3 Ways To Pick The Perfect ECM Software For Your Company

In today's business landscape, it is vital for any organization to have an Enterprise Content Management (ECM) system that can efficiently house and manage all company-related data, records, and other content in order to keep up with workforce needs that are always evolving. Your company's ECM software can play a major role in reducing your operating costs by saving you time, strengthening compliance, and improving customer service. Here are some tips to help you choose the best ECM platform for your business.

1) Determine how much unstructured content your company needs to manage.

Unstructured content includes all of the data (in various forms) that your employees must access or share. This content can range from Word documents and PDF files to blueprints and training videos. Your ECM system needs to be a reliable place that employees can go to when they require current policy documents, marketing images, and the most recent version of any given file. The ECM software that you choose should be able to manage all of the content that you need to secure. The system must effectively capture and store the data, but it also needs to have the capability to create, distribute, and even properly destroy documents as necessary.

2) Define your company's organizational structure for data retrieval purposes.

Does your business have more than one office responsible for reporting into the main hub? Do you have employees or teams that work primarily off-site? The organizational structure of your company is an important element to consider as you explore options for the ideal ECM software. The system should be accessible (with the appropriate security measures in place) on your company's local network as well as remotely on mobile devices. To help with this, look for an ECM system that offers a full-text search tool that allows employees to find what they need quickly. Your content must also be readily available to employees at their fingertips to facilitate productivity and teamwork.

3) Decide what additional functionalities you want your ECM to support.

Beyond the basic storage and accessibility quality, think about other features that you might like for your ECM software to provide. Perhaps you desire automatic tracking so you can revert back to an earlier version of a document after a change is made. You might also require support for multiple languages and time zones, or you may prefer a system that can generate reports and metadata. Make a wish list of all the components you hope to include, and be sure to pick an ECM system that meets some of those needs.

The right ECM software can help ensure that your company is well-positioned to remain productive and collaborative, no matter the extent of the records you have to manage or where your employees are working in the world.