3 Ways to Promote Government Transparency Using Laserfiche ECM this Sunshine Week !

Every March, the national Sunshine Week initiative brings government organizations, media groups, nonprofits, civic groups and other members of the general public together to discuss and promote open government in the United States. The initiative always coincides with President James Madison’s birthday on March 16, because Madison was the founding father who was the most adamant about the need for the government to have checks and balances.

Government transparency is an important part of democracy, which is what Sunshine Week aims to celebrate and protect. The public’s right to know creates accountability for organizations and keeps citizens informed of how their government is operating.

However, it’s not always easy for agencies to respond to records requests in a timely manner. As Maureen Reynolds, Tompkins County Clerk, said “People think the government is hiding information. It’s not that we’re hiding it, we just can’t find it!”

Many government agencies have turned to Laserfiche enterprise content management (ECM) for help. Whether you’re looking for information related to CIA cafeteria complaints or court case files, it’s important to expedite the process and deliver the information in an efficient, compliant manner.

Here are three ways Laserfiche ECM can promote government transparency and save time for your organization:1. Create a public document portal

The ultimate solution to a backlog in public records requests is a self-service model.  Using Laserfiche ECM, government organizations can post select public documents online, which allows citizens to quickly and easily access commonly sought information on-demand.

The City of Fontana, CA, implemented a public document portal when citizens and media groups were seeking information about proposals to build two local big-box stores. By letting citizens locate the documents themselves using the online portal, city staff saved an estimated 10 to 20 hours per month that otherwise would have been spent manually responding to these public records requests.2. Integrate Laserfiche with other applications to improve information usability

While posting documents online can be helpful, in some cases, it can be even more user-friendly to attach the documents to another application or website so the information is being delivered in a suitable context. For example, attaching land use documents and permits to a mapping application can help businesses and land-owners easily locate the information relevant to their parcel of interest. Citizens don’t always know the parcel number they should be searching for when locating documents, but they will be able to locate the area on a map, and click on the parcel to pull up the relevant documents.

Skagit County, WA implemented a system where citizens and businesses can identify parcels of land using their phone’s GPS location and pull up permits and assessment documents based on the location. This tool, called iMap, receives over 7,000 hits a day and is used heavily by bankers processing home loans, real estate professionals and even pizza delivery drivers. In addition, county staff has benefited from heavily reduced lines for records requests, and citizens have been pleased by the accessibility of information.

3. Create an e-form to capture public records request information and automate notifications

Using Laserfiche Forms, governments can quickly fulfill requests for documents that aren’t available online, which helps organizations comply with public records legislation. For example many public records laws (often called FOIA or FOIL) set strict timelines for responding to a request. By collecting public records request information via an online form, notifications can be automatically routed—and stakeholders updated—as the process progresses.

So, when a citizen files a request, the responding department is immediately notified of the new request via email. Then, upon receipt of the request by the responding department, Laserfiche ECM will send an email to the citizen stating that the request has been received and will be responded to within a given time period. This helps cities, counties and state agencies maintain compliance with public records mandates while expediting the process of administering the request.

The City of Ithaca, NY, uses e-forms to collect public records requests, and since implementing this process, has seen a 35% reduction in the time it takes to respond to requests. Given that the city receives over 1,000 requests annually, this equates to over 7,000 hours saved each year!

for more information visit this site : https://www.laserfiche.com/ecmblog/3-ways-to-promote-government-transparency-using-laserfiche-ecm-this-sunshine-week/

5 Ways Document Management Systems Can Improve the Bottom Line !

How much will a document management system actually benefit my organization’s bottom line?

That’s a common, reasonable question every organization should ask before investing in new technology. But like any other tool, the impact of adocument management system (DMS) on the bottom line rests entirely on how you use it.

While ROI isn’t necessarily a hard, universal number, here are some ways other organizations have improved their bottom line with document management systems.

Reduce Mailing Costs

This is likely the most immediate impact on your bottom line. Before using a document management system, you will have mailing costs. After implementation, you will have none, or very few. This is exactly what happened to the Canadian Seed Growers Association (CSGA).

CSGA previously had to mail paper forms to seed inspectors across Canada, racking up hefty postage bills. Using electronic forms to streamline these back-and-forth exchanges, CSGA significantly decreased postage costs.

In fact, CSGA completely eliminated the need to mail anything—and the three weeks’ worth of transit and processing time per application—saving approximately $10,000 in postage, not to mention 300 man hours in labor.

for more information : https://www.laserfiche.com/ecmblog/5-ways-document-management-systems-improves-bottom-line/

How Do You Build a Business !

Great business cases contain objective, compelling and effective information that allows senior managers to choose the projects with the best financial returns for their organizations.

Say you want to implement an enterprise content management (ECM) system. Your business case for purchasing the system could be that it would improve customer satisfaction, reduce onsite and offsite storage costs and require less time to complete routine tasks.

But depending on your organization, the steps to build that business case could be highly structured or relatively brief. Here are a few key points to consider as you build your business case.

Build your team

Building a cross-functional team allows you to examine solutions from multiple angles. Otherwise, you run the risk of developing a solution from one particular point of view—most likely your department’s—and overlooking a better solution or important costs and benefits.

Keep your group small—no more than six people if possible—so you can efficiently work out the best solution. Include the following types of team members:

• A financial representative. Someone from Finance can help establish current costs and benefits, and make accurate projections.
• Beneficiaries. Beneficiaries feel the pain you’re trying to solve, so addressing their concerns is important. Just remember that they might not always be objective!
• Someone who works with customers. If customers feel the pain the most, or if the proposed solution will affect them, include someone who knows what they care about.
• Experts from your network. If you can’t get all the information you need from the people you work with, reach out to your network of connections, vendors and partners.