A small Southern California Firm engaged Epiq to help convert them to a working environment that is substantially less dependent on paper. Epiq engaged their team of Records & Information Management (RIM) and Information Governance (IG) subject matter experts (SMEs) that includes Certified Records Managers (CRM) and Certified Information Governance Professionals (IGP). Epiq SMEs have over 80 years of combined experience both as consultants providing strategic advisory services, and as actual RIM/IG practitioners who have supported Firm’s migration from paper based to electronic records management.
In the design and implementation of the “less” paper initiative and transition to electronic records management, it was most effective to first address the future state and work backwards. Transition to this future state consisted of two primary tasks: policy/procedure development and training/education. Several items pertaining to policy and procedure were agreed upon prior to implementation. As with all aspects of this initiative, end user input was critical to success, and therefore these policy items had to be carefully considered:
As mentioned, end user input was critical to the success of the “less” paper transition and as such, Epiq SME’s recommended that the firm work closely with end users to identify any additional training needs and/or questions specific to using the Firm’s DMS. Many of the practices that made up the future state workflow were not currently in practice simply because end users lacked training and education. Finally, change management was a critical component of this project. To aid in this, collaboration with and receipt of feedback from end users was of vital importance. Because they are the ones utilizing the future state workflow and functioning in the electronic environment, their input and feedback was critical every step of the way.
Epiq continues to be a trusted advisor for the Firm’s electronic records management initiative. Key success factors that were critical for success included buy-in from upper management, the proper software in place, and an IT department committed to developing and delivering the training necessary for end users to function in an electronic environment.
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