Trouble-free support for Audit NZ's mobile workforce

Audit New Zealand is the operational arm of the Audit Office charged with providing audit and assurance services to New Zealand's public sector. As an organisation that is more mobile than most, it has some unique information management challenges.

"The key thing for our mobile workforce is that anything someone is able to access in the office, they have to be able to access remotely."

Almost all of the organisation's 200 computer users are equipped with laptops, and they frequently work off-site on client premises all over the country. Audit's matrix structure also means staff from different parts of the organisation frequently collaborate on work for one client.

The organisation has thousands of pages of information and manuals that its staff must be able to access from wherever they are, whenever they need them. Lotus Notes has been deployed for several years and through its replication services, provides access to several key databases of information without the need for users to be constantly on-line.

Document ONE Proves its Worth

Audit recently decided to implement a comprehensive document management system. Its choice was Reliance Software's Document ONE.

Document ONE would allow Audit NZ to leverage its existing Notes infrastructure to better serve its business needs.

"The plan was to put all technical manuals, plus material like our human resources manual, online and publish them to the Notes databases."

"The plan was to put all technical manuals, plus material like our human resources manual, online and publish them to the Notes databases," explains Audit NZ's Ann Kilpatrick. "Staff could then have access to the information without having to be on-line all the time. The key thing for our mobile workforce is that anything someone is able to access in the office, they have to be able to access remotely."

However, there were a number of major challenges. First, a document classification system had to be designed that would fit Audit's needs and the way its staff operated.

"The premise is that anyone can access anything unless there is a good reason they shouldn't. The key was to implement a system that supported efficient replication of databases, and allowed information to be shared most effectively. For example, if we have information relevant to staff working with corporate clients in Wellington, we don't necessarily want to replicate all that information for staff in Dunedin."

Adding Value with Knowledge Management Expertise

Reliance Software was able to bring its experience to bear to assist with the information classification process and with putting in place a sound knowledge management structure. Reliance also put Audit NZ together with SWIM Ltd., another Reliance client who specialises in knowledge management.

"With the way we work and the geographical spread of the organisation, getting the document classification system right was not easy. We had to go through everything and figure out where to put it, how people could find it and who needs access to it. Reliance's consultancy and advice was very helpful in getting that information management structure in place," says Kilpatrick.