Eeeny Meeny Miney Mo, this direction we will go!

Sometimes as users, we feel this is the method being taken to decide what the corporation did in relation to ECM. In particular, I have heard this more and more in relation to the selected method of finding information.

“Why did they choose such a clunky interface when there are search engines out there that can do the same thing and better?” The real question is not whether it can be done better with a search engine but what were the reasons this method was chosen and could a search engine be complementary to the ECM solution?

It is true search engines can be more intuitive these days and offer a fast and easy method to find information but it alone, does not provide the key aggregation facilities needed to work with the corporate Business Classification Scheme (BCS), meet the retention management requirements or support the taxonomies upon which your company has standardized for consistency.

The search engine may also be such that if there were a discovery request and legal hold placed on information for litigation, there is no way to manage it properly thus putting the company at risk. In this case the risk could equate to millions of dollars if the methods and utilities used cannot be confirmed and proven.

These are questions that arise regularly within AIIM membership. Questions that can be addressed with suggested practices learned through AIIM education. Perhaps the real question is one of taking a professional enrichment course like the ERM and ECM programs by AIIM.

Written by Bob Larrivee