Information on an Oracle white paper http://www.oracle.com/us/products/middleware/top-10-criterias-for-ecm-wp-1939579.pdf 2. Core ECM Capabilities When considering an ECM system, it’s important to consider the breadth of unstructured content types that you will manage, as well as the actual product features needed to support that content throughout its lifecycle. Unstructured content comes in many forms, including Microsoft Office® documents, PDFs, scanned images, production graphics, videos, engineering documents and operating procedures. As your company continues to grow, so will the types of content that need to be managed, shared, archived and properly disposed of. Make sure that your ECM system can properly manage the entire lifecycle of these different content types and support the different search needs, rendering, and retention policies that are associated with these different file types. In order to effectively mitigate risk and provide real productivity benefits, an ECM system must be the “single source of truth” within an organization. It is the one authoritative place to go to get the latest version of a file, the most current procedural document, the approved marketing imagery, current sales collateral and much more. ECM systems simplify content discovery for employees while providing flexible and appropriate levels of access. When it comes to managing all of this content, it must be done across the entire lifecycle of the item, from creation to disposal. Items are created or imported into the ECM system where they are classified using an appropriate taxonomy model to facilitate easy discovery and use of the proper retention and disposition policies. Once there, content can be accessed and used by a variety of employees and applications until reaching the end of its usefulness. Where content resides throughout its lifecycle may change over time and often must adhere to governmental requirements, industry regulations, and recommendations of corporate counsel. An ECM system should let you define each step along the way of a content lifecycle for all types of content, different users and roles within the context of your corporate information management strategy. A full set of functionality that supports each step of the content lifecycle is not guaranteed in all ECM systems. A thorough evaluation of these capabilities within the scope of your current and predicted future use cases is warranted to avoid unnecessary and costly customizations. Areas to consider include functionality such as: * Search – without proper search and discovery tools, an ECM system could become a great place to hide information where its value can never be realized. The best ECM systems will provide faceted full-text search, support for common search syntax, filtered search results for end-users to quickly find what they have authorized access to, and advanced search capabilities including custom search forms and metadata search. * Metadata, Classification and Taxonomies– Support for automated, manual and inherited metadata values on all types of content and the associated classification of content based on these values. Support for multiple and easily updated taxonomy models ensure that each line of business can adapt classification procedures to meet their specific needs while adhering to overall corporate requirements. * Versioning – automatic tracking and storage of each file version along with auditing, archiving and the ability to revert to a previous version of a document if needed. * Rendition support – the ability to automatically generate content in other formats (PDF, XML, HTML) or resolutions can be essential for many content usage scenarios. For example, a marketing department managing an image library will often want the ECM system to automatically generate different versions of a high resolution image – a thumbnail, a low resolution version, a black & white version, etc. * Compound document support – Content Folios that allow for many smaller documents to be incorporated within a master or parent document. Often critical for technical or procedural documentation where regular updates must be done to sub-sections of the overall document by a variety of users.

Article on Docfinity http://www.docfinity.com/dont-get-stuck-with-the-wrong-ecm-system-four-essential-criteria-for-success/ 1. Return on investment (ROI) vs. total cost of ownership TODAY
A lot of vendors will claim that their software will pay for itself within three to five years. Sounds good, right? A three- to five- year return is admirable, but unfortunately, in today’s economy it’s just not good enough. You need a system that is going to provide you with returns immediately.
To get the most from your implementation, it pays to prioritize your reasons for implementing new software in the first place. Ask yourself how your ECM system is going to have an immediate impact on your services to your customers, buyers, and suppliers. Maybe you are investing in technology now to avoid future investment—particularly if you are attempting to mitigate risk from compliance or e-discovery. If this is the case, it is worthwhile to expand your vision and take into consideration the additional benefits that ECM can offer your operation.
Talk with an experienced vendor to see how you can get more from your software installation. Find out how automated distribution can make your entire enterprise more efficient and at the same time provide you with the transparency and auditing tools that are required for compliance. In today’s market, you need to look at a model and system that offers a return now. Not three to five years from now. If a prospective vendor is telling you that you will have to wait years to see payback from an ECM system, you would be wise to consider a different product.
2. Integration
Most organizations have a heterogeneous IT environment. In plain language, that means that they have a bunch of different software systems that serve specific business processes—legacy systems, line of business applications, etc. Usually, these systems are lacking in interoperability. This means that information is not easily accessible. Often, information is duplicated across multiple systems.
There are a number of vendors on the market offering ECM solutions. But if they don’t offer the capability to integrate your diverse systems into one cohesive solution, you are merely perpetuating the inefficiencies that are associated with paper.
Steer clear of proprietary ECM systems that lock you into using specific software and limit your flexibility. Instead, look for a vendor whose solution is underwritten with Web services—they should be published to the client base to leverage the application programming interface (API). This will offer your users ECM functionality from within their own familiar software applications—no matter what they might be. At the same time, it will offer access to systems that had previously been standalone. There are no new complicated software programs to learn. Users gain increased functionality from within their familiar interfaces, and access to information housed within legacy systems and line-of-business applications is enabled.
ECM was never meant to be a stand-alone solution. As such, integration is not a luxury; it is a necessity. The product must have the capability to integrate with anything—not just line-of-business applications. It should integrate with your website, portal, proprietary applications, office environment, and more, without additional fees. Integration should be an inherent part of any solution.
3. Software as a Service (SaaS) vs. on-premise deployment
Consider whether your business processes would be better addressed by an on- or off-site system. Off-site ECM implementations, also known as software as a service or SaaS, work much in the same way that your utility provider works. You pay a periodic fee for services, and your SaaS provider takes responsibility for housing and maintaining your system. SaaS minimizes initial up-front costs of an ECM system. There are benefits to both in-house and off-site deployments. A vendor should offer both options, and even offer you the flexibility to house your own solution initially, but move it off-site at any time.
If you are considering SaaS, look for a complete, high-end enterprise solution. Be sure that any SaaS solution you are considering is at least as robust as the vendor’s on-premise ECM offerings: some vendors’ SaaS offerings are only a subset of the technology that is made available to on-premise clients. If a SaaS solution doesn’t offer functionality such as enterprise search, workflow, BPM, and records management, look elsewhere. Be sure that the solution has the flexibility and scalability to grow with your needs, and offers unparalleled security features. To mitigate risk, it is essential that any cloud solution worthy of consideration is housed in a secure facility. It must offer 24/7, 365 uptime and redundancy, and back-up must be standard.
With SaaS, there is no upfront capital required. There is no maintenance, no hardware to buy, and no software to install—an ideal option for those organizations that don’t had a dedicated IT staff. Upgrades are done for you, keeping you up to date with the latest versions of the software. When you access your ECM system from the cloud, you are guaranteed redundancy, business continuity, and disaster recovery in case catastrophe strikes. If your organization is looking for the benefits associated with ECM but doesn’t have the up-front resources to install the system in-house, you would be wise to consider a vendor that offers SaaS.
4. Ease of use
As you evaluate different systems for functionality and price point, don’t lose sight of what is probably the most important criterion for ECM success: simplicity. A high-performance system should offer an interface that is obvious and intuitive. It shouldn’t look like a page out of the dictionary. If an activity involves more than drag and drop or point and click functionality, you’re not gaining efficiency; you’re losing it.
You want your ECM system to be implemented and adopted by your users. To generate excitement about your transition, you need to demonstrate a system that will simplify your users’ processing tasks. A complicated system—no matter what its functionality—risks rejection from your staff. If a prospective system is more complex than drag and drop or point and click functionality in a web browser, move on to the next product.
The bottom line
Implementing ECM shouldn’t be painful. Once you are able to articulate your enterprise needs, talk with prospective vendors about how their systems can increase efficiency, customer service, and profits. A high-performance system pairs the ease-of-use that your staff craves with the integration, BPM, and workflow tools that you need to compete. And a vendor with decades of experience in the industry can work with you to design a solution that is specific to your unique needs.
- See more at: http://www.docfinity.com/dont-get-stuck-with-the-wrong-ecm-system-four-essential-criteria-for-success/#sthash.hzmqXx9P.dpuf

Article from Vanguard Archives http://www.vanguardarchives.com/document-scanning-what-criteria-might-i-use-select-document-management-software What criteria might I use to select an ECM system?
If you decide that an electronic content management (ECM) system makes sense for your company, you will be faced with the challenge of reviewing and comparing different systems to determine which one is right for you.
As you go through this process, in addition to finding out the cost of each system, you may want to ask the following questions as you review each one:
What type of system do I want?
A hosted system offers lower startup costs and lowers the burden on IT resources. However, these systems also have a higher long-term cost and typically involve giving up some control as your documents are stored in "the cloud."
An in-house system requires a higher upfront investment and a higher IT burden, but offers a lower long-term cost as well as better overall control.
What features and functionality do I need?
Just about all ECM systems will provide you with basic storage, search and retrieval functionality.
For more advanced systems, workflow functionality will also be available, although often at an added cost. Workflow modules are used to automate business processes; documents are automatically routed online from user to user, based on existing business rules, as transactions are processed.
If you have other specific needs or requirements, make sure to see a demo of your desired features before making a purchase.
Is it an open system or a closed one?
Find out if the software uses open architecture and non-proprietary file formats. Also find out what the process and cost is for transitioning your documents to a different system should it become necessary in the system.
If you will desire any points of integration between your ECM system and other business systems used by your company, make sure it can be accomplished and find out if extra costs will be involved.
Is the system scalable to my potential future needs?
This will be important if you plan on rolling the system out to other departments within your organization after the initial implementation. Some systems are designed more for departmental use, while others are better suited for enterprise-wide deployment.
If you have an IT department, you may want to involve them early in the process in order to provide guidance as to a) what software your company already owns that may help you accomplish your objectives, and b) what ECM system will work best with the rest of your IT infrastructure.
What should I expect to pay for an ECM system?
How much you should expect to pay for an ECM system will depend primarily on the volume of documentation you process, how many users need to access the system, and what type of functionality you need.
You will likely find that the pricing structure is different for each system you look at, so apples-to-apples comparisons can be difficult. The best advice may be to select the system that you are most comfortable with and make sure the pricing is not out of line with other available products.
Hosted systems
For a basic low-volume system with the ability to store, search and retrieve digital documents, you may expect to pay about $150 per month plus some startup costs.
For a more advanced system with work flow and integration with other business systems, you may expect to pay $1,000 or more per month plus startup costs.
You could almost certainly find less expensive systems, but you will want to do some due diligence to verify things like quality of customer support, robustness of the data center where your data will be stored, etc.
In-house systems
For a basic low-volume system with the ability to store, search and retrieve, you may expect to pay about $5,000 plus installation and training costs.
For a more advanced system with work flow and integration with other business systems, you may expect to pay $25,000 or more plus installation and training costs.
Most vendors will also charge 20% or so for annual maintenance and support on in-house systems.
Other notes on costs
With most systems, both hosted and in-house, your costs will increase with your usage - generally based on the amount of information stored or the number of users, or a combination of both.
Find out if unlimited phone support is included with your software or if support costs extra.
Prevent creeping costs. If possible, put into writing how you plan to use your system and have your vendor confirm in writing that the system you are buying includes all required functionality.
Is document scanning the right thing to do with my documents?
When considering whether or not to spend time and money scanning your documents, it is important to distinguish between your company's existing "back-files" and new documents that will be created or received by your company "day-forward."
Day-forward files
For the day-forward variety, scanning almost always makes sense since the amount of time it takes to scan documents is roughly the same as the time it takes to file documents away physically - and there are quite a few advantages to a paperless filing system.
Back-files
Document scanning often does not make sense for existing back-files. In addition to having already done the work to physically file these documents away, you also may have made them more difficult to scan by adding staples, separating them into folders, etc. Scanning these existing files usually only makes sense if: * The documents are accessed frequently * You require distributed and/or simultaneous access to the documents by different people sitting in different places * The documents need to be retained for a long period of time * The documents are vital to your business and you need backup copies to prepare for disaster recovery
If you are considering back-file scanning solely for the purpose of freeing up office space, then you may be better off storing the records offsite. Anoffsite records storage vendor can still help you transition to a paperless workplace, but in a more cost effective way: as you need to access individual documents, your vendor can scan them "on-demand" and make them available to you online or via email.

Should my company do its own scanning, or use a scanning service?
If you decide that it does make sense for your company to digitize its documents, your next question may be whether it makes sense for your company to do its own scanning - or whether you should outsource to a scanning service.
Factors which could influence your decision may include the volume of documents to be scanned, and whether or not documents will need to be scanned on a regular basis going forward.
Ongoing scanning required
For low volumes where documents will be scanned on a regular basis going forward, you may be able to easily incorporate document scanning into your workflow by equipping users with desktop scanners or using multifunction devices already in your offices.
For higher volumes where scanning will be an ongoing requirement, setting up an in-house scanning operation will most likely require you to dedicate office space to the operation, staff up accordingly, and invest in high volume scanners and scanning software.
One-time scanning jobs
If scanning will be irregular, or if it is a one-time job, outsourcing to adocument scanning service may be your best option since it will save you from having to purchase equipment and hire and train temporary workers. If you decide to do your scanning in-house, some document scanning service providers will consult with you to help you select the scanning equipment and software that best meets your needs.
How much should I expect to spend on scanning services if I outsource?
Turning paper documents into digital format is a labor-intensive process.
Running documents through a scanner is often just the tip of the iceberg; document preparation and indexing/data entry can add significantly to the amount of labor required to complete a scanning project.
As a result, document scanning services can be costly, and prices can vary widely typically from 5 cents to 15 cents per image.
The main factors determining how much it will cost to scan your documents include: * The volume of documents being scanned * The dimensions of the documents - for example, oversized documents will be more expensive to scan as special equipment is required and the scanning process takes longer * How much preparation work is required before documents can be scanned (for example staple removal, removal of documents from binders) * How much preparation work is required after documents are scanned (for example re-stapling) * The number of pages per document, as well as the number of index/search fields per document * Whether or not you want your documents to be free-text searchable which will require Optical Character Recognition (OCR) * Whether the documents are to be scanned in black & white or color * Your required scanning resolution * How soon you need your project done
How might I go about selecting an outside scanning service?
If you decide that you'd like an outside document scanning service to digitize your documents, you may want to meet with and interview several vendors in order to determine which one is the right fit for your company.
Some steps you may want take with each vendor are:
Conduct a demo scan
Ask your prospective vendor(s) to provide a demo/sample of your own documents prior to commencing work so that you know what quality to expect and to ensure that the vendor knows how much work is involved in your project and won't have a good argument for changing the quoted price after scanning has begun.
Understand how pricing works
Be sure you know whether each quote you receive is a comprehensive per-image quote or whether document preparation, indexing, quality control, etc. will be billed separately. Also find out if any minimums apply.
Get quality assurances
Determine whether or not human quality control (QC) will be performed on your job, and find out if QC will be done using a sampling process or if each page will be individually checked.
Ask for references, and follow up to find out if they check out.
Find out if your vendor offers a quality guarantee on their final product and how long you have to identify any quality problems.
Consider your vendor's facilities and staff.
Find out if your documents will stay local, or if they will they be shipped out of the state/country for scanning and indexing. If they will stay local then visit their facilities and look for things like alarm systems and video monitoring.
If your documents contain any sensitive information, make sure your vendor's employees sign confidentiality agreements and are required to undergo background checks.