The ED market is becoming a market for Russian manufacturers. Main trends, directions and prospects for the development of the global and Russian EDMS market Analysis of the current state of the global EDMS market

The Russian market of EDMS/ECM systems demonstrates a calm development and enters the stage of consolidation. Positive dynamics is maintained due to projects for maintenance, as well as modernization and scaling of systems. This paper analyzes the Russian market for electronic document management systems. The growth dynamics of development drivers is considered, expert opinions are presented. The current and forecast values ​​of the market are presented. The problem of the state of the Russian market of electronic document management systems in a crisis is considered. An indisputable fact is the need to introduce electronic document management systems in organizations of any size. The most popular EDMS used in Russia are considered and their features are determined.

electronic document management

information Technology

Russian EDMS market.

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Currently, the amount of internal corporate information in organizations is growing rapidly, which entails the need to process and store a huge amount of paper documents. As a result, this process becomes difficult and inefficient. To solve this problem, automated electronic document management systems (EDMS) have been developed. This allowed us to move to a new level of business development, increasing the efficiency of working with documents without losing information.

The electronic document management system is an organizational and technical system that allows you to create and distribute electronic documents in the organization's information computer networks, control the flow of documents according to established routes and the hierarchical distribution of users. At the same time, the EDMS technology is aimed at ensuring highly efficient management of the organization's documentary activities at different levels of management, as well as maintaining document management quality control and optimizing business processes.

EDMS includes many production, structural features, requirements and corporate standards. The choice of the optimal electronic document management system for operation depends on a certain number of paper documents in the organization, the need for operational workflow management, the presence of special tasks, as well as the ability to search for information, ensure data security, etc.

Despite the difficult economic situation in Russia, the domestic market for electronic document management systems (EDMS/ECM) continues to develop. Some companies specializing in the development and implementation of such solutions show very significant growth.

According to Tadviser data, which were published at the end of 2017, in 2016 the positive dynamics of the Russian market of EDMS/ECM systems remained. As a year earlier, in 2015, it was 10%, while the market volume in ruble terms increased to 41.6 billion rubles.

The continued growth of the market is affected by both the general economic recovery and individual drivers. For the EDMS/ECM sphere, this is the growing process of import substitution, the course towards the digital economy, increasing mobility and the rapid development of new technologies.

According to TAdviser, at the end of 2017 the dynamics will remain at the level of 2016.

Dynamics of the Russian market of electronic document management systems, billion rubles

The majority of participants in the Russian EDMS/ECM market, following the results of 2016, showed a positive trend in revenue from projects in this area. Only two companies out of 16 recorded negative indicators. The leader once again became the Business Logic company, whose revenue from EDMS/ECM projects increased by 25.7% and reached 1.86 billion rubles. Almost a third of this amount fell on license sales, two thirds - on implementation and support services. Croc and TerraLink companies also got into the top three.

Import substitution has deeply penetrated the IT industry and the impact of this process is felt in all its segments. In the field of EDMS / ECM systems, the replacement of foreign solutions with domestic products is one of the main drivers.

The state consistently strives to ensure that the register of domestic software has earned in full force. There is increasing pressure on companies that neglect the registry. As a result, more and more organizations are starting to use domestic ECM systems.

EDMS solution providers note an increase in demand for domestic platforms, primarily due to the legislative consolidation of the transition to Russian solutions for government organizations and government bodies. The launch of the Russian Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of the registry of domestic software to support import-substituting products contributed a lot to this - the IT systems that got into it are recommended for purchase in state organizations.

Large industry companies with state participation - the main customers of EDMS systems - suggest that in the near future they will also have to abandon foreign platforms in favor of Russian solutions. In this connection, many Russian IT companies are developing their own platforms for EDMS.

Another obvious driver of the EDMS market is the rapid development of digital technologies for business in Russia.

The use of modern data storage and processing tools in EDMS (blockchain, Big Data, AI) expands the functionality of solutions in the field of data processing, standardization and analysis (BI), and EDMS are increasingly used as corporate data warehouses. Data visualization tools appear in systems.

A lot of spurring the development of the market is the total departure of the business to mobile. Today, 4.8 billion people - and this is more than half of the world's population - are active users of mobile devices, and it can be predicted that by 2020 the figure will grow to 6 billion. Naturally, tablets and smartphones are becoming a common element of the IT infrastructure of companies. At the moment, the concept of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) is especially popular, which implies that employees use their own devices for work tasks - the company's management does not need to spend money on the purchase of mobile equipment.

Political uncertainty has increased the risks of using foreign solutions in Russia, plus they have become very expensive. If until 2016 cloud-based EDMS, including imported ones, were rapidly developing as a service, now there is a problem of their use in Russia (and Russian ones abroad). .

Many companies leave the market, and those that remain cut investments and tightly control finances. For the first time, many begin to evaluate the effectiveness of their business processes and look for ways to optimize them. And the means for this are the EDMS \ ECM systems. But in order to launch a new IT project under such conditions, it is necessary to justify its effectiveness in detail. Therefore, only those systems that really increase business efficiency are in demand, - he says.

Oddly enough, but import substitution can also be a barrier to the market. the need to urgently implement support for domestic infrastructure makes it difficult to invest in promising innovations like artificial intelligence.

Another example of a barrier is the process of involving contractors in EDI. Companies that have come to understand and need to use EDI are faced with the reluctance of contractors to use EDI. In this regard, companies are forced to implement separate projects to involve and motivate them.

The main barrier to the market is the lack of a single standard, regulations and insufficient unification of electronic document management systems in Russian companies. So, employees of industrial enterprises are accustomed, in addition to standard reports, to use a lot of engineering documents: for example, drawings in the AutoCAD program. This complicates the transition to an electronic document management system.

In 2016-2017, there were important legislative changes that will radically change the approach to the implementation of IT in government agencies. In 2016, the order of the Government of the Russian Federation dated July 26, 2016 No. 1588-r was issued, obliging Federal executive authorities and state extra-budgetary funds to switch to domestic office software. In addition, a very powerful impetus to the market was given by additional requirements for office software, approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 325 of March 23, 2017, and the methodological recommendations that followed in July of the same year on the transition of government agencies to domestic software, approved by the Ministry of Communications.

The course towards the digital economy gives the Russian IT market in general and the EDMS/ECM systems market in particular a huge potential and many new opportunities.

Electronic document management, the provision of public services in electronic form, the development of portals - all these areas are actually elements of the digital economy, and in Russia these technologies are quite consistent with the world ones. The course towards the digital economy will certainly entail further changes. The forecasts are obvious: this is an avalanche-like growth in the volumes and varieties of digital information, the involvement of all employees in intensive electronic communications, the digitization of "paper" and the activation of related business processes.

Bibliographic link

The development of human civilization is accompanied by an amazing increase in the volume of created, processed and stored information. For example, according to the ASAP magazine, about 6 billion new documents appear annually in the world. According to the Delphi Consulting Group, at present, more than 1 billion pages of documents are created daily in the United States alone, and more than 1.3 trillion are already stored in archives. various documents.

It should be noted that corporate information flows are extremely diverse in terms of sources and forms of its presentation. However, they can be conditionally classified according to the form of storage: electronic and paper documents. There are estimates that currently only about 30% of all corporate information is stored in electronic form (both structured in databases and unstructured). All other information (about 70%) is stored on paper, creating considerable difficulties in finding it. Nevertheless, this ratio is gradually changing in favor of the electronic form of storage (in particular, through the development of electronic archive systems). According to Delphi Consulting Group, the volume of corporate electronic textual information doubles every 3 years. According to the forecast of the same magazine ASAP, by 2004 only about 30% of corporate information will remain in paper form, and 70% of information will be stored in electronic form. It is unlikely, of course, that someday all documents will become only electronic, but there is no doubt that the electronic form of document storage will prevail in the future.

These impressive figures and data only say that for any enterprise or organization, the issues of document flow optimization and control over information processing are of key importance. This statement can be confirmed by the following data. According to Siemens Business Services, a manager spends up to 80% of his working time working with information, up to 30% of employees' working time is spent on creating, searching, approving and sending documents, each internal document is copied, on average, up to 20 times and up to 15 % of corporate documents are irretrievably lost (at the same time, according to the ASAP magazine, the average employee spends up to 150 hours of his working time annually searching for lost information). There are also estimates that it is necessary to spend up to 40% of labor resources and up to 15% of corporate income on working with documents.

That's why efficiency of management of enterprises and organizations Last but not least, it depends on the correct solution of the problems of prompt and high-quality formation of electronic documents, control of their execution, as well as the thoughtful organization of their storage, search and use. The need for effective management of electronic documents has led to the creation electronic document management systems (EDMS) to which this article is devoted. The main purpose of the article is to provide readers of Jet Info with a retrospective of the current state of the global EDMS market, the prospects for its development, as well as a fairly large number of examples of the use of EDMS in the world. You can learn more about all issues related to EDMS using a fairly large number of specialized Web resources (both Russian and English), for example, www.document.ru, www.docflow.ru, websites of EDMS developers, etc. .

Basic concepts of electronic document management systems

Purpose of EDMS

According to industry analysts, electronic document management includes: the creation of documents, their processing, transmission, storage, output of information circulating in an organization or enterprise, based on the use of computer networks. Under the management of electronic document management, in the general case, it is customary to understand the organization of the movement of documents between departments of an enterprise or organization, groups of users or individual users. At the same time, the movement of documents does not mean their physical movement, but the transfer of rights to their use with the notification of specific users and control over their execution.

The IDC defines the concept of ERMS as follows (referring to EDMS” Electronic Document Management Systems): “EDMS provide the process of creating, managing access and distributing large volumes of documents in computer networks, and also provide control over the flow of documents in an organization. Often these documents are stored in special repositories or in the file system hierarchy. File types commonly supported by ERMS include: text documents, images, spreadsheets, audio data, video data, and Web documents. Common EDMS features include document creation, access control, data conversion, and data security.”

The main purpose of the EDMS is the organization of the storage of electronic documents, as well as work with them.(in particular, their search both by attributes and by content). The EDMS should automatically track changes in documents, the deadlines for the execution of documents, the movement of documents, and also control all their versions and sub-versions. A comprehensive EDMS should cover the entire cycle of office work of an enterprise or organization, from setting the task of creating a document to writing it off to the archive, provide centralized storage of documents in any format, including complex composite documents. EDMS should combine disparate flows of documents from geographically remote enterprises into a single system. They must provide flexible document management, both through the rigid definition of traffic routes, and through the free routing of documents. The EDMS must implement a strict delimitation of user access to various documents depending on their competence, position and the powers assigned to them. In addition, the EDMS must be tuned to the existing organizational structure and office work system of the enterprise, as well as integrated with existing corporate systems.

The main users of the EDMS are large government organizations, enterprises, banks, large industrial enterprises and all other structures whose activities are accompanied by a large volume of created, processed and stored documents.

Main properties of EDMS

openness

All EDMS are built on a modular basis, and their APIs are open. This allows you to add new features to the EDMS or improve existing ones. Currently, the development of applications that integrate with the EDMS has become a separate business in the software manufacturing industry, and many third-party companies are ready to offer their services in this market segment. The ability to relatively easily add to the EDMS many modules from third parties greatly expands their functionality. For example, modules for document input from a scanner, communication with e-mail, fax forwarding programs, etc. have been developed for the EDMS.

High degree of integration with application software

A key feature of EDMS is a high degree of integration with various software applications through the use of technologies OLE Automation, DDE, ActiveX, ODMA, MAPI and others. And directly when working with documents, there is no need to use EDMS utilities at all. Users deal only with ordinary application programs: at the time of installation of the client part of the EDMS, application programs are supplemented with new functions and menu items. For example, a user of the MS Word word processor, opening a file, immediately sees libraries and folders with EDMS documents (from where he selects the document he needs). When you save a document, it is automatically placed in the EDMS database. The same applies to other office and specialized programs.

It should also be noted that in most common EDMS, integration with the most famous ERP systems is implemented (in particular, with SAP R / 3, Oracle Applications, etc.). It is the ability to integrate with various applications that is one of the characteristic properties of the EDMS. Thanks to him, EDMS can act as a link between various corporate applications, thus creating the basis for organizing office work in an enterprise. Some industry analysts even believe that the EDMS may well become the basis of the corporate information system of an enterprise or organization (there are other opinions).

Features of document storage

EDMS work mainly on the basis of distributed architectures and use various combinations of technologies for collecting, indexing, storing, searching and viewing electronic documents. Most EDMS implement a hierarchical document storage system (according to the “cabinet/shelf/folder” principle). Each document is placed in a folder, which, in turn, is located on a shelf, etc. The number of nesting levels when storing documents is not limited. The same document can be included in several folders and shelves through the use of a link mechanism (in this case, the original document remains unchanged and is stored at the location specified by the EDMS administrator). A number of EDMS implement even more powerful storage capabilities by organizing links between documents (these links can be set and edited graphically).

Any document in the EDMS has a certain set of attributes (for example, its name, the author of the document, the time of its creation, etc.). The set of attributes can change from one type of document to another (it remains unchanged within one type of document). In EDMS, document attributes are stored in a relational database. For each type of document, a card template is created using visual tools, where the names of document attributes are presented in an understandable graphical form. When a document is entered into the EDMS, the required template is taken and the card is filled in (attribute values ​​are entered). Once completed, the card is linked to the document itself.

In most cases, the server part of the EDMS consists of the following logical components (which can be located on one or several servers):

• Stores of attributes of documents (cards);
• Document storage;
• Full text indexing services.

A document store is usually understood as a store of document content. The attribute store and the document store are often combined under the general name "document archive". To store attributes in most EDMS, Oracle, Sybase, MS SQL Server and Informix DBMS are used, which provide search for documents by attributes.

To store the actual content of documents in most EDMS, file servers MS Windows NT, Novell NetWare, UNIX, etc. are used. In this case, heterogeneous combinations of network environments can also be implemented. For example, a database with document attributes might be running UNIX on a TCP/IP network, while the documents themselves might be stored on Novell NetWare OS on an IPX/SPX network. It should be noted that the great advantages of EDMS are the storage of documents in their original format and the automatic recognition of many file formats.

Recently, storing documents together with attributes in a database has become increasingly popular. This approach has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is a significant increase in the security of access to documents, and the main disadvantage is the low efficiency of working with documents with a large amount of stored information. This approach also requires the use of powerful servers with large amounts of RAM and hard drives. In addition, in the event of a database failure, it will be very difficult to restore the documents stored in it. It is also necessary to be strictly attached to a specific DBMS.

Features of document routing

The EDMS modules responsible for the document flow are commonly called document routing modules. In the general case, the concepts of “free” and “hard” document routing are used. With “free” routing, any user participating in the workflow can, at his own discretion, change the existing route for passing documents (or set a new route). With “hard” routing, the routes for passing documents are strictly regulated, and users do not have the right to change them. However, with "hard" routing, logical operations can be processed when the route changes when some predefined conditions are met (for example, sending a document to management when a specific user exceeds his official authority). In most EDMS, the routing module is included in the package, in some EDMS it must be purchased separately. Fully functional routing modules are developed and supplied by third parties.

Access control

The EDMS implements reliable means of delimitation of powers and control over access to documents. In most cases, with their help, the following types of access are defined (the set of assigned permissions depends on the specific EDMS):

• Full control over the document;
• The right to edit but not destroy the document;
• The right to create new versions of the document, but not edit it;
• The right to annotate the document, but not edit it or create new versions;
• The right to read the document, but not edit it;
• The right to access the card, but not the content of the document;
• The complete absence of access rights to the document (while working with the EDMS, each user action is logged, and, thus, the entire history of his work with documents can be easily controlled).

Version and subversion tracking of documents

When several users work with a document at once (especially when it needs to be coordinated in various instances), a very convenient function of the EDMS is the use of document versions and subversions. Let's assume that the performer created the first version of the document and passed it on to the next user for review. The second user modified the document and created a new version based on it. Then he passed his version of the document to the next instance to a third user who created the third version. After a certain time, having read the comments and corrections, the first executor of the document decides to modify the original version and, on its basis, creates a subversion of the first version of the document. The advantage of EDMS is the ability to automatically track versions and sub-versions of documents (users can always determine which version / sub-version of a document is the most relevant in the order or time of their creation).

Utilities for viewing documents of different formats

Most EDMS include utilities for viewing documents (the so-called viewers) that understand many dozens of file formats. With their help, it is very convenient to work, in particular, with graphic files (for example, with drawing files in CAD systems). In addition to the basic set of viewing utilities (included in each EDMS), additional utilities can be purchased from third parties that integrate well with the EDMS.

Document annotation

When organizing group work on documents, the ability to annotate them is usually very useful. Since in some cases users are deprived of the rights to make any changes to the document in the process of its approval, they can take advantage of the opportunity to annotate it. In most EDMS, annotation is implemented by including an attribute for annotation in the document card and transferring rights to edit such a card field to users. But such a solution is not always acceptable (especially when annotating a graphic document). In this regard, in some EDMS there is a so-called “red pencil” function, with which you can graphically indicate the flaws in the image itself. Software tools that implement the "red pencil" function are widely offered by third parties.

Support for various client programs

Most EDMS clients can be PCs running MS Windows, Windows NT. Some EDMS also use UNIX and Macintosh platforms. In addition, all modern EDMS allow you to work with documents through standard Web-navigators. Since Web browsers can be hosted on a variety of client platforms, this makes it easier to solve the problem of supporting ERMS in heterogeneous network environments. When using Internet technologies, the EDMS has another server component responsible for accessing documents through Web navigators.

General classification of EDMS

ECM concept

The issue of EDMS classification is quite complicated due to the rapid development of the market for these systems. Moreover, since 2001, the concept of “Enterprise Content Management (ECM)”, not electronic document management (according to "Forrester TechRankings"). Term ECM appeared with the light hand of the trade association AIIM International and covers all corporate information management systems.

At the same time, if Forrester Research defines ECM as an integrated approach to managing documents and Web content, then for consulting firm Doculabs, ECM is “a category that combines the capabilities of enterprise document management systems and content management systems with the ability to manage the full lifecycle of enterprise content (as the number of content types continues to grow)” .

From the perspective of industry analysts, the ECM concept offers many business benefits. An ECM system that integrates all content and process-oriented technologies within an enterprise provides a common infrastructure for managing its document flow, minimizing the need to deploy and support multiple technologies to implement various business functions. The essence of this approach (it is also called infrastructure) is that corporate content should not belong to only one application or system. It should be available to many applications and freely distributed between them. An important property of the ECM infrastructure (which includes the corresponding applications of most vendors in the industry) is its independence from a single universal content store. The ECM infrastructure integrates many specialized (or legacy) data repositories (even from competing vendors), including, but not limited to, electronic product document repositories, email, Web content repositories, file systems, and even DBMS. Thus, The ECM infrastructure provides a common integration (or virtualization) layer for each data repository(allowing them to be queried from anywhere throughout the enterprise), thereby minimizing the need to integrate electronic document management systems and content management systems from multiple vendors. In addition, using the ECM infrastructure, such enterprise content management services as personalization, access control, user permissions management, etc. are implemented (which simplifies the administration and maintenance of the ECM system).

The capabilities of ECM systems can be divided into several main categories:

General content management features, which refers to the ability to manage a variety of electronic objects (images, office documents, graphics, drawings, Web content, e-mail, video, audio and multimedia). The ECM system provides a repository for all these types of electronic objects with various library services (content profiling, check-in/check-out functions, version control, revision history, document access security, etc.), as well as the ability to manage data objects throughout their entire life cycle.

Process control functions, which refers to the ability to automate and manage business processes and workflows.

Integration with other ECM systems, implying the ability to integrate an ECM system with external ERP systems, office applications, content repositories, and other EDMS. Integration can be done using a variety of approaches, including the use of object-oriented interfaces (such as EJBs), connectors, APIs, enterprise application integration technologies EAI (Enterprise Application Integration) and etc.

It should be noted that ECM has only existed as a concept so far, and ECM infrastructure today to a large extent is only a look at the prospects for the development of the EDMS market. For example, some industry vendors talk a lot about content management, but they only focus their systems on managing Web content or office documents. They also lack a clear vision of how to create an open ECM infrastructure that integrates specialized repositories across the enterprise. According to analysts at Doculabs (who studied solutions from leading EDMS developers), although vendors recognize the importance of the ECM concept, they are still far from fully implementing it in their systems.

EDMS classification

According to IDC analysts, there are currently the following main types of EDMS (at the same time, some of the EDMS can simultaneously belong to several types, since they have the functions corresponding to them):

EDMS focused on business processes (business-process EDM). They are at the heart of the ECM concept. Systems of this type (EDMS) are designed for specific vertical and horizontal applications (sometimes they also have industry applications). EDMS systems provide a complete document lifecycle, including imaging, records and workflow management, content management, and more. EDMS systems provide storage and retrieval of 2-D documents in native formats (images, CAD files, spreadsheets etc.) with the possibility of grouping them into folders. There is an opinion of some industry analysts that (depending on the indexing scheme and applications used) this document-oriented approach can provide up to 80% of the functionality of a PDM system in a number of EDMS systems at a lower implementation cost. The most well-known EDMS developers are Documentum (Documentum system), FileNet (Panagon and Watermark systems), Hummingbird (PC DOCS system), and others. its activities on the implementation in the EDMS of such functions as template management, dynamic presentation management and Web content publishing. It should be noted that while almost all EDMS systems provide a good level of implementation of repositories and library services for managing electronic content (for example, images and office documents), each of them is the strongest in its area. For example, in systems from companies Open Text and iManage, office document management is most well developed. In turn, systems from Tower Technology, FileNet, IBM, and Identitech are especially strong at managing large-volume product images.

Corporate EDMS (enterprise-centric EDM). Systems of this type provide a corporate infrastructure (available to all corporate users) for creating documents, collaborating on them, and publishing them. The basic functions of corporate EDMS are similar to the functions of EDMS focused on business processes. As a rule, corporate EDMS are not focused on use only in a particular industry or on solving a narrow problem. They are being implemented as company-wide technologies. Lotus (Domino.Doc system), Novell (Novell GroupWise), Open Text (LiveLink system), Keyfile, Oracle (Context system), iManage, etc. are engaged in the development and promotion of corporate EDMS. For example, the Open Text Livelink system provides collective work on project documents for external and internal users, online discussions, distributed planning and routing of documents, etc.

Content management systems. Systems of this type provide content creation, access and content management, content delivery (up to the level of sections of documents and objects for their subsequent reuse and compilation). The availability of information not in the form of documents, but in the form of smaller objects facilitates the process of information exchange between applications. Web content management requires the ability to manage various content objects that can be included in a Web presentation (eg, HTML pages and Web graphics). In addition, Web content management requires the ability to create presentation templates that present dynamic content and personalize it (based on user preferences, profiles, etc.). Content management systems from Adobe, Excalibur, BroadVision, Documentum, Stellent, Microsoft, Divine, Vignette and others are known on the world market. FileNet, Tower and Identitech also offer a certain level of Web content management. In turn, IBM implements web content management functions based on solutions from Interwoven and Open Market (through partnerships with them), and Tower has integrated its electronic document management software with Stellent's web content management solutions. .

Information management systems ”portals. Such systems provide information aggregation, information management and its delivery via Internet/intranet/extranet. With their help, the ability to accumulate (and apply) experience in a distributed corporate environment is realized based on the use of business rules, context and metadata. Portals also provide access through a standard Web browser to a number of e-commerce applications (usually through an ERP system interface). Examples of portals are Excalibur, Oracle Context, PC DOCS/Fulcrum, Verity, Lotus (Domino/Notes, K-Station) systems.

Image/image management systems (imaging systems). With their help, information scanned from paper media is converted into electronic form (usually in TIFF format). This technology underlies the digitization of information from all legacy paper documents and microfilms. The basic functions of a standard imaging system include scanning, storage, a range of image search capabilities, and more.

Workflow management systems. Systems of this type are designed to provide routing of workflows of any type (determining file routing paths) within corporate structured and unstructured business processes. They are used to improve the efficiency and controllability of corporate business processes. Workflow systems are usually purchased as part of a solution (eg EDMS or PDM systems). Here we can mention such developers as Lotus (Domino / Notes and Domino Workflow systems), Jetform, FileNet, Action Technologies, Staffware, etc. A good level of workflow management is also provided in their solutions by FileNet, IBM (through integration with MQ software). Series Workflow), Identitech, Tower (through integration with Plexus and Staffware software), Gauss (through integration with Staffware software), etc.

The classification of EDMS proposed by IDC can be supplemented as well as corporate electronic records management systems. The enterprise records management software market segment is about 5 years old. Corporate records are fixed in time and immutable. They are evidence of business transactions, various rights and obligations, etc. Corporate users must determine for themselves what content should be made a corporate record (such a decision requires an assessment of the future needs of their business). Enterprise solutions that require content retention include major business systems, including ERP and accounting systems, mail systems (such as MS Exchange), reporting and output management systems, e-commerce systems, collaboration software (project management systems, , online conferencing, etc.). Examples of records management systems include software capture by Tower Software iRIMS from OpenText and Foremost from TrueArc.

Many important records management functions in the EDMS did not exist before (for example, classification functions). Methods for physically deleting records and indexes at the end of their life cycle (if necessary) were also not implemented. According to the Gartner Group, corporate users need to extend their Web sites with the features of records management systems. A number of developers of Web content management systems to support Web site records are already extending their functionality with the help of records management systems. Work in this direction became especially noticeable in 2002. For example, Stellent integrated its content management software with the Foremost records management system from TrueArc (it should be noted that integrating records management software with an EDMS is very difficult, since it is necessary to solve the problems of duplication of functions and repositories). With this integration, it became possible to take “snapshots” of a Web site and manage them like records. Interesting features are also implemented, such as recording screens encountered during an online transaction (for example, in WebCapture software from Tower Technology). Open Text acquired PS Software (a developer of records management systems) and built its iRIMS software as a module in its LiveLink software. Documentum, IBM, and Interwoven (among other content management vendors, among other content management software vendors) are also complementing their content management software with the functionality of records management systems.

Many enterprise users want to collect data from different applications running in a heterogeneous environment and generate reports electronically. This possibility is especially necessary for companies using ERP systems (which always collect and store a lot of information, but not always have the ability to generate all the necessary reports in a flexible way).

That is why the so-called output management systems (OMS), the main purpose of which is the generation of output documents. In some OMS-systems, the possibility of archiving and long-term storage of output reports and documents is additionally implemented. In this regard, many of the OMS systems are classified by the Gartner Group as integrated document archiving and retrieval systems (IDARS "integrated document archive and retrieval systems)". However, the main reason for the popularity of OMS systems is still the market niche they occupy - the generation of documents and reports in the information systems of enterprises and organizations built using ERP systems. According to Gartner Group analysts, one of the weaknesses of modern ERP systems is precisely the poor management of the generation of output documents (developers of ERP systems are more focused on improving the functionality of key modules of their software than on “minor” issues of ensuring the generation of output reports that do not have in their opinion, good market prospects). This lack of ERP-systems served as the main factor in the emergence and rapid development of the market for OMS-systems. A number of OMS-systems are responsible only for the distribution and delivery of output documents (in electronic form” in HTML, XML and PDF formats). Very often, OMS systems are integrated with document and image scanning software packages. A useful feature of some OMS systems is the interaction with legacy enterprise systems.

It may also be noted special modules for managing electronic documents embedded in ERP systems (SAP R/3, Baan, etc.). However, the capabilities of these modules are quite limited, since it is almost impossible to create a universal and fully functional ERP system.

Benefits of using EDMS

According to Forrester Research, 38% of Fortune 500 companies believe that purchasing a modern EDMS is critical to the success of their business. In accordance with the opinion of industry analysts (there are quite a lot of such opinions that differ at certain points from each other), the benefits for corporate users when implementing EDMS are quite diverse. For example, according to Siemens Business Services, when using EDMS:

• Staff productivity increases by 20-25%;
• The cost of archival storage of electronic documents is 80% lower compared to the cost of storing paper archives.

It is also generally accepted that tactical and strategic benefits are acquired when implementing an EDMS. Tactical benefits are determined by the cost reduction in the implementation of the EDMS associated with: freeing up physical space for storing documents; reducing the cost of copying and delivering documents in paper form; reduction in personnel and equipment costs, etc. K strategic include the benefits associated with improving the efficiency of the enterprise or organization. These benefits include:

• The emergence of the possibility of collective work on d

QuestionsPCWeek is answered by Istomin Konstantin, Executive Director of the companyDIRECTUM. The questions were asked as part of the PC Week/RE 20th Anniversary Review.

When the EDMS/ECM-systems segment began to form in Russia, what are the key points and stages in its development?

The beginning of the formation of the segment can be called 1995, when the first circulation systems focused on office work became noticeable. Euphrates and Delo are examples of such systems. The Russian tradition of vertical workflow, in which the document, before reaching the executor, must go through the manual, determined the features of the first automation systems. The main tasks of automation were the registration and control of the execution of documents, the preparation of reports. Work in such systems was based on registration cards. It is too early to talk about enterprise content management at this stage, but this is how the very beginning of the segment development was indicated.

At the next stage, which lasted approximately from 1997 to 2000, electronic archives of documents appeared on the Russian market. One of the representatives is the DOCS Open system. At that time, this direction did not receive special development in Russia, again due to the specific tradition of record keeping and document management.

Around the same period, the first workflow systems appeared, they were aimed purely at automating interaction and worked in isolation from document management processes. An example is the Russian OPTIMA WorkFlow system and Western Staffware.

Integrated systems appeared in 2002-2003. They combined workflow mechanisms and the possibility of organizing electronic archives of documents. Just at this stage, we can talk about the emergence of full-fledged electronic document management systems, which made it possible to work, among other things, with the content of documents. A technological milestone at this time is the creation of their own development platforms based on the capabilities of the Microsoft SQL Server and / or Oracle DBMS. A good illustration of that period was the DOCFLOW 2004 exhibition-conference. At that time, the event was more like an exhibition: the participants gathered to see Jukeboxes and powerful industrial scanners that were widespread abroad ... After a couple of years, the conference acquired a more there is a practical interest in using solutions. Docsvision and DIRECTUM have become prominent representatives of complex Russian systems, and the western Documentum system has begun active promotion in Russia. In addition, domestic systems based on Lotus Notes were actively developed as a separate branch.

2006 can be called the year of the formation of modern ECM-systems, combining the functionality of document management and interaction. At the same time, the research company Gartner formulated the criteria that ECM systems must meet. The new versions of Russian complex systems also reflect the new concept of ECM. Also during this period, various business solutions began to be actively developed, designed to cover a variety of tasks for companies based on a single ECM platform.

From 2011 to the present, in ECM, as in the entire field of IT, the trend towards user orientation has clearly stood out: systems become more convenient, there is an emphasis on creating intuitive interfaces. Mobile solutions are being developed everywhere, which have become in recent years no longer a trend, but a necessary condition for the existence of modern ECM systems. The trend of development of cloud products is developing, the market is signaling the readiness of customers for SaaS solutions in the field of document management. Although here Russia lags behind Western markets by sensations of 2-3 years.

How did this segment of the IT market survive the crises of 1998 and 2008?

In 1998, the Russian EDMS/ECM market as such did not yet exist (it was very small). The main characteristic of the crisis can be called the refusal of users of Western systems - the default has affected with all its consequences.

In 2008 there was an active growth of the EDMS/ECM segment, a great interest of customers. Therefore, with the general economic downturn in the IT industry, this segment suffered the least. Sales decreased, but there were no serious shocks, the recovery took about a year.

How is the situation different from that observed during the crises of 1998 and 2008? What are the prospects for this market segment in the near future?

The present situation is similar to the 2008 crisis in terms of “usual” crisis manifestations. There is a general decline in business activity, the dynamics of sales has decreased.

In general, the current situation is markedly different from 2008.

First, the current crisis is seen as a protracted one. fundamental reasons for Russia - oil prices and sanctions - are unlikely to change quickly, it will take 2-3 years to recover.

Secondly, today the ECM market has reached its maturity: customers know what they need from systems, and quite clear requirements are put forward for solutions. In general, the approach to the issue of automation has changed: efficiency has become a tangible indicator. And if the customer sees “in numbers” the benefits of implementing an ECM system, he makes a completely conscious, balanced decision.

As before, large companies have a real need for automation, for which economies of scale allow them to better appreciate the benefits of implementing ECM solutions. The main stimulators of the market are representatives of the oil and gas industry, the defense industry and state corporations, as well as export-oriented enterprises.

Support is also provided by the active position of the state in relation to the IT sector: barriers to the use of electronic documents have been significantly reduced, the trend of import substitution against the background of the growth of the dollar and Western sanctions increases the chances of domestic developers.

In the future, further growth of the EDMS/ECM market is expected to be much larger than the IT market as a whole, while the growth rate during the crisis period will depend on the state of the economy. Mainly, the growth trend will continue in large enterprises, medium-sized companies will give preference to lighter, ready-made, inexpensive solutions. This is where cloud technology comes into play. A larger decline is expected in public authorities due to severe budget cuts. The inter-corporate workflow market, which is a bit apart from ECM, but related to it, is now in its infancy and is expected to grow sharply, which creates new opportunities.

What does the Russian expert community think about the development of the domestic ECM/EDMS market? What are the main results of the past year and what can be expected in the coming year?

According to the IDC classification, most domestic EDMS belongs to the class of systems focused on business processes (often with workflow controls). Various sources note that the following functions are implemented in most domestic EDMS:

• Processing/storage of documents;
• Workflow management (transfer of documents between performers);
• Document execution control;
• Document search by attributes and full-text search;
• Working with related documents;
• Regulation of access rights;
• Write-off of documents;
• Integration with external email systems, etc.

The main advantage of domestic EDMS is a certain consideration of the Russian specifics and traditions of working with documents (initially laid down in their business logic).

It should be noted that some domestic EDMS are created in the Lotus Domino/Notes environment (for various objective and subjective reasons, which has become quite widespread in Russia): BOSS-Referent (IT), the Cinderella product family and DIS-Assistant (Moscow Development Institute) , CompanyMedia and OfficemMedia (InterTrust), N.System (Computer Technology Center), Paperwork (KSK), etc.

Since the development of EDMS in Russia is generally in the direction of expanding the functionality described by the ECM concept, it would be logical to look at this process from the side of the ECM classification. Most Russian customers began their acquaintance with the world of ECM technologies with office automation, the range of tasks of which can be classified as Records Management. But now the growth of the market is largely due to the direction of Document Management and Business Process Management (BPM). Customers set tasks in a complex manner, operate with broader concepts than incoming/outgoing documents. An increase in the range of processed documents requires a sharp expansion of the use of stream scanning and document recognition methods, the use of technologies such as bar coding.

All this, for example, is clearly seen in the fact that organizations are showing a growing interest in the financial archive. Invoices, invoices, payment documents are outside the scope of classical office work, but the solution of this problem will achieve positive results not only for accounting, but also for the supply department, financial, legal departments, and management.

There are other examples: automation of project workflow, contract management, reconciliation of invoices, claims management, automation of personnel processes. It is now widely understood that an enterprise ECM system can be used to manage intellectual property and performance management. There has also been an increase in customer interest in automating non-standard or organization-specific business processes. For example, for banks - this is the management of client files. Interest in automating non-document-oriented operations, such as calls to the support service, business requests, etc., can be called a long-term trend. , but now representatives of large businesses are aware of the need for automation.

At the same time, not all experts share the opinion that the transition to electronic document management, even within organizations, has already been completed, at least in general terms. Dmitry Shushkin, Director of Corporate Projects at ABBYY Russia, says that the process of transition to paperless workflow is proceeding confidently, but still not at all as fast as we would like and could be expected: “Gradually, organizations will be where it is possible , automate their activities with the help of electronic documents. However, in the next five years, the volume of paper workflow in Russia is unlikely to decrease. The business continues to grow, the number of companies (including small and medium-sized ones) is growing and, as a result, the volume of paper documents they produce is growing.”

In 2013, ECM systems continue to go beyond office work. New tasks are set, the functionality of existing systems will be expanded with new modules. The setting of new tasks leads to an expansion of the circle of users of ECM systems. Moreover, partners and clients of the company can be included in the number of users. Legally significant electronic document management between companies is gaining momentum. Along with standard documents, such as invoices, waybills, acts, companies will actively exchange arbitrary legally significant electronic documents - letters, contracts, etc.

Many of you have been using EDMS for a long time in your work, some are in the process of implementation, but there are those who are still eyeing. Nevertheless, knowledge of modern company records and information management systems will be useful for both novice and experienced users. EDMS selection criteria

It is no secret that well-designed and optimized business processes are the key to the success of the company. One of the most important and resource-intensive processes is the process of documentation management support. First of all, these are time costs (coordination, approval, signing, execution control), labor costs (the need to have a specialist responsible for document management on staff), not to mention the costs of consumables and office equipment. EDMS are designed to optimize this process and, therefore, significantly reduce the costs of its provision.

Despite the difficult economic conditions, EDMS in the information technology market remain among the most popular systems, as they allow:

• increase the efficiency of company management by providing management with all the necessary information for decision-making;
• optimize the work of employees with documents;
• preserve critical information and intangible assets of the company (information that may be lost as a result of dismissal or layoffs of employees), i.e. ensure the continuity of business or business processes.

Naturally, information about the usefulness of modern technologies for clerical professionals is not new. If you are reading these lines, then this topic is close to you. Perhaps many of you have been using EDMS in your work for a long time, someone is in the process of implementation, but there are those who are still eyeing.

Nevertheless, knowledge of modern company records and information management systems will be useful for both novice and experienced users.

The market is actively developing, there are many products, business solutions, additional options designed to solve a variety of problems. And even if your company already has a solution for office automation and teamwork of employees, then you are probably now thinking about how to optimize it.

It is important to understand that the electronic document management systems implemented in the company are not a frozen subject, but a living organism that requires significant attention, control, and development. If the system is not developed in a timely manner, then very soon it will become obsolete and will no longer be used by employees.

DOW service - EDMS customer

Perhaps now you are asking the question: "Why do we - clerks - understand the EDMS market, if there are "IT people" and it is their bread to choose programs?".

It is naive to believe that IT specialists will solve this problem for you! Most of the documents today are created, processed and stored electronically. Employees coordinate a lot of documents using ICQ, Skype, e-mail. In addition, documents are created and saved in various formats. And it is the task of clerks to manage this information.

I know many cases when clerks actually became developers of electronic document management systems, prescribing the requirements for the system from scratch. This was the beginning of their journey through the throes and the long processes of development, refinement, and implementation of the system.

At first they acted as business analysts - describing all the processes of document circulation. Then in the role of testers, accepting the results. Well, and then in the role of teachers, teaching employees of their organization how to work with the system. Naturally, all these processes are very lengthy and take a significant amount of time - at best, several months, at worst, years. Later, they confessed to me that if they could have participated earlier in the selection process, they would have saved themselves a lot of effort and time, and decent money for their company! But the most important thing is that they would have organized joint work in the system long ago - their own and the company's employees.

Developers of custom solutions in most cases are guided by the requirements of users. Only they do not take into account that users often do not know what requirements to present and what are the ways to implement their tasks.

Acquaintance with the products presented on the market, understanding the principles of their work gives an advantage when choosing and, ultimately, allows you to choose the most effective solution and save your strength, nerves and money for the company.

Which solution to choose?

So, you decided to understand the situation on the EDMS market and find a suitable system for solving your problems. You open the Internet, and there ...

And there are so many names, descriptions, charts of analytical companies, various comparisons that you can simply drown in this sea of ​​information. Here are just some figures on the number of products on the Russian market.

For February, 2010 in the catalog of electronic document management systems on the website of TAdviser there were about 179 names, the list of the Docflow catalog contains 170 products, also there are various independent portals about document management systems where the list of solutions contains 45 names. DSS Consulting highlights the solutions of about 15-20 companies that have multiple and successful implementation projects over several periods.

As you can see, the Russian market has a wide variety of solutions related to the class of electronic document management systems.

Systems can be called in different ways: "office automation system", "electronic office", "company operational management system", "content management system", "ECM system", etc.

It would seem, what's the difference? After all, all systems do almost the same thing - they provide electronic document management. And document management is a fairly formalized area and all solutions for its automation should be very similar to each other.

However, the market for software products is very diverse - there are expensive systems and economy-class solutions, there are highly specialized systems and constructors that allow you to realize any ideas of the client. All this market diversity stems from the fact that the same functional requirements are implemented in different ways, on different platforms, using different technologies.

Currently, the market has reached a certain stage of maturity, among the EDMS their leaders have appeared, new solutions continue to appear, which indicates that the process of system development continues. Unlike the accounting software market, where 1C is undoubtedly the leader, the EDMS market is not so polarized, the buyer has an extremely wide choice: from the world's leading manufacturers to custom-made developments that take into account the specifics of a particular customer. It's hard to figure it out, isn't it?

The problem of choosing an EDMS

The abundance of offers on the office software market creates a choice problem. But due to the lack of objective criteria and generally accepted methods for assessing the quality of the proposed EDMS and their compliance with the real needs of the organization, there is a risk of acquiring the “wrong” system: too weak or, on the contrary, redundant for solving specific problems. The risk can be exacerbated during the implementation phase, because even a good system can be set up so that it does not work effectively.

As a result, most organizations choose software solutions in the field of electronic document management at their own peril and risk, guided by their own criteria, intuition, or trusting the promises of developers and specialists implementing the system.

Most often, the reason for failure is not so much the quality of the software solution, but its wrong choice and mistakes made during implementation due to the lack of well-formulated requirements for the EDMS.

At the end of 2008 - beginning of 2009. DSS Consulting conducted a study among companies - users of the EDMS that implemented the EDMS in 2008. To the question: "How do companies choose the EDMS?" the most popular responses were:

• chosen according to the recommendations;
• analyzed information on the Internet;
• chose the first available solution;
• decision "lowered from above".

The experience of many companies shows that the consequences of an unsuccessful choice of EDMS are not only material, temporary, organizational losses, but also, most importantly, the failure of the organization to achieve its goals and lagging behind in development.

Therefore, there is a real need for information that would allow: based on the analysis of the system of documentation support for management and business processes of the organization, to formulate requirements for the EDMS, based on objective criteria for evaluating and comparing the EDMS presented on the market, to select the appropriate product and ensure its effective use .

EDMS selection criteria

Before proceeding to a rather extensive topic of reviewing the current situation in the Russian and international markets for information solutions of this class, as well as analyzing specific solutions, let us dwell on the main criteria that need to be paid attention to regardless of the class of software product and market share.

The EDMS of an organization must solve a wide range of tasks and at the same time be convenient and flexible in customization so that it can be supported by the customer. Of course, you can take an ECM platform and get a finely tuned solution that takes into account all the company's business processes, but the implementation of such systems, as a rule, takes from several months to a year or more and requires considerable financial costs. However, you always want the implementation time to be minimal, and staff training to be fast and preferably without interruption from production activities.

Most often, the choice of EDMS is made based on the following criteria:

• the cost of EDMS licenses and other necessary components (hardware, DBMS);
• cost of implementation and support of EDMS;
• the possibility of expanding the system through additional modules and integration with other products;
• Information Security;
• the platform and technologies used;
• reputation of the developer and supplier (the organization implementing the system);
• functional completeness.

Consider the meaning of the above criteria.

The cost of licenses has always been one of the main criteria when choosing a system. EDS customers have long known that a cheap product is not always a good one.

The system should be accessible so that the customer can carry out some system settings himself, for example, independently connect and configure dictionaries, directories, standard document routes, etc., without resorting once again to the services of developers or system integrators. The cost of operating the system will be lower.

The system should be a solution that provides for its further expansion by adding new modules and capabilities.

The range of possibilities extended by additional modules can include both integration with certain applications and extension of the functionality of the system.

When choosing a system, special attention is paid to its information security, how the principles of protecting confidential data are implemented, how the access control system is organized, whether the system supports the use of electronic signature and encryption.

When choosing a system, as a rule, it is taken into account on which platform it is built and what technologies are used. And here the priority is given rather not to novelty, but to stability and reliability. Not the last role in the choice is played by the used database management system (DBMS) and development tools.

If the organization already has a corporate standard for the DBMS, then it is more logical if the EDMS follows it. It is undesirable to expand the list of supported DBMS unless absolutely necessary. The same is true for development tools. The more famous and widespread they are, the more specialists who own them and will be able to develop additional components for the EDMS, and the less the risk of project disruption due to the lack of such specialists.

When choosing an EDMS developer, as a rule, factors such as the period of work in the EDMS market, reputation among users and competitors, the quality of technical support, and the frequency of release of system updates are evaluated. Equally important is the choice of a reliable company - the supplier of EDMS, if the developer company does not work directly with customers.

At the selection stage, it is necessary to evaluate in detail the experience of successful projects and implementations, the level of personnel qualification. It is on the supplier company that the possibility of finalizing the information system within a reasonable time (with acceptable price conditions) depends on the specifics of the enterprise.

Perhaps the most important criterion is the functional completeness of the system. No matter how good the system is in all other respects, its main task is to ensure the performance of electronic document management functions.

Until now, customers have rarely used a systematic approach to assessing the functional completeness of the EDMS, relying on their subjective opinion based on the study of marketing materials or, at best, on a cursory acquaintance with the product on an experimental stand. This is not enough for the successful practical use of EDMS.

It is practically impossible to make the right choice without conducting a comprehensive assessment and comparison of systems, primarily in terms of functional parameters, without taking into account the strategic goals and current tasks of the customer.

A preliminary analysis of the market can help in solving this problem: an initial acquaintance with its main participants, products on the market, key technologies and systematization according to the main parameters.