eDiscovery is the process of collecting, culling/tagging and exporting electronic content that answers specific questions or requests resulting from an audit, law suit, or due diligence. This is obviously not a new concept as organizations have been trawling through paperwork looking for the right information for years, but what we are talking about here is moving this into an electronic platform. So what information may be electronically discoverable? Any information is the answer, which thanks to technology is increasing all the time. Information can exist on network file-shares, collaboration portals such as SharePoint, document management systems, email systems, instant message systems, hand-held devices, laptops etc.
In short eDiscovery solutions help organizations collect and categorize information stored in these different repositories. The ROI is unquestionable in certain situations, however, organizations can go a long way to implement an information management strategy to lessen the burden of eDiscovery.
The following points need to be taken into consideration:
1) eDiscovery works well if the information is electronic. If you have information on paper then this will either need to be digitized, or you will need to use the “old school” approach to discovery…or use both. So the first stage is to understand where your information exists.
2) You may have solutions like SharePoint co-existing with document management systems and network file-shares. The second stage is to understand what system manages which type of documents. Strategically there may need to be a consolidation of systems to simplify the architecture.
3) Should employees be storing information on their local machines/devices or should all the information be stored and managed centrally? Put together a security policy for taking the different types of documents outside of the organization. Perhaps consider an Information Rights Management solution to protect/control sensitive information from leaving the organization.
4) Implement a records retention policy that is guided by regulation and compliance. As more regulations are being put in place to govern content, a strong policy will make sure that all information is present and can be made available during discovery.
SmartDigitalVault: Intelligence from Corporate Records
/in News /by Bruce BoltonStrategic Legal Systems and Portford Solutions have combined IT and legal expertise to create the SmartDigitalVault (http://www.strategiclegalsystems.com/portford) for extracting critical business information from legal records and systematically organize it based on best practices for each business domain. The “smart,” secure repository finds the needed record and generates business reports from the extracted data.
As the “business logic” of the SmartDigitalVault, our SDV Solutions help customers to stay current with legal issues as they arise, while they strategically manage overall risks. For example, we offer targeted, solutions to manage information for these functional areas:
– Customer Contracts
– Vendor Contracts
– Properties and Facilities
– Human Resources
– Franchise Operations & Compliance
– Commercial Real Estate Workouts
– Corporate Governance
– Public Company Compliance
– Investor Relations
– Subsidiary Management
– Chief Financial Officer
The SmartDigitalVault is built on EMC Documentum’s ApplicationXtender document management software and Portford Solution’s award winning DocuNECT electronic capture platform. The SmartDigitalVault provides customers the legal expertise of a general counsel along with the technical expertise of a document management specialist all in a hosted solution.
For more information on the SmartDigitalVault, email Dan Segura @ dan.segura@portfordsolutions.com
DocuNECT for Credit Unions
/in DocuNECT /by Bruce BoltonCredit Unions were among the earliest adopters of Portford’s DocuNECT software (formerly called Content Migration Server) due to the fact that they have complex requirements like major banks but are much more cost conscious. Like major banks, Credit Unions offer their members a wide range of products and services. Unlike major banks, however, Credit Unions are not for profit so the need to automate the capture and distribution of member documentation in the most cost effective way possible has made DocuNECT a perfect fit.
Based on the requirements of several AX Credit Union customers Portford developed strong integration capabilities with IMM, a company that produces a number of solutions for the banking industry (electronic forms, check 21, cash receipt solutions, etc). DocuNECT integrates with IMM software to provides seamless capture into ApplicationXtender.
DocuNECT can also help Credit Unions produce reports and member statements and archive them directly into ApplicationXtender. Some Credit Unions outsource the management of reports and statements. DocuNECT provides an flexible capture platform to capture these documents as PDFs which accurately represent the documents physically received by members. Other features such as the Virtual Print Driver and the AX recycle bin have been developed and refined based on the requirements of Credit Unions. It is fair to say that many of the features and capabilities in the DocuNECT capture platform for AX are direct results from working with our Credit Union partners.
eDiscovery and Information Management
/in News /by Bruce BoltoneDiscovery is the process of collecting, culling/tagging and exporting electronic content that answers specific questions or requests resulting from an audit, law suit, or due diligence. This is obviously not a new concept as organizations have been trawling through paperwork looking for the right information for years, but what we are talking about here is moving this into an electronic platform. So what information may be electronically discoverable? Any information is the answer, which thanks to technology is increasing all the time. Information can exist on network file-shares, collaboration portals such as SharePoint, document management systems, email systems, instant message systems, hand-held devices, laptops etc.
In short eDiscovery solutions help organizations collect and categorize information stored in these different repositories. The ROI is unquestionable in certain situations, however, organizations can go a long way to implement an information management strategy to lessen the burden of eDiscovery.
The following points need to be taken into consideration:
1) eDiscovery works well if the information is electronic. If you have information on paper then this will either need to be digitized, or you will need to use the “old school” approach to discovery…or use both. So the first stage is to understand where your information exists.
2) You may have solutions like SharePoint co-existing with document management systems and network file-shares. The second stage is to understand what system manages which type of documents. Strategically there may need to be a consolidation of systems to simplify the architecture.
3) Should employees be storing information on their local machines/devices or should all the information be stored and managed centrally? Put together a security policy for taking the different types of documents outside of the organization. Perhaps consider an Information Rights Management solution to protect/control sensitive information from leaving the organization.
4) Implement a records retention policy that is guided by regulation and compliance. As more regulations are being put in place to govern content, a strong policy will make sure that all information is present and can be made available during discovery.