Designing a Document Management Strategy
Article #7:
Selecting the Right Document Management Technology - Part One
(Read more articles in this series)
By Kevin Craine
With so many technological toys available, how do you know what solution is right for your particular situation? The answer may lie in the questions you use to drive your decision. Having the correct questions in mind is more important than the answers you find.
In my book, "Designing a Document Strategy, I propose that the key to finding the best technological solution is to ask the right questions. This means considering as many potential solutions to your problem as you can possibly generate and asking questions like:
- What are the costs associated with each solution?
- How much time is required for implementation?
- What will be the effect on workers, managers and the company?
- What are the barriers to implementation?
- What is the likelihood for success?
- What are the risks if we fail?
Are there other important questions that fit your particular situation?
In this and future columns we will examine a three-step process that will assist you in selecting the best technological solutions. In the first step, your aim is to collect a large quantity of solution ideas. Work to compile a wide-ranging list of creative options. In the second step, you must narrow down your list by selecting the best four to six possible solutions. In step three, you will select a final solution and one or two viable alternatives.
Step 1. Generate a list of possible solutions.
Step 2. Determine the best solutions.
Step 3. Select a final solution (and alternatives).
Generating an all-embracing list of possible solutions will offer you a big advantage over the usual approach, which is to simply come up with one or two alternatives from which to choose. By developing specific criteria for your decision and assigning weights to each one you bring objectivity to your process and avoid the temptation to select the easiest answer or someone's "pet" solution.
Generating an all-embracing list of possible solutions will offer you a big advantage over the usual approach, which is to simply come up with one or two alternatives from which to choose. If you limit yourself to only a few alternatives you are much more likely to overlook the best solution. The two or three ideas that come quickly to mind may not actually be the best choices. A better way is to start with a much longer list of possibilities. That way, you improve your chances of exploring more innovative and unusual solutions that would not be considered otherwise.
When generating a list of possible solutions, don't stop too quickly. Go for at least twenty possible solutions. The first few ideas, or the most obvious ones, are not always the best. Ask yourself:
- Did you avoid passing judgment or making comments on the possible solutions as they were raised?
- Did you think outside your own experience and expertise?
- Do you fully understand each possible solution?
- Did you go for quantity - at least 20 possible solutions?
Next time we will boil down the possibilities into a "short list" from which you will select the best overall solution. Check out the ACOM archives for prior columns in this series.
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 Next Article: Part Two | Part Three
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