must be gleaned, copied, or re-keyed.
By implementing rules-driven business process management software as part of your content management strategy, accurate information can be re-used logically, promoting actionable intelligence. Many clients of well-deployed ECM/BPM solutions that re-use meaningful information wisely underwrite upwards of 35% more policies; cut claims turnaround from weeks to days; and handle 30-40% more work using the same staff, increasing profitability significantly.
Discovering where meaning lies
Virtual communication can connect people and processes by enabling the seamless transfer of information to every place it has value. Yet like physical bridges, virtual conduits have requirements that plead to be satisfied. You need to:
... Understand the types of information that flow into your company ― which data is critical, in which business areas, and for which specific decisions.
Know all of the sources where that information is found (email, documents, eForms, faxes, handwritten correspondence, voice mails, images).
... Discover every place within your organization where the information has value.
Identify individuals who require access.
... Ensure the business rules you establish with your enterprise content management (ECM) software reflect your governance policies and controls.
Swift, seamless communication doesn’t happen by accident.
Masterminding meaningful use with BPM and smart integration
Consider the interrelationship between policy administration, claims, and accounts payable in a standard claim submission that is aided by a well-planned ECM and BPM implementation and integrated across all business areas:
Selma, a policyholder, returns from work. Someone has broken into her home, stealing valuable jewelry and small appliances. She contacts her agent to submit a claim.
Agent
· The agent completes the First Notice of Loss (FNOL) and faxes it to the insurer. The fax is imported automatically into the ECM system and key data is used to automatically index the document for immediate, secure retrieval. BPM assigns a unique number to the claim and sends the FNOL to the appropriate reviewer based on information detailing staff roles, current workloads, and schedules.
Claims reviewer
· The assigned reviewer sees the job as the top task in his queue. He clicks on the link to the FNOL and views policyholder’s information, selecting the policy pertinent to the claim. The next click packages the documents and sends them for supervisory review along with the appropriate, automatically generated email message.
Claims supervisor
· The supervisor views the policy via a link in her email. She compares it to the FNOL, verifies the match, and forwards it to the adjuster.
Adjuster
· The adjuster adds relevant photos to the file. He requests police reports. As they arrive, they are imported and indexed. When the file is complete, BPM packages the field survey, images, and reports, linking them to the policy and FNOL, and the folder is returned to the supervisor.
Claims supervisor
· The supervisor receives email notification the claim is ready for final review. She approves it for payment.
Accounting
· Relevant claim information is extracted electronically (name, policy number, contact information, deductible, payment due) and pushed by BPM into the A/P software, ensuring accuracy and expediting payment.
Customer service
· The claimant calls to inquire about the claim’s status. The answering service determines from voice response which claim is in question. The call is routed appropriately. Support views the up-to-date claim status, assuring the customer the check has been sent and providing details.
By integrating policy administration, claims, and billing with ECM and using BPM to orchestrate the flow of information wherever it’s needed according to business rules, Selma’s claim is processed quickly and cost effectively. Work is more efficient. Resources are used wisely. Fewer mistakes are made. The company gains financially and reduces its risk to legal exposure and unhappy clients.
Evaluate your routines
Contrast this with your everyday routines. How many opportunities for meaningful use are overlooked? How much time is wasted? How many customers are underserved? How much money is lost because of inefficiency?
Are the shortcomings acceptable, or are you ready to change?
Take steps toward improvement
Whenever you collect information from applicants, policyholders, staff, or third parties, it likely has value in more than one place. Analyze and understand the value of your business information. Use ECM and BPM to maximize the meaningful use of it. Your business will profit measurably.
What do you think?
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
World of work is changing fast
Posted by Mark Brousseau
The world of today is dramatically different from 20 years ago and with the lines between work and non-work already badly frayed, Gartner predicts that the nature of work will witness 10 key changes through 2020. Organizations will need to plan for increasingly chaotic environments that are out of their direct control, and adaptation must involve adjusting to all 10 of the trends.
“Work will become less routine, characterized by increased volatility, hyperconnectedness, 'swarming' and more,” said Tom Austin, vice president and Gartner fellow. By 2015, 40 percent or more of an organization’s work will be ‘non-routine’, up from 25 percent in 2010. “People will swarm more often and work solo less. They’ll work with others with whom they have few links, and teams will include people outside the control of the organization,” he added. “In addition, simulation, visualisation and unification technologies, working across yottabytes of data per second, will demand an emphasis on new perceptual skills.”
Organizations will need to determine which of the 10 key changes in the nature of work will affect them, and consider whether radically different technology governance models will be required.
1. De-routinization of Work
The core value that people add is not in the processes that can be automated, but in non-routine processes, uniquely human, analytical or interactive contributions that result in words such as discovery, innovation, teaming, leading, selling and learning. Non-routine skills are those we cannot automate. For example, we cannot automate the process of selling a life insurance policy to a skeptical buyer, but we can use automation tools to augment the selling process.
2. Work Swarms
Swarming is a work style characterized by a flurry of collective activity by anyone and everyone conceivably available and able to add value. Gartner identifies two phenomena within the collective activity; Teaming (instead of solo performances) will be valued and rewarded more and occur more frequently and a new form of teaming, which Gartner calls swarming, to distinguish it from more historical teaming models, is emerging. Teams have historically consisted of people who have worked together before and who know each other reasonably well, often working in the same organization and for the same manager. Swarms form quickly, attacking a problem or opportunity and then quickly dissipating. Swarming is an agile response to an observed increase in ad hoc action requirements, as ad hoc activities continue to displace structured, bureaucratic situations.
3. Weak Links
In swarms, if individuals know each other at all, it may be just barely, via weak links. Weak links are the cues people can pick up from people who know the people they have to work with. They are indirect indicators and rely, in part, on the confidence others have in their knowledge of people. Navigating one's own personal, professional and social networks helps people develop and exploit both strong and weak links and that, in turn, will be crucial to surviving and exploiting swarms for business benefit.
4. Working With the Collective
There are informal groups of people, outside the direct control of the organization, who can impact the success or failure of the organization. These informal groups are bound together by a common interest, a fad or a historical accident, as described by Gartner as “the collective.” Smart business executives discern how to live in a business ecosystem they cannot control; one they can only influence. The influence process requires understanding the collectives that potentially influence their organization, as well as the key people in those external groups. Gathering market intelligence via the collective is crucial. Equally important is figuring out how to use the collective to define segments, markets, products and various business strategies.
5. Work Sketch-Ups
Most non-routine processes will also be highly informal. It is very important that organizations try to capture the criteria used in making decisions but, at least for now, Gartner does not expect most non-routine processes to follow meaningful standard patterns. Over time, we believe that work patterns for more non-routine work will emerge, justifying a light-handed approach to collecting activity information, but it will take years before a real return on investment for this effort is visible. In the meantime, the process models for most non-routine processes will remain simple "sketch-ups," created on the fly.
6. Spontaneous Work
This property is also implied in Gartner’s description of work swarms. Spontaneity implies more than reactive activity, for example, to the emergence of new patterns. It also contains proactive work such as seeking out new opportunities and creating new designs and models.
7. Simulation and Experimentation
Active engagement with simulated environments (virtual environments), which are similar to technologies depicted in the film Minority Report, will come to replace drilling into cells in spreadsheets. This suggests the use of n-dimensional virtual representations of all different sorts of data. The contents of the simulated environment will be assembled by agent technologies that determine what materials go together based on watching people work with this content. People will interact with the data and actively manipulate various parameters reshaping the world they’re looking at.
8. Pattern Sensitivity
Gartner has published a major line of research on Pattern-Based Strategy. The business world is becoming more volatile, affording people working off of linear models based on past performance far less visibility into the future than ever before. Gartner expects to see a significant growth in the number of organizations that create groups specifically charged with detecting divergent emerging patterns, evaluating those patterns, developing various scenarios for how the disruption might play out and proposing to senior executives new ways of exploiting (or protecting the organization from) the changes to which they are now more sensitive.
9. Hyperconnected
Hyperconnectedness is a property of most organizations, existing within networks of networks, unable to completely control any of them. While key supply chain elements, for example, may be "under contract," there is no guarantee it will perform properly, not even if the supply chain is in-house. Hyperconnectedness will lead to a push for more work to occur in both formal and informal relationships across enterprise boundaries, and that has implications for how people work and how IT supports or augments that work.
10. My Place
The workplace is becoming more and more virtual, with meetings occurring across time zones and organizations and with participants who barely know each other, working on swarms attacking rapidly emerging problems. But the employee will still have a "place" where they work. Many will have neither a company-provided physical office nor a desk, and their work will increasingly happen 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In this work environment, the lines between personal, professional, social and family matters, along with organization subjects, will disappear. Individuals, of course, need to manage the complexity created by overlapping demands, whether from the new world of work or from external (non-work-related) phenomena. Those that cannot manage the underlying "expectation and interrupt overloads" will suffer performance deficits as these overloads force individuals to operate in an over-stimulated (information-overload) state.
The world of today is dramatically different from 20 years ago and with the lines between work and non-work already badly frayed, Gartner predicts that the nature of work will witness 10 key changes through 2020. Organizations will need to plan for increasingly chaotic environments that are out of their direct control, and adaptation must involve adjusting to all 10 of the trends.
“Work will become less routine, characterized by increased volatility, hyperconnectedness, 'swarming' and more,” said Tom Austin, vice president and Gartner fellow. By 2015, 40 percent or more of an organization’s work will be ‘non-routine’, up from 25 percent in 2010. “People will swarm more often and work solo less. They’ll work with others with whom they have few links, and teams will include people outside the control of the organization,” he added. “In addition, simulation, visualisation and unification technologies, working across yottabytes of data per second, will demand an emphasis on new perceptual skills.”
Organizations will need to determine which of the 10 key changes in the nature of work will affect them, and consider whether radically different technology governance models will be required.
1. De-routinization of Work
The core value that people add is not in the processes that can be automated, but in non-routine processes, uniquely human, analytical or interactive contributions that result in words such as discovery, innovation, teaming, leading, selling and learning. Non-routine skills are those we cannot automate. For example, we cannot automate the process of selling a life insurance policy to a skeptical buyer, but we can use automation tools to augment the selling process.
2. Work Swarms
Swarming is a work style characterized by a flurry of collective activity by anyone and everyone conceivably available and able to add value. Gartner identifies two phenomena within the collective activity; Teaming (instead of solo performances) will be valued and rewarded more and occur more frequently and a new form of teaming, which Gartner calls swarming, to distinguish it from more historical teaming models, is emerging. Teams have historically consisted of people who have worked together before and who know each other reasonably well, often working in the same organization and for the same manager. Swarms form quickly, attacking a problem or opportunity and then quickly dissipating. Swarming is an agile response to an observed increase in ad hoc action requirements, as ad hoc activities continue to displace structured, bureaucratic situations.
3. Weak Links
In swarms, if individuals know each other at all, it may be just barely, via weak links. Weak links are the cues people can pick up from people who know the people they have to work with. They are indirect indicators and rely, in part, on the confidence others have in their knowledge of people. Navigating one's own personal, professional and social networks helps people develop and exploit both strong and weak links and that, in turn, will be crucial to surviving and exploiting swarms for business benefit.
4. Working With the Collective
There are informal groups of people, outside the direct control of the organization, who can impact the success or failure of the organization. These informal groups are bound together by a common interest, a fad or a historical accident, as described by Gartner as “the collective.” Smart business executives discern how to live in a business ecosystem they cannot control; one they can only influence. The influence process requires understanding the collectives that potentially influence their organization, as well as the key people in those external groups. Gathering market intelligence via the collective is crucial. Equally important is figuring out how to use the collective to define segments, markets, products and various business strategies.
5. Work Sketch-Ups
Most non-routine processes will also be highly informal. It is very important that organizations try to capture the criteria used in making decisions but, at least for now, Gartner does not expect most non-routine processes to follow meaningful standard patterns. Over time, we believe that work patterns for more non-routine work will emerge, justifying a light-handed approach to collecting activity information, but it will take years before a real return on investment for this effort is visible. In the meantime, the process models for most non-routine processes will remain simple "sketch-ups," created on the fly.
6. Spontaneous Work
This property is also implied in Gartner’s description of work swarms. Spontaneity implies more than reactive activity, for example, to the emergence of new patterns. It also contains proactive work such as seeking out new opportunities and creating new designs and models.
7. Simulation and Experimentation
Active engagement with simulated environments (virtual environments), which are similar to technologies depicted in the film Minority Report, will come to replace drilling into cells in spreadsheets. This suggests the use of n-dimensional virtual representations of all different sorts of data. The contents of the simulated environment will be assembled by agent technologies that determine what materials go together based on watching people work with this content. People will interact with the data and actively manipulate various parameters reshaping the world they’re looking at.
8. Pattern Sensitivity
Gartner has published a major line of research on Pattern-Based Strategy. The business world is becoming more volatile, affording people working off of linear models based on past performance far less visibility into the future than ever before. Gartner expects to see a significant growth in the number of organizations that create groups specifically charged with detecting divergent emerging patterns, evaluating those patterns, developing various scenarios for how the disruption might play out and proposing to senior executives new ways of exploiting (or protecting the organization from) the changes to which they are now more sensitive.
9. Hyperconnected
Hyperconnectedness is a property of most organizations, existing within networks of networks, unable to completely control any of them. While key supply chain elements, for example, may be "under contract," there is no guarantee it will perform properly, not even if the supply chain is in-house. Hyperconnectedness will lead to a push for more work to occur in both formal and informal relationships across enterprise boundaries, and that has implications for how people work and how IT supports or augments that work.
10. My Place
The workplace is becoming more and more virtual, with meetings occurring across time zones and organizations and with participants who barely know each other, working on swarms attacking rapidly emerging problems. But the employee will still have a "place" where they work. Many will have neither a company-provided physical office nor a desk, and their work will increasingly happen 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In this work environment, the lines between personal, professional, social and family matters, along with organization subjects, will disappear. Individuals, of course, need to manage the complexity created by overlapping demands, whether from the new world of work or from external (non-work-related) phenomena. Those that cannot manage the underlying "expectation and interrupt overloads" will suffer performance deficits as these overloads force individuals to operate in an over-stimulated (information-overload) state.
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