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What is Information Management?

Information management is all about effectively handling data and information within an organisation, from collecting it to storing, retrieving and sharing it with the right people at the right time. It aims to effectively manage information assets to communicate among different individuals, departments and stakeholders to ensure business continuity and prevent leakage of sensitive information.

In today's digital world, where information is constantly being produced and shared online, good information management is more important than ever. It helps us to:

  • Distill vast amounts of data to derive valuable insights to drive decision-making

  • Ensure regulatory compliance by implementing robust data governance frameworks and enforcing strong access controls to avoid information from falling into the wrong hands

  • Enhance productivity by making it easier to disseminate information, streamlining processes and reducing duplication of efforts

  • Reduce risks of legal and financial punishments against the organisation by mitigating risks associated with data breaches, cyber threats and data loss

  • Drive business success by setting limits to the creation and destruction of information to improve productivity and efficiency

Think of information management as the key to unlocking the actual value of information in our digital age. Without a clear strategy for simplifying document storage and retrieval, organisations may be wasting their most valuable resource — time.

Process of Information Management

With so many information constantly generated and accessed, information management is critical. To achieve this, seven key components work together seamlessly:

1. Collection

This is the raw, unprocessed foundation of information management. An information management system extracts, indexes, categorises and stores data from documents such as legal, financial and payment documents. It is important to gather enough relevant and accurate data to support decision-making and business operations.

2. Organisation

The vast amount of data is then organised through data classification, categorisation and indexing to ensure they are stored systemically to facilitate easy access and retrieval.

3. Storage

Data is stored securely and efficiently in hardware such as computers, servers, storage devices and networking equipment, or software such as applications that allow you to interact with your data and hardware. Appropriate controls such as user access, export controls, audit trails and back-ups must be established.

4. Information Sharing / Collaboration

This involves the distribution and sharing of data within the organisation and with external stakeholders. Consider the information to be distributed, to whom, in what format, how often, under what circumstances and the security protocols to take.

5. Archiving

Ensure valuable inactive or historical data is retained in a secure and accessible archival system or storage medium while freeing up active storage space for current data and organisations.

6. Retention and Retrieval of Information

Establish routines and methods that govern how long information should be kept and set up rules for editing, sharing and accessing to ensure consistency, accuracy and efficiency in information retrieval when necessary.

7. Destruction

Securely remove data that is no longer needed or has reached the end of its lifecycle. This is essential for optimising storage costs, maintaining data hygiene and mitigating security risks associated with retaining obsolete or sensitive information, such as privacy laws only allowing the storage of information for a certain period.

By working together effectively, these seven components create a robust information management system. This system empowers individuals and organisations to leverage information for informed decision-making, improved efficiency and overall business success.

The Role of Information Management in the Workplace

Information is a crucial asset for any organisation. However, to truly thrive, businesses need efficient ways to manage that information. This is where information management systems come into play.

An information management system is a collection of tools and technologies that facilitate effective handling, processing and utilising of information throughout the organisation. By providing a central hub for essential data, information management systems can significantly improve organisational efficiency in several ways:

Centralise Information

Accurate and up-to-date information is vital for making sound business decisions. By eliminating data silos and redundancy, information management systems centralise information to ensure users get access to the right information when needed.

Automate Manual Tasks

Information management systems automate manual tasks and workflows such as data entry, document routing and approvals to optimise resource allocation for more strategic businesses activities. By minimising the need for manual labour and the risk of human errors, organisations can reduce operational costs and avoid costly mistakes.

Enhanced Collaboration

Information silos, where departments work with separate data, can hinder communication and productivity. An information management system enhances collaboration and communication among employees of different teams through real-time collaboration, document sharing and traceable workflows to enable employees to work more efficiently.

Ensure Legal Compliance

Information management systems ensure compliance with legal regulations by enforcing data governance frameworks, strong access controls and monitoring data security incidents, to protect sensitive information and maintain the trust of stakeholders.

Business Continuity & Enhancing Customer Experience

Efficient information management enhances customer experience by providing quick and accurate access to customer data. The system can generate reports and insights that help identify customer trends, track performance and make informed choices. This enables personalised service, faster response times and more effective issue resolution, promoting business continuity and improving customer satisfaction.

Best Practices for Effective Information Management System

Follow this step-by-step guide to building a system that keeps your information organised, accessible and secure:

1. Assess Organisational Needs

Begin by taking stock of the information you need to manage. Identify key stakeholders and gather inputs from different departments to understand their information requirements and priorities.

2. Outline Objectives of System

Establish policies, guidelines or protocols that will guide the successful implementation of the information management system. Define roles, data ownership and compliance requirements that will serve as a user manual when the system becomes operational.

3. Define Information Sources

Identify the types of data collected, stored and used within the organisation. Determine the sources of information, including employees, internal departments and more.

4. Design Information Architecture

Develop a logical and consistent organisation system for your information. This could involve creating categories based on which information is quantitative, qualitative, technical, demographic, financial or legal. Ensure clear and descriptive labels for both physical folders and digital files. This also helps with the effective archiving of information when it becomes obsolete.

5. Implement Data Security Measures

Implement data security measures to protect sensitive information from unauthorised access, disclosure or misuse. Granting access based on roles and responsibilities allows authorised personnel to find what they need quickly and efficiently.

6. Train and Educate Users

Offer training sessions, workshops and user guides to familiarise users with the information management system features, best practices and security protocols. Leverage end-user training videos to enable new employees to self-serve during the onboarding stage.

7. Monitor and Evaluate

Regularly assess the performance of the information management system to determine if it has met objectives, including ensuring that benefits outweigh costs. Track KPIs such as user satisfaction, reduced time in retrieving information and increased use of the data for decision-making, making improvements as needed to address any issues.

8. Maintain and Improve

Get feedback from users, stay updated with changes in technology and evolving business requirements to improve the system's effectiveness in the long run. Continuous improvements ensures that the system remains aligned with the company's goals and objectives.

Elevating Information Management with SMART Workplace Solutions

Organisations seeking to improve their information management need SMART Workplace solutions that can give them the tools and capabilities for success. Canon’s information management solutions use a 360-degree approach that helps organisations work smarter by improving their storage, management and processing of information.

It seamlessly integrates with existing technology infrastructure and workflow, eliminating disruptions to facilitate implementation and adoption. Equipped with advanced features and functionality, Canon’s solutions include document management, intelligent data capture and business workflow automation to help you accelerate growth, increase efficiency and mitigate risk.

Witness how Canon’s information management solutions can help you realise your digital future.

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