Understanding Enterprise Content Management (ECM) and How It Benefits Law Firms
One of the biggest challenges faced in the legal profession is the large amount of paperwork that has to be generated, edited, processed, and stored. From affidavit to warranty deeds, there are so many types of legal forms and documents to contend with.
Now there are additional forms of content emerging including video, audio, and social media. When you have massive amounts of structured and unstructured content that is core to your business, you need a solution that will allow you to bring sanity to the chaos.
Enterprise Content Management (ECM), provides businesses with the means to better manage all their digital content in a centralized repository for its complete lifecycle. The content can include electronic documents, images, video, web content, and more.
Many businesses, including law firms, start out making use of off-the-shelf products to cater to their digital needs. Choices like MS Word and Google Drive have often proven very helpful. However, as more digital content and paperwork builds up, work processes begin to slow down as information is no longer as quickly accessible. Having the right information on your fingertips when you need it has given rise to the need for improved content management systems (CMS).
Both CMS and document management systems (DMS) support the goal of managing and storing content. By using a selection of tools and strategies, these systems allow for the effective management and control of documents across the organization.
However, DMS software tends to be best suited to Minnesota legal firms as they offer matter-centric organization, manipulation, and storage of documents and email. This system can also be used to manage website content and databases.
Some of the helpful tools DMS provides to law firms include:
Document version management for reviewing and comparing different edited versions of the same document
Indexing and searching for information within and across all documents
Document checkout functions to control who can access and edit documents
Metadata creation that allows data to be added to the system about a document without necessarily altering the document itself
Email management that allows emails to be organized and searchable according to matter or a project file
Upgrading your ECM system to include such functions and tools provides multiple benefits for law firms in Minnesota.
Benefits of ECM for Law Firms
Improved Workflow
As mentioned, with so much paperwork, it can be difficult to find just what you need. Digitizing files and using ECM allows for easier data mining. Users can quickly narrow their search to find the documents required. Classifying documents by matter is important in ensuring all related documents can be searched for and clustered together.
Data Breach Prevention
Full-function ECM systems are well secured, helping to reduce the risk of data breaches occurring. Given the highly sensitive nature of legal work, ECM should be a top consideration. Information leaks can prove disastrous for business and affect the firm's reputation. Even within the organization, document security can be further enhanced by restricting access to certain files and folders by the department.
Cost Reductions
When users can quickly find the documents and information they need, work processes move faster. Inefficiencies are eliminated, as are storage needs. With more documentation being digitized, there is less need for physical storage space that has to be paid for and facilitated through the use of filing cabinets and printing paper. Compliance penalties can also be avoided.
Regulation Compliance
With each state having its own compliance guidelines, there is one universal aspect. The need for meticulous record-keeping and accessibility. Whenever an issue arises, be it financial fraud claims or data breaching, it is good to have tools in place that will ensure compliance and identify offenders if need be. From audit logs to system backups, an ECM system can do much to ensure access control and safe storage of all content.
Adapting to New Technology
The ever-expanding variety of content that needs to be managed and stored means having to keep up with emerging trends in technology. Over the last couple of decades, innovations like social media, video, and audio recordings have become more prevalent and relevant. With a good ECM system, a business can cope with new forms of unstructured information and organize them in whatever way that is needed to optimize functionality.
How ECM Works
ECM makes use of a collection of tools, strategies, and methods to manage content. Digital content goes through a lifecycle that includes creation or capture, publishing, archiving in a repository, and eventually deletion when it becomes obsolete and storage space is needed.
These stages also match up to the five components of ECM. These are capture, manage, store, preserve, and deliver. Delivery is an additional step that enables users of ECM to provide clients and other end-users with the information they may request.
Given the unique needs of different law firms in Minnesota, it is important to tailor the system so that it works in tandem alongside existing systems, or is upgraded to match the business processes. This customization helps fill any gaps that may be causing inefficiencies.
All types of documents being handled by the firm should be captured. If not already digitized, firms can even make use of optical character recognition tools to convert scanned documents into searchable text-enabled files.
The software can be used to identify near-duplicate content and minimize the versions, with metadata being used to track changes. Restrictions to access can help control who can view or edit the documents ensuring better security.
Searches for documents and information is also made easier. With a secure ECM system, authorized users should be able to access documents on a variety of devices, both in-office or remotely without worry.
Ultimately, with a well-designed ECM, businesses can enjoy improved workflow as users gain easier access to the information they need to complete projects, communicate with team members, and make decisions.
What to Expect from Your ECM Solution?
A secure content repository
Automated data capture, categorizing, and storage
Quick and easy accessibility to data when and where needed
Improved process efficiency and work productivity
Easy collaboration between the new ECM systems and existing systems
Information governance that meets compliance regulations