Six document management trends in 2016

By: Ronnie Oeschger, Divisional Director Xerox Indirect Channels, Bytes Document Solutions

The traditional image of document management is one that could easily be described as ‘same old, same old’. However, this would be completely wrong as document management in the age of technology is constantly changing and evolving.

The current evolution in this space is being driven by several key trends, all of which warrant closer consideration.

1. Cloud

The sheer pervasiveness of the cloud has fundamentally altered business as a whole. Since the cloud enables enterprises to store nearly unlimited amounts of data, and allows employees to access it from anywhere, its impact on document management solutions and procedures will continue to be felt for a long time.

2. Mobility

Spinning out from the above is the fact that mobility promotes increased accessibility to the information stored in the cloud. It means your people can access relevant data anytime, anywhere and from any device.

3. Increased integration

Increased integration between document management solutions and workflow tools means that productivity is improved by allowing managers to integrate scheduled and assigned tasks within various affiliated documents, not to mention sharing, accepting or denying changes made to project documents – on the fly.

4. End-user focus

Technology as a whole, including document management tools, is increasingly focusing on the end user, leading to a greater emphasis on usability, convenience and control.

5. Social sharing of information

The end-user and mobility trends have also resulted in a situation where the benefit of collaboration means that instead of accessing documents on a one-on-one basis, employees can access information, as well as share it – and the insights that come with it – amongst peers, partners or customers.

6. Security

In light of the trends like cloud and mobility, security remains a pressing concern. Even electronic documents that contain sensitive information need to be managed and controlled effectively. Document management security must therefore focus on striking balance where it is strong and effective, easy to use, and does not inhibit either workflows or convenience.