How to ensure your teams can find the information they need—when they need it

How much time do your employees waste trying to find the information they need to do their jobs? It could be as high as one quarter of their working week, according to some studies.

Today’s enterprises have more information than ever before. That presents an opportunity to help your people make more informed decisions, but it can also be a big challenge: How do you enable them to quickly access the right information to make those decisions, or even complete everyday tasks? And how do you ensure your employees spend more time on productive work, instead of having to sift through emails, documents, financial records, social media posts, business applications and other information sources?

Here are three ways to ensure your people can readily access the right information when they need it.

1. Know where your records are stored

Many organisations have digital records and documents stored in many different places, so it can be difficult to find information, especially when searching across the enterprise. In fact, typically disorganised digital storage systems can make it tough to know exactly what information you have, let alone where it’s located.

The solution is to have a single, central repository for all your electronic records, documents and other content. An enterprise content management (ECM) system provides this, as well the tools you need to organise and manage all your business information—so you’ll know exactly what information you have, and where.

2. Ensure your teams can easily search documents 

However, not all ECM and records management systems are created equal. Your ECM system should have powerful metadata and search tools, along with an intuitive search interface, to allow your people to quickly find the information they need.

With the right solution, you can then put in place the measures needed to make sure information is easy to find. The first is to ensure metadata is always added to records, so users can narrow down searches and quickly find information based on key criteria. The second is to show your people how to use saved searches, so they can quickly find information in specific types of records for routine tasks.

3. Make information accessible on any device

In today’s workplace, where people are no longer tethered to a workstation, it’s vital that they can work anywhere. That means being able to find the information they need when they’re in the office, at home and on the road. They need to be able to easily access content whether they’re on an office computer or using a mobile device in a client meeting.

With a Software as a Service (SaaS) ECM system, your people can securely capture, find and access content from anywhere, on any device. They’ll be able to spend more time on productive work, and less time trying to find information. And they’ll be empowered to make timely, informed decisions.