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News from the Central VA Laserfiche User Group

Posted September 2, 2009 by laserficherio

In <st1:place st="on">Central Virginia</st1:place>, ECM is moving right along! In fact, the Central Virginia Regional Enterprise content management system company Laserfiche User Group, is meeting at the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Albemarle</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">County</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Office</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Building</st1:placetype></st1:place>. This meeting will feature speakers from the Library of Virginia, who will give a presentation and field questions about ECM records for local governments and state agencies.

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Training will cover electronic records, both scanned documents as well as other enterprise content management stored records (such as databases, Word files, Excel, etc). Retention and destruction requirements and using the retention schedules will all be included as well.<o:p></o:p>

One of our members, Corey Smith, from the Library of Virginia, has provided some information that provides excellent background and will help everyone attending come prepared with specific, pertinent questions. <o:p></o:p>

Corey says:<o:p></o:p>

“As your primary interest is with electronic records that are scanned and in a database, I would like to mention that records follow the same retention period regardless of format. Caveats come into play as retention periods differ and some records may not be the best candidate for a particular format. For example, a record with a 50 yr retention would not be recommended to kept on a CD. The life expectancy of a CD is only 20 yrs. Because of this, anything with a permanent retention or with a long retention would not be recommended for a CD format.<o:p></o:p>

“On the LVA Website, you can access our updated Electronic Records Guidelines that can hopefully provide some additional information for your benefit.<o:p></o:p>

“To give you an idea of what’s considered personal identifying information, under section “C” of 18.2-186.3 in the Code of Virginia, it defines certain types of personal identifying information.”<o:p></o:p>

If you’re in the <st1:place st="on">Central Virginia</st1:place> area, we hope to see you at our User Group meeting!<o:p></o:p>

Our Agenda:<o:p></o:p>

Welcome/introductions <o:p></o:p>
Group business & info <o:p></o:p>
Lightning Talks (Mini-Success Stories) – each person has up to 3 minutes to talk about something cool they learned or did with Laserfiche recently <o:p></o:p>
Library of <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Virginia</st1:place></st1:state> presentation, followed by questions from attendees <o:p></o:p>

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Tags: ECM, enterprise, content, management

ECM: Worth the Investment?

Posted June 24, 2009 by laserficherio

Financial advisors are facing increased regulation and, in some instances, overlapping regulations that will constrain business and also increase their workload, add to their storage needs and require them to do additional staff training. Never has there been a greater need for electronic document management (sometimes called ECM or enterprise content management ). Most firms look at document management as filing, whether they use paper or electronic files, and it’s often likely that they’ve set up informal procedures for handling them. A properly designed ECM system integrates work-flow procedures and controls, which usually means it is tied into a database (client relationship management software, for instance). Other firms that aren’t using enterprise content management have set up a stand-alone indexing system—a folder tree like the one you find on a computer’s operating system. But without specific, strict controls, informal systems pose problems. One is that documents can be misfiled, or worse, that employees unfamiliar with the folder trees can simply create new folders for items that should have been placed elsewhere. This makes document retrieval difficult and frustrating, to say the least. A common mistake made by some firms is to use a system that saves documents in a PDF instead of a more secure format such as a TIFF. This means documents can be altered after the fact, and the firm risks potentially violating federal regulations. While some scanner manufacturers have addressed this issue with post-imprint symbols and other coding mechanisms to ensure authenticity, there are still lingering doubts about the security of the original documents. It may be tough to justify additional expenses nowadays, but the simple truth is that those advisors boasting an efficient document management system can bring their costs down over time—way down. These lower costs can soften the blow of any up-front expenses and fully justify the time commitmentnecessary to implement the systems. If you’re associated with a broker-dealer, chances are it is already offering some level of document management (form capture, forms you can fill out, outsourced electronic storage, etc.). If not, there are a host of available systems that can transform your financial practice into a highly efficient operation by helping you go paperless. The SEC and FINRA have both ruled on the acceptability of paperless storage, retrieval and recovery. They have even ruled on the acceptability of electronic signatures (with specific guidelines). Among other things, a planner’s document management process must comply with SEC and FINRA rules, Sarbanes-Oxley and the USA Patriot Act. There should also be a way for him to provide an audit trail. So what is stopping you? It’s likely two things: the cost and the knowledge you need to get the job done right. A typical system such as Laserfiche Avante for example, can cost about $4,000 for the initial outlay to serve an office of four staffers (and the Avante system was designed to be affordable). While it sounds like a lot of money, though, consider what such a system could do in shaving off staff time and increasing productivity and profitability. With such a system, there would be a much faster document storage and retrieval process. The office can also go paperless, allowing a planner to save a great deal of office space and reduce staff time enough to equal the salary of another employee. So you may wish to ask yourself, would I be willing to spend $4,000 to save up to $40,000? Also consider that the annual renewal costs are much less, even though the savings continue. Most financial advisors are only aware of Laserfiche as a provider of document management solutions for the financial advisory profession. But clients such as the Mexican Immigration Service, the country of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> and the U.S. Congress also use the technology. The product allows users to build a more robust enterprise-level system later, if their firms grow. Broker-dealers often provide their own documents, many times fillable PDF versions that advisors must transmit through secure, proprietary systems the B-D owns itself. If the B-D does not supply the advisor with forms, she may need to locate a reliable source, and there are at least two: LaserApps and QuikForms. Firms like these typically offer thousands of forms for download, though advisors use only a few. It would be wise to ensure that the forms you need are actually located in these databases before signing up for them. These services might also add a form for you, if they don’t already have it in their inventory. You may also create your own forms if they aren’t available elsewhere. For this, you need Adobe Acrobat, either in its standard or professional versions. There is a much-overlooked feature in this program that permits you to take a PDF document and create empty form fields. You may only need to do this to a few forms, so it could save hours of staff labor. However you choose to create documents, if you use a comprehensive document management system with automated work-flow features, you can significantly increase the efficiency and profitability of your practice.<o:p></o:p>

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laserficherio

Posted June 10, 2009 by laserficherio

Enterprise Content Management Can Help Drive Business i

Posted May 27, 2009 by laserficherio

<style> </style>In order to stay competitive during the economic downturn, executives involved in ECM say their company plans to reduce operating expenses and improve cash flow. Effectively managing enterprise content management processes can help meet these objectives, particularly with reducing expenses.

ECM accelerates the flow of information throughout an enterprise which simplifies administration, installation and support IT. Enterprise content management systems help organizations better manage their information, but systems is intended to standardize business processes that often end up confined to just one or two departments, because they simply aren’t flexible enough to meet the diverse needs of individual departments and offices.

Companies have realized that the potential for enterprise content management is one the best practices to yield benefits such as lower operating expenses, which can help them to survive and thrive in the days ahead.

Disclaimer: This blog or article is for information purpose only, and should not be treated a professional advise or price protection guarantee. This blog is mainly used for search engine optimization and other commercial purposes and it is advised that readers seek professional consultation in the field of interest for more information.

Technology as a Recruiting Advantage

Posted May 27, 2009 by laserficherio

Spire Investment Partners

uses ECM to recruit new advisors <o:p></o:p>

“If financial advisors aren’t talking to people, they’re not making money,” says Paul Murphy, National Sales Director at Spire Investment Partners, LLC. Murphy’s problem was that his top earners were spending too much time staying on top of the paperwork that comes with handling over $1 billion in client assets, which he expects to at least double this year. “It’s the regulators. It’s the auditors. The paper starts to pile up from the first client meeting and all the way through the process,” he says.<o:p></o:p>

For Murphy, his previous experience integrating two large broker-dealers had shown how the right technology ultimately leads to success. “If you want to succeed in this business, you’ve got to get great technology,” he says. “Using technology not only defensively, but offensively, is very near and dear to my heart.” Murphy and Phillip Fournier, Spire’s Chief Operating Officer, went on the offensive and decided to invest in a enterprise content management system. They chose ECM not just to manage paper, but also as a tool to cut costs and increase services—which would eventually help recruit both clients and advisors.<o:p></o:p>

Murphy says that, at first, just the idea of a new system and way of doing things intimidated the firm’s advisors. “How many people have said ‘paperless’ in front of advisors and had them say, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me’? That’s where we started,” he admits.<o:p></o:p>

But, once apprehensive advisors, and more importantly, their sales and service assistants, began using enterprise content management and saw how easy and efficient it was, implementation and initial roll-out went smoothly.<o:p></o:p>

National Sales Director Paul Murphy<o:p></o:p>

Murphy credits the training his staff received from the firm’s Laserfiche reseller, One Source/ADI, for easing the implementation process. “I can’t say enough good things about the training. The results are great.” In the 18 months since the firm implemented ECM, Spire has scanned documents from approximately 80% of their offices – with nearly all of their advisors and staff using the system regularly.<o:p></o:p>

“The goal,” says Murphy, “is to apply technology to make work easier. Efficient process flow obviously increases efficiency. If everyone is more efficient, they’re happier. If they’re happier, they’re more productive. If they’re more productive, you’re more profitable.”<o:p></o:p>

With document management, Murphy immediately noticed that Service Assistants and back office personnel were able to respond to client inquiries much more efficiently. ECM is the way to make them more productive,” says Murphy. “We’re very happy that our staff is better able to process workflow and therefore better able to support our Consultants.”<o:p></o:p>

Disclaimer: This blog or article is for information purpose only, and should not be treated a professional advise or price protection guarantee. This blog is mainly used for search engine optimization and other commercial purposes and it is advised that readers seek professional consultation in the field of interest for more information.

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