Information is a key business differentiator and is worth its weight in gold in the enterprise. We now have the means to access, process, analyze, use and exploit information in its diverse forms. However, as it was mentioned in a social media forward, it looks like we could be drowned in a sea of information.
I have come across companies that have digital information and use it fairly well but do not know how to handle the vast quantities of data. I guess they do not know where the information lies and when and how to use it, though it is all there, somewhere.
Surely we do not need all the information all the time. Businesses and institutions need a sense of what is needed when and what can be put away-without fully junking it. This is apart from the information that can be deleted totally.
This is a typical scenario when we start discussing the solution needs at a client’s organization and we usually suggest a digital archival managing system (DAMS) depending on the complexity of the issue. With Digital Archiving you can move files that are no longer actively used, to a separate storage device. This long-term retention helps in future reference, regulatory compliance, legal and audit needs and in preserving historical information.
Why archiving?
In the lifecycle of information, archiving is the final stage but an important one. You would agree that even storage of information comes with a cost in terms of time, effort and money especially in an enterprise. It would make sense, therefore, to regulate what we maintain in terms of old information and what we discard. Archiving is the answer.
If you need more validation for DAMS, consider this-unwanted information consumes valuable storage space, slows down information search and increases the number of irrelevant search results. This is in addition to the effort required to maintain, migrate, and classify the ever-growing volume of data and information.
But then, we cannot go about merrily junking old information. There needs to be a good balance between archiving information and deleting junk while taking care of legal, audit, reference and historical aspects related to data. This makes archival management a specialized function that requires an exclusive system such as a fully digitalized archiving solution.
About Digital Archival management systems
Digital Archival management systems (DAMS) make archives indexed and searchable, making it quick and easy to archive, locate and retrieve our files. Our customers use archiving solutions to provide quick and easy access to their closed records and files while meeting policy, regulation, compliance, and legal archiving requirements. Now you can bid goodbye to volumes of physical files or the practice of storing valuable information on active systems, with these long-term solutions.
A digital archive enables preservation and supports planning and management. It makes information findable, readable, and usable across a longer time frame while ensuring long-term privacy commitments, such as GDPR, eIDAS and the Digital Act.
Who needs DAMS?
DAMS can be invaluable in any modern organization that relies on information and where information is a vital element of business activities. For instance, our archival management solution has customers from industries and sectors such as Banking and Finance, Insurance, Healthcare, Public Sector, Legal, Transportation and Logistics, Media and Business Process Outsourcing.
Choosing a DAMS
It if is a typical medium to large organization, I would recommend a DAMS solution that can be applied across multiple locations with a consistent and reliable methodology for handling business-critical documents. Of course, it would have the necessary security, policy controls, checksums, and comprehensive audit trails to ensure the authenticity and safety of the information. They also typically support mobile users across PC, smartphones or tablets while being scalable.
The DAMS from SBL Corp is one of the options in the market that provides scalable cloud or onsite systems. It features a centralized platform for the administration of digital archives and associated data, multi-lingual support, intuitive UI and search features among other benefits.
With greater awareness and emphasis on information and compliance, companies now see DAMS as a high priority. They are keen to ensure that their information is stored throughout its lifecycle on a secure and most cost-effective platform. It reflects the importance of effective preservation of digital information in a well-organized, complete digital archive—after all, information is a valuable resource.