JISC

Executive Overview

Under Project JTAP 4/141, over a period of twelve months ending in September 1997, ways in which the electronic handling of paper-based information could be introduced in a Higher Education establishment have been studied.  The study has been focused upon a number of typical areas within the Administration at the University of Manchester, but the experiences of the Universities of Exeter and Glasgow have also been examined.  The issues facing any institution wishing to embark upon this path have been identified, together with the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches.  The benefits of using document management techniques have been found to lie in increased efficiency, better access to existing information and improved physical security.  The disadvantages lie in the loss of the convenience of a paper copy, the dependence upon technology and the disruption which always accompanies the introduction of new systems.  There was found to be widespread support for document management among both executive staff and those directly affected;  there was little support for a completely "paperless" office, however, but rather for a "less paper" one.  The detailed requirements in each of the typical areas were defined, and it was established that there are a large number of companies able to offer an all-inclusive service (hardware, software, installation and support) to meet these;  the costs of the service depend upon the sophistication of the software supplied.  Although, in simple cases, it is possible to cost-justify a document management installation on the basis of savings in physical storage space or the cost of additional filing cabinets, this is not true when software with more functionality is introduced.  In these cases, the selection of the actual software must be made upon the basis of the particular facilities required, and the cost justification depends upon long-term gains in efficiency.  The study recommends that the University of Manchester should proceed to implement document management in the study areas, as part of the “Manchester 2000” Project, starting with small pilot applications and expanding these once their validity has been proven.  The choice of the supplier for any particular institution depends upon whether that institution wishes to develop a simple pilot scheme at low cost, or, having been convinced of the benefits, wishes to embark upon a “business process re-engineering” exercise followed by implementation of one of the more sophisticated systems.  It is essential, when making the choice, to consider the existing IT infrastructure within the institution to ensure that the document management system can be properly integrated with it.

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