What is an electronic document management system
An electronic document management system (EDMS) is a software program that manages the creation, storage and control of documents electronically. The primary function of an EDMS is to manage electronic information within an organization’s workflow. A basic EDMS should include document management, workflow, text retrieval, and imaging. Not all EDMSs have records management capability. To qualify as a records management system, an EDMS must be capable of providing secure access, maintaining the context, and executing disposition instructions for all records in the system. For additional information and guidance, see the Electronic Document Management Systems section of the Electronic Records Management Guidelines. Agencies considering the purchase of an EDMS should consult the South Carolina Enterprise Architecture standards. http://www.cio.sc.gov/SCEA/eap/eap-E-Document-Management-Systems.pdf Several systems are available for purchase under state contract. http://cio.state.sc.us/itmo/co
An electronic document management system (EDMS) refers to a computerized environment that accepts, stores, tracks, and distributes documents in an electronic format, including text, graphics, and color. An EDMS requires a storage repository where electronic documents are maintained; a means of entering documents into the repository; a method of document tracking; and a means of retrieving the electronic document from the repository. During its life cycle a document goes through three stages–it is created, utilized, and then destroyed. An EDMS handles all three of these stages more efficiently than a manual system. Two of the strengths of electronic document handling are the ability for more than one user to view the document at the same time and the ease of locating documents.
An electronic document management system (DMS) is a software system used to store and manage electronic documents and images of paper documents. With document management software applications such as Globodox and Sohodox, organizations can create a single centralized repository of all their electronic and paper documents. They can then provide their staff with controlled access to this repository. Advanced document management systems such as Globodox also provide features such as check-in/checkout, version control and audit trail. Integrated Workflow which allows routing documents (based on preset rules) is also an important document management feature. Though the goal of a “paperless office” might be difficult to achieve, document management software systems definitely allow an organization to quickly move to a “less paper” system.
