Document ONE helps deliver on business drivers

The NZ Department of Internal Affairs' (DIA) Document ONE solution, jointly developed by Reliance Software and implemented in 1999, has been critical to the department's delivering on key business drivers including reducing risk, more effectively using its information assets and meeting its statutory obligations.

It has also allowed the department to implement best practice information management of electronic documents and email, and efficiently share information across many business groups.

Need to Reduce Risk, Make Information-Sharing Easier

The DIA has 1,000 employees across multiple locations and diverse business groups which range from Gaming and Censorship Regulation to the Ministry of Emergency Management and Civil Defence.

"The ability to manage both paper and electronic records in the same system is of enormous benefit to the department".

Prior to implementing Document ONE, information was often held within business groups or individual user's systems and email boxes, hampering effective information-sharing across the department and making reporting and other tasks much more difficult.

There was the risk that key information – both paper-based and electronic – might be lost with no central way of managing and tracking it. Storage costs were also inflated, as multiple copies of electronic documents were being held on different systems.

After making the decision to address information management by implementing a modest solution, the Department went out to tender. They considered a range of options before selecting Lotus Notes experts Reliance Software to assist their project team design and build a straightforward, robust, specialist records and document management system to meet their diverse requirements - and Document ONE was born.

A Flexible, Functional Solution

"We were impressed with Reliance Software's responsiveness and expertise, and with the innovative approach they applied to develop a major document management solution within a tight budget and time frame," said Alison Fleming, General Manager Information and Facilities for DIA.

The system provides a complete document and records management environment with a consistent user interface for everything from filing emails to creating, sharing and editing documents, to managing the creation, tracking and archives transfer of physical files and records.

Document ONE handles full life cycle management, audit trails, check-in/check-out, version control and full text search and retrieval. Security is built into the system at several levels, maintaining information integrity.

One-Stop-Shop for Records Management

For DIA, one of the key advantages of the system is that it has created an awareness of records management requirements within a structured, disciplined environment.

"Records aren't misplaced and documents aren't 'lost' on people's personal PC drives or in their email boxes. It also supports people working together as teams."

Document linking - which has replaced the emailing of attachments for internal information sharing - has reduced the load on the Department's email system, and also supports team-based working as team members can all access and work on a single master copy of a document.

Document ONE's ability to manage both paper and electronic records is vital. The Department has statutory obligations to store paper records that can go back decades, and Document ONE has been designed to handle tracking of their whereabouts and final transfer to Archives New Zealand. A Retention/Disposal module has also been incorporated.

The records management system keeps track of completed electronic documents as they become official records, preventing those records from being altered or deleted. This has reduced the need for keeping paper records and the long term storage costs for paper files, as the original electronic document is accepted as the official record.

"The ability to manage both paper and electronic records in the same system is of enormous benefit to the department," said Fleming. "Importantly, it provides us with business continuity. Records aren't misplaced and documents aren't 'lost' on peoples' personal PC drives or in their email boxes. It also supports people working together as teams."

Partnership Approach Proves a Winner

DIA looked at a number of alternative systems for their document and records management requirements. It was won over by Reliance Software's ability and willingness to work alongside the Department to develop a joint solution that cost efficiently leveraged the existing Lotus Notes environment.

"Reliance approached the project in a true spirit of partnership, taking the time and effort to understand exactly what our business needs and drivers were. This has resulted in the delivery of an extremely flexible and functional solution that integrates well with our existing systems," said Fleming.