AIIM ARP1-2009 – Analysis, Selection, & Implementation of Electronic Document Management Systems
(EDMS)
• Product Scalability: The evaluation of any technology component should include the consideration of the
expected scalability of the solution based on its ability to meet future increases in processing volumes and
expanded user base.
• Availability of system documentation, including help facilities.
• System Security: Due to the importance that security issues have throughout the enterprise, the organization
should evaluate security features in compliance with the organization’s internal policies and requirements.
Often the ability of the product to leverage the security features of the native operating system provides a
measure of protection that will alleviate concerns over proprietary implementations. The organization may
also want to evaluate and weigh product features that support managed network services over use of
applications using open sessions or “captured sessions” that provide limited security.
• System Availability: Although system availability issues are often overlooked, many government agencies
now expect a defined level of availability for the entire solution. The organization should identify particular
features of the product that directly contribute to system availability and identify those single points of failure
in the solution that can cause a complete outage. This evaluation should be performed within the context of
the risks associated with not having the solution available during normal business hours.
• Cost of Ownership: To determine the cost of ownership of a given solution, the organization should also
consider features that address basic system administrative tasks including configuration management,
software distribution, addition of new users, auditing, error reporting, disaster recovery and restoration,
performance measurement utilities, and management reports. Determine whether the product requires
additional software and/or hardware to maintain a test, training, and development environment.
• Reference Site Benchmarks: When available, performance benchmarks from a known reference site of
similar size are invaluable in determining the solution’s ability to meet the expected volume of work.
Evaluate the product based on its ability to meet the peak processing loads from the reference site.
Along with these items, it is highly recommended that the review team consider how well the proposed
solution/product meets the business and technical requirements along with whether the solution will
adequately address the business objectives and functional needs and expectations.
It is common for organizations to include members of all aspects of the organization throughout the
procurement document review process including the review vendor/integrator responses. This should
include members of the records management team, business management team, legal team, and the
technical support organization.
6.13 Project Planning and execution
After the vendor/integrator has been selected, the project planning typically occurs with the establishment
of dates associated with detailed technical design, user interface definition/customization, report
definition, etc. This phase of the project can take a significant amount of time, but should not be rushed.
There are various approaches used in the industry to address the issue that unless the users have
experience working with these technologies, there are aspects and functions that will be difficult to
envision.
Taking this into account, the project plan should consider what type of design, development, and review
process will be implemented ensuring that the resultant system meets the user needs while recognizing
the need to have end-user input to ensure successful change management. The first approach is for the
integrator/vendor to create an initial design, or prototype, and have the users “test” the system to gain a
better understanding of how they can use the selected technologies. The process of updating the
prototype and user testing continues in this project model until the system fully meets the needs of the
organization. While this ensures a system that fully meets the needs of the users during initial rollout,
there are several problems associated with this to be considered including the potential for project/cost
ASSOCIATION FOR INFORMATION AND IMAGE MANAGEMENT INTERNATIONAL
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