DM Nov-Dec 2023

DOCUMENT 

M A N A G E R 

Dm 

www.document-manager.com 

DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT 

IMAGING & CAPTURE 

WORKFLOW/BPM 

CONTENT MANAGEMENT 

DM Awards 2023: 

All the winners and runners-up 

Print trends: 

The office redefined 

Technology: 

Generative AI changes everything 

Predictions for 2024: 

What comes next? 

NEWS • PRODUCT FOCUS • USER PROFILE • INTERVIEWS 

ISSN 1351-3222 Vol 31 No 6 November/December 2023

Knowledge is power. 

Document Scanning 

Digital Workflow Solutions 

FreeDocs Cloud Document Management 

Automated AI Technology 

Microfilm and Microfiche Scanning 

Consultancy Services 

Secure Document Destruction 

Call 0800 612 4065 

or email sales@storetec.net 

www.storetec.net

Dm 

COMMENT 

Editor: 

Dave Tyler 

david.tyler@btc.co.uk 

Sub Editor: 

Mark Lyward 

mark.lyward@btc.co.uk 

Welcome to the last issue of Document 

Publishing Director: 

John Jageurs 

Manager magazine for 2023. As 

john.jageurs@btc.co.uk 

Sales Manager: 

normally happens in this issue, we 

Abby Penn 

have dedicated several pages to coverage of 

abby.penn@btc.co.uk 

Lead Designer 

November's DM Awards night, with a full list 

Ian Collis 

of all the winners and runners-up. The awards 

ian.collis@btc.co.uk 

Circulation/Subscriptions: 

is a fabulous way to close off the year with a 

Christina Willis 

social/networking event that also highlights 

christina.willis@btc.co.uk 

Managing Director: 

some of the innovative products and projects 

John Jageurs 

we've been writing about all year. 

john.jageurs@btc.co.uk 

The end of the year also starts us off thinking about the future, of 

Published by: Barrow & 

course, and this is reflected in a couple of the articles in this issue, 

Thompkins Connexion Ltd 

35 Station Square, 

which look at likely trends for the print sector in particular, and for 

Petts Wood 

how AI might impact the industry (of which more later), as well as a 

Kent BR5 1LZ 

Tel: 01689 616000 

more general 'what the next year may bring' piece from Emilie Martin 

Fax: 01689 826622 

of Document Logistix. Emilie puts forward a selection of changes she 

Subscriptions: 

expects to see in 2024, including tighter integration between 

UK: £35/year, £60/two years, 

£80/three years 

systems, a growth in federated search, and a shift toward much more 

Europe: £48/year, £85 two 

user-friendly interfaces and dashboards. She also suggests that AI 

years, £127 three years. 

ROW:£62/year, £115/two 

"will play an increased role in document management from data 

years, £168/three years 

ingestion and document routing to data retention and compliance." 

Published 6 times a year. 

Single copies can be bought 

Yohan Lobo of M-Files agrees in his article elsewhere in this issue, 

for £8.50 (includes postage & 

but sounds a note of caution: "Data quality lies at the heart of the 

packaging). No part of this 

magazine may be reproduced 

global AI conundrum - if organisations intend to start deploying 

without prior consent, in writing, 

from the publisher. 

Generative AI (GenAI) on a wider scale, it's vital that they understand 

©Copyright 2023 Barrow & 

how Large Language Models (LLMs) operate and whether the 

Thompkins 

solution they implement is reliable and accurate." 

Connexion Ltd 

Dirk Bode of fme goes further, suggesting that Generative AI is on 

Articles published reflect the 

the verge of changing the world: "Its presence is already prominent, 

opinions of the authors and are 

not necessarily those of the 

and its potential reach is all-pervasive. The focus shouldn't be about 

publisher or his employees. While 

every reasonable effort is made 

developing a separate AI strategy, or even updating the 

to ensure that the contents of 

organisation's digital transformation strategy. It should be about 

articles, editorial and advertising 

are accurate no responsibility can 

weaving Generative AI, and indeed any other aspect of digital 

be accepted by the publisher for 

errors, misrepresentations or any 

transformation, into an organisation's core business strategy - and 

resulting effects 

establishing where the technology could and should be harnessed to 

help deliver this." 

The fact is that even a year ago, no one would have predicted 

how rapidly Generative AI would take hold and grow in its 

application across this and other sectors. Accepting and fully 

embracing the implications is going to require significant culture 

change, an organisational transformation that could take many 

years to see through. 

It will be interesting to see what our contributors are saying at this 

time next year about AI and other 'emerging' technologies. All we 

can say for sure right now is that the next 12 months look set to be 

very interesting indeed for anyone with an interest in information 

and data management. 

Dave Tyler 

Editor 

david.tyler@btc.co.uk 


November/December 2023 

@DMMagAndAwards 

3

Dm CONTENTS 

C O N T E N T S 

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 

8 

14 

16 

18 

22 

..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 

MANAGEMENT: OUTSOURCING……..................................................…………….6 

Following on from her piece in our last issue on the benefits of digitising dental records, 

Storetec's Grace Schneider explains what to look for when considering outsourcing the 

scanning/capture process 

EVENT: DM AWARDS 2023……...................................................................………8 

From outstanding opera singers to mystifying magicians, this year's DM Awards ceremony 

was a special night for all who attended. Find out all the winners and runners-up inside 

STRATEGY: DM TRENDS…..............................................................................……14 

Emilie Martin, Sector Sales Manager at Document Logistix, examines some of the trends 

that the company expects to see over the next year 

CASE STUDY: HOUSE OF BRUAR…….............................................................……16 

Scottish independent retailer The House of Bruar has transformed its retail operations with 

the help of Filestream and PFU solutions 

OPINION: AI…………..................................................................................……..18 

While we should undoubtedly proceed with care and caution, underpinning AI deployment 

with good data allows organisations to balance regulatory and moral risks, argues Yohan 

Lobo, Industry Solutions Manager, Financial Services at M-Files 

ANALYSIS: CONTENT GROWTH………...........................................................……20 

Tom Dunning, CEO of Ad Signal, looks at the potential environmental impact of relentless 

content growth 

TRENDS: PRINT………....................................................................................……22 

The print industry is poised for change in 2024 as businesses embrace workplace 

transformation, AI, and sustainability, according to the latest research report from Quocirca 

TECHNOLOGY: GENERATIVE AI…….........................................................………..24 

Dirk Bode, CEO of fme, warns companies to get ahead of the impact of Generative AI now 

- but asserts that the focus shouldn't be about developing a separate AI strategy, but rather 

weaving Generative AI into their core business strategy 

CASE STUDY: HEINEKEN………..................................................................………28 

World-renowned brewing business Heineken has been able to significantly reduce the 

resources needed for its Accounts Payable function since implementing Basware 

MANAGEMENT: DATA ARCHITECTURE….................................................………..30 

Matt Peachey, Vice President, International at Dremio, argues that open is the smart way 

forward for data management 

CASE STUDY: EVELYN PARTNERS……….......................................................……..32 

In an implementation that won the prestigious Project of the Year (Private Sector) trophy at 

this year's DM Awards, wealth management firm Evelyn Partners has moved to a 'digital 

first' approach for its document processing 

4 @DMMagAndAwards November/December 2023 www.document-manager.com

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Dm MANAGEMENT: OUTSOURCING 

Choosing the right dental record 

scanning company: a guide 

Following on from her piece in our last issue on the 

benefits of digitising dental records, Storetec's Grace 

Schneider explains what to look for when considering 

outsourcing the scanning/capture process 

Efficient and secure document 

management is crucial for 

businesses across industries, and 

dentistry is no exception. Dental practices 

generate a wealth of patient records, 

from dental charts to treatment histories 

and insurance documents. 

Handling these records efficiently and 

securely is essential for providing quality 

patient care and maintaining regulatory 

compliance. Therefore, choosing the right 

dental record scanning 

company to 

outsource document 

scanning services is 

paramount. 

In this article I will explore 

why outsourcing document 

scanning services is important 

for dental practices and how to 

select the most suitable company 

for your dental practice, including 

considerations such as accreditations 

and expertise. 

WHAT EXACTLY IS 

DOCUMENT 

OUTSOURCING? 

Document outsourcing 

involves contracting thirdparty 

companies to 

manage document-related 

tasks, such as scanning, 

digitisation, storage, and 

retrieval. Document 

outsourcing through 

companies like Storetec 

offers a highly efficient 

solution for managing dental 

and medical records. 

In contrast to in-house 

management (which can be 

time-consuming and prone to security 

issues) outsourcing ensures expert scanning 

and digitisation services, secure cloud 

hosting with FreeDocs, and swift record 

retrieval. This approach not only saves costs 

but also guarantees compliance and 

streamlines the management of critical 

healthcare records, making it an ideal choice 

for healthcare practices seeking efficiency 

and security in document management. 

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT? 

Information system outsourcing is crucial for 

businesses looking to streamline their 

operations and ensure data security. By 

trusting specialised providers, dental 

practices can enhance their data 

management, access, and security while 

focusing on patient care. 

Dental practices generate a significant 

amount of patient records, including dental 

charts, treatment histories, and insurance 

information. Handling these records 

efficiently is crucial for providing quality 

patient care and maintaining compliance 

with regulatory requirements. 

Outsourcing document scanning services 

allows dental practices to: 

Access dental records easily: Retrieving 

patient records promptly is vital in the 

healthcare industry. By outsourcing scanning 

services, dental practices can quickly access 

digitised records, improving efficiency and 

patient care. 

Ensure information is recorded correctly: 

Proper documentation is essential in 

dentistry to track patient histories, treatment 

plans, and insurance details accurately. 

Outsourcing companies specialise in 

6 November/December 2023 www.document-manager.com 

@DMMagAndAwards

MANAGEMENT: OUTSOURCING Dm 

"DOCUMENT OUTSOURCING THROUGH COMPANIES LIKE STORETEC OFFERS A HIGHLY EFFICIENT SOLUTION FOR 

MANAGING DENTAL AND MEDICAL RECORDS. IN CONTRAST TO IN-HOUSE MANAGEMENT (WHICH CAN BE TIME- 

CONSUMING AND PRONE TO SECURITY ISSUES) OUTSOURCING ENSURES EXPERT SCANNING AND DIGITISATION 

SERVICES, SECURE CLOUD HOSTING WITH FREEDOCS, AND SWIFT RECORD RETRIEVAL. THIS APPROACH NOT ONLY 

SAVES COSTS BUT ALSO GUARANTEES COMPLIANCE AND STREAMLINES THE MANAGEMENT OF CRITICAL 

HEALTHCARE RECORDS, MAKING IT AN IDEAL CHOICE FOR HEALTHCARE PRACTICES SEEKING EFFICIENCY AND 

SECURITY IN DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT." 

scanning and indexing documents, 

reducing the risk of errors in recordkeeping. 

Outsourcing data work such as document 

scanning and information management, 

offers several advantages: 

Expertise: Outsourcing companies specialise 

in data management, ensuring high 

accuracy and efficiency. 

Resource optimisation: It allows businesses 

to allocate resources more effectively, 

reducing overhead costs. 

Security and compliance: Outsourcing 

companies follow strict security protocols 

and compliance standards, safeguarding 

sensitive information. 

CHOOSING THE RIGHT SCANNING 

COMPANY 

Selecting the appropriate partner for 

document scanning services involves careful 

consideration of various factors: 

Accreditations and compliance: Verify if the 

scanning company holds relevant 

accreditations, such as ISO certifications for 

handling medical records. These 

certifications demonstrate a commitment 

WHAT ARE THE 4 C'S OF RECORD KEEPING? 

to quality and security. 

Expertise and experience: Assess the 

company's experience in managing dental 

records. Storetec's extensive experience in 

managing dental records uniquely positions 

us to understand and meet the specific 

requirements of dental practices. 

Leveraging advanced technologies like OCR 

(Optical Character Recognition) and 

intelligent barcode reading, we ensure 

precise document digitisation and efficient 

organisation. OCR enhances data extraction 

for accurate, searchable records, while 

intelligent barcode reading streamlines 

record categorisation and retrieval. 

Security protocols: Ensure that the 

company has robust security measures in 

place to protect sensitive patient 

information during the scanning process 

and throughout storage. 

Quality Assurance: Enquire about the 

company's quality control processes. 

Accuracy and completeness of digitised 

records are essential. 

Customisation: Look for a scanning 

company that offers tailored solutions to 

meet your specific requirements. One-sizefits-all 

approaches may not address the 

Capture: Efficiently capturing and digitising information is the first step in effective 

record keeping. 

Control: Implementing strict controls and access management to protect 

sensitive data. 

Compliance: Ensuring that record keeping practices adhere to regulatory 

requirements and industry standards. 

Convenience: Making records easily accessible to authorised personnel when needed. 

nuances of dental record management. 

References and case studies: Request 

references from the scanning company or 

seek out case studies that showcase their 

successful projects within the healthcare or 

dental sector. 

Technical capabilities: Evaluate the 

technology and equipment used for 

scanning. State-of-the-art equipment can 

significantly impact the quality and speed 

of digitisation. 

Data retrieval solutions: Consider the ease 

of accessing digitised records. A reputable 

scanning company should provide userfriendly 

retrieval options, ensuring quick 

access when needed. 

Testimonials and reviews: Read testimonials 

or online reviews from other dental 

practices that have utilised the scanning 

company's services. Their experiences can 

provide valuable insights. 

WHY STORETEC? 

In conclusion, when choosing a dental 

record scanning company, it's crucial to 

consider factors like accreditations, 

expertise, security measures, and 

references. This decision is an investment in 

the seamless operation and compliance of 

your dental practice. Storetec, with our 

proven track record, advanced technology, 

and commitment to quality and 

compliance, stands out as an ideal partner 

for enhancing the efficiency, accuracy, and 

security of patient records. Explore our topnotch 

dental record scanning services. 

Make the smart choice for your dental 

practice by partnering with Storetec today. 

More info: www.storetec.net 




7

Dm DM AWARDS 2023 

It's a kind of magic! 

From outstanding opera singers to mystifying magicians, this year's DM Awards 

ceremony was a special night for all who attended. Find out all the winners and 

runners-up here 

The evening of November 16th saw the 

latest and - according to everyone who 

was there - the greatest night yet in the 

history of the Document Manager Awards. 

Hundreds of the great and the good from 

across the industry were in attendance to see 

trophies awarded for the products, companies 

and projects that were deemed to be the best 

from the last 12 months. 

Hosted as usual by cricketing legend Chris 

Cowdrey alongside DM editor Dave Tyler, the 

awards ceremony itself was broken up by two 

showbiz interludes: opera singer Damian 

Carter took time out from a busy schedule 

with the English National Opera to serenade 

the audience with some slightly more modern 

numbers that had everyone singing along, 

and even (naming no names!) a couple of 

high kicking dancers for 'New York, New York'! 

We were also treated to award winning 

magician Nick Einhorn, who warmed up 

the audience with some close-up magic 

tricks at the tables during dinner, before 

delivering some genuinely 'How did he do 

that?' moments with this stage act later - 

even roping in Storetec's Grace Schneider 

to help deliver his biggest and most 

baffling closing trick. 

But of course the night was really all about 

those trophies: the One to Watch company 

award went to d.velop, and the One to Watch 

Product to scanner firm InoTec for the Scamax 

3x1. The big finish was reserved for the 

Company of the Year, which this year went to 

Northamber, and Product of the Year to IRIS 

for IRISXtract. 

DM editor Dave Tyler commented on the 

night: "It's been amazing to see how the 

industry - and the awards night - have 

bounced back so convincingly after the 

effects of the pandemic. This year we've had 

more nominations than ever before, more 

votes cast, and now more attendees here 

on the night. We couldn't have asked for 

much more!" 

Thanks are due once more of course to all 

the event sponsors: ELO, Northamber, Canon, 

Document Logistix, Hyland, InoTec, IRIS, Oasis 

Group, PFU, Storetec, Yooz, EDM, DocuWare 

and Opex. We also want to say a huge thanks 

to the expert judges who assisted in assessing 

the Project of the Year entries: Harvey 

Spencer, Martyn Christian and Alan Pelz- 

Sharpe, as well as Dave Tyler himself of 

course. This year's project winners were 

Hyland and Kofax for Evelyn Partners (Private 

Sector) and Restore Records Management for 

the DWP (Public Sector). 

Find out all the winners and runners-up over 

the next few pages. 

More info: www.dmawards.com 


DM AWARDS 2023 Dm 

The Document Manager 

Awards 2023 

ONE TO WATCH: COMPANY 

Winner: d.velop 

Runner-up: Xillio 

ONE TO WATCH: PRODUCT 

Winner: Captova Technologies - Captova AI Intelligent Document Processing 

"Fab evening on Thursday at the 

Document Manager Magazine & 

Awards, thanks to Abby Penn and 

Dave Tyler, as always. P.S. I've 

had a career change to a 

magician's assistant!" 

Grace Schneider - Storetec 

Services 

.......................................... 

"The BEST night as always!! Thank 

you to the team Document 

Manager Magazine Abby Penn for 

creating a wonderful evening 

once again." 

Victoria Coleman - REAKT 

Recruitment 

Runner-up: DATAWIN - InoTec SCAMAX 3x1 

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE/INVOICING PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: DocuWare - DocuWare for Invoice Processing 

Runner-up: OASIS Group - Omnidox AP 

WORKFLOW/BPM PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: ELO Digital Office - ELO ECM Suite 

Runner-up: Kodak Alaris - Kodak Info Input Solution 

ENTERPRISE CMS PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Hyland - Nuxeo Platform 

Runner-up: Dokmee - Dokmee ECM 

OPEN SOURCE DM SOFTWARE OF THE YEAR 

Winner: enChoice - Knowledge Capture 

Runner-up: Xerox - Docushare 

LOW CODE/NO CODE PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Filestream - File Stream 5 

Runner-up: ABBYY - Vantage 2.2 




9


"A good time had by all ... thanks 

to Abby Penn and Dave Tyler for 

another great Document Manager 

awards event." 

Document Logistix 

........................................... 

"Accompanied by Emily Taylor, it 

was FANtastic to see all the 

friendly familiar faces, and meet 

new ones, at the Document 

Manager Magazine & Awards last 

night! Now... who is up for a glass 

of fizz this afternoon?! Thanks 

Abby Penn and Dave Tyler for all 

your hard work, what a smasher 

hashtag#thatsamore" 

Deborah Ward-Johnstone - 

Revolution Events 

PRINT FLEET MANAGEMENT SOLUTION OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Kyocera Document Solutions - Cloud Print and Scan 

Runner-up: Konica Minolta - Dispatcher Suite 

BPO/OUTSOURCING/BUREAU BUSINESS OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Storetec Services 

Runner-up: Canon Business Services 

DATA CAPTURE/RECOGNITION PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: I.R.I.S. (Canon Group) - IRISXtract 

Runner-up: PFU (EMEA) a RICOH Company - PaperStream Capture Pro 

RECORDS MANAGEMENT PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: OASIS Group - Plexus 

Runner-up: Ezescan - Ezescan Capture 5.0 

AI PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Yooz - Rising 

Runner-up: ELO Digital Office - ELO DocXtractor 

RPA PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Document Logistix & Lemmana - Document Manager 

Runner-up: Kofax - Kofax RPA 

SERVICE/SUPPORT COMPANY OF THE YEAR 

Winner: EDM Healthcare Consulting 

Runner-up: Paralogic 

STORAGE PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Storetec Services - FreeDocs 

Runner-up: Iron Mountain - InSight SaaS on AWS 


DM AWARDS 2023 Dm 

COMPLIANCE PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Kodak Alaris - Kodak Info Input Solution 

Runner-up: Canon - uniFLOW Online Zero Trust 

CHANNEL PARTNER OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Northamber 

Runner-up: Midwich 

IMAGING PRODUCT OF THE YEAR: HIGH VOLUME 

Winner: OPEX - Gemini 

Runner-up: ibml - FUSiON HD 

We won! We're thrilled to 

announce we won the Editor's 

Choice Award at the Document 

Manager Magazine & Awards last 

night! It's a real testament to all 

the hard work of our amazing 

team here at Kloo. Thank you for 

putting on a great evening." 

Kloo 

.......................................... 

"We're excited to announce that 

the OPEX Gemini scanner has 

been named the high-volume 

imaging product of the year for 

the second consecutive year by 

@DMMagAndAwards" 

OPEX 

IMAGING PRODUCT OF THE YEAR: DESKTOP/PORTABLE/OTHER 

Winner: ibml - DS1155 

Runner-up: e-ImageData - ScanPro All-In-One 

IMAGING PRODUCT OF THE YEAR: WORKGROUP/DEPARTMENTAL 

Winner: DATAWIN - InoTec SCAMAX 3x1 

Runner-up: Docufree - ScanCloud 

MOBILE CAPTURE PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Epson - ES-50 

Runner-up: Brother - DS-940DW 

SOFTWARE PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: PFU (EMEA) a RICOH Company - PaperStream 

Runner-up: Document Logistix - Document Manager 5 

HARDWARE PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Canon - imageFORMULA DR-G2090 

Runner-up: OPEX - Gemini 




11


The Crowley Company 

"A BIG congratulations to #InoTec 

and #DATAWIN for winning Imaging 

Product of the Year in the 

Workgroup/Departmental 

category for the SCAMAX 3x1 at 

the @DMMagAndAwards. Crowley 

is proud to represent this brand 

as part of our document #scanner 

line." 

The Crowley Company 

MARKETING TEAM OF THE YEAR 

Winner: PFU (EMEA) a RICOH Company 

Runner-up: Storetec Services 

CONTRIBUTION TO THE INDUSTRY AWARD 

Winner: Emma Filmer, Midwich 

Runner-up: Andrew Graham, PFU (EMEA) a RICOH Company 

........................................... 

"Kodak Alaris was honoured to 

receive the @DMMagAndAwards 

2023 Compliance Product of the 

Year Award for KODAK Info Input 

Solution and be recognized as 

runner-up for Workflow/BPM 

Product of the Year." 

Kodak Alaris 

EDITOR'S CHOICE AWARD 

Winner: Kloo - AI Accounts Payable Automation 

Runner-up: Canon - CaptureOnTouch Pro 5 

PROJECT OF THE YEAR: PRIVATE SECTOR 

Winner: Hyland/Kofax - Evelyn Partners 

Runner-up: TCG Process/ATOS - National Bank of Belgium 

PROJECT OF THE YEAR: PUBLIC SECTOR 

Winner: Restore Records Management - DWP 

Runner-up: EDM Healthcare/Kodak Alaris/Mizaic/Apira - Norfolk & Norwich 

University Hospital NHS Trust 

PRODUCT OF THE YEAR 

Winner: I.R.I.S. (Canon Group) - IRISXtract 

Runner-up: ELO Digital Office - ELO ECM Suite 

COMPANY OF THE YEAR 

Winner: Northamber 

Runner-up: DocuWare 

MORE INFO: WWW.DMAWARDS.COM 


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Dm STRATEGY: DM TRENDS 

The shape of things to come 

Emilie Martin, Sector Sales Manager at Document Logistix, examines some of the trends 

that the company expects to see over the next year 

We were thrilled at Document 

Logistix to win the award for RPA 

Product of the Year together 

with Lemmana at the 2023 Document 

Manager Awards. Robotic process 

automation (RPA) facilitates data entry, 

extraction and document routing, and 

automates repetitive, rule-based tasks 

within workflows. RPA therefore provides a 

way for organisations to improve efficiency 

and increase productivity. 

THE BENEFITS OF RPA 

In combination with artificial intelligence 

(AI) and machine learning, RPA enables 

organisations to optimise workflows and 

liberate staff to work on more strategic 

tasks. Commercial operations become 

more agile, competitive and profitable. 

Public sector and NFP operations save 

significant admin costs and can divert 

budgets to areas in which they further the 

core objectives of the organisation. 

LOOKING AHEAD 

We have observed that for some time 

most businesses have adopted elements 

of digital document management. It is 

rare for an Accounts department to 

operate without digital records in AP and 

Payroll, in which manual processes have 

been greatly reduced. 

Today, in order to generate the full 

benefits of digital transformation, 

companies are addressing historical 

workarounds and gaps that dilute 

efficiency and drain resources. These 

consolidation efforts will inform many 

of the document management trends 

of 2024. 

Terms are emerging to describe the new 

capabilities of document management, 

such as 'knowledge management 

systems.' However, in reality, developers 

are simply able to exploit more of the 

innate potential of established documentcentric 

business systems. 

1. Genuine business systems integration 

Data or information silos have long been 

identified as a challenge to business 

efficiency. Poor access to up-to-date 

information drains staff time and frustrates 

customers and suppliers. While many 

departments have been able to address 

some of the issues associated with siloed 

data, the problem is rarely solved at a 

company-wide level. 

Integrating document management with 

ERP and other business systems provides a 

unified view of information for authorised 

system users and streamlines workflows. 

Documents associated with specific 

transactions and activities, such as 

purchase orders, invoices, delivery notes, or 

complaints, can be linked and accessed 

easily, which facilitates better decisionmaking 

and improves process efficiency, 

especially for knowledge workers. 

Centralising data to allow permissionbased 

access by all departments enhances 

business administration, customer 

interaction, sales processes, and general 

house-keeping from maintenance 

schedules to fleet management. 

Tighter integration between DM systems 

and other business systems automates 

data exchange, eliminates manual data 

entry, reduces errors, improves workflow 

efficiency, and empowers staff to work 

more productively. 

2. Federated search and unstructured data 

Companies that store and manage 

documents using more than one 

document management system add 

needless steps to the task of looking for 

information to conduct business. 

Federated search enables enterprises to 

search for documents in a single location 

and receive results regardless of their 

original location. 

Federated search enables enterprises not 

14 



www.document-manager.com

STRATEGY: DM TRENDS Dm 

"ANYONE BUYING A DM SYSTEM IN 2024 SHOULD EXPECT THE SYSTEM TO PROVIDE AN INTUITIVE, 

CUSTOMISABLE USER INTERFACE OR DASHBOARD THAT CAN BE CONFIGURED TO REPRESENT THE NEEDS OF 

INDIVIDUAL USERS, THE DEPARTMENT AND/OR THE COMPANY. DASHBOARDS SHOULD BE SIMPLE TO CONFIGURE 

TO ACCOMMODATE PINNED FREQUENT SEARCHES, AND NEW AND COMPLETED TASKS PANELS, WHICH CAN BE 

USED IN COMBINATION WITH SECURE SHARING FUNCTIONS." 

only to overcome the challenge of 

information silos by searching documents 

using a single location, but also to 

overcome the challenge of unstructured 

data held in emails, notes and customer 

feedback. Document Logistix Batch 

Capture, for example, enables 

organisations to search and instantly 

harness all the data held in the business. 

3. AI and machine learning 

AI will play an increased role in 

document management from data 

ingestion and document routing to data 

retention and compliance. 

AI facilitates advanced document 

classification and indexing, and automates 

otherwise time-consuming tasks. AI 

algorithms can analyse document content, 

extract key information, and assign 

appropriate tags and metadata, which 

makes document retrieval and 

management more accurate and efficient. 

Natural language processing (NLP) and 

machine learning extend the capabilities of 

document management systems to 

interpret human language. The advent of 

intelligent search and retrieval enables 

users to find relevant documents instantly 

and effortlessly based on contextual 

understanding and semantic relationships. 

4. Security and compliance: hardy 

perennials 

While GDPR placed compliance in the 

business spotlight in 2018, data security 

and regulatory compliance have been, and 

are always uppermost in the minds of 

responsible board members. The questions 

are: how to anticipate emerging security 

threats; and how to minimise the high 

cost of compliance management? 

A staple of DM solutions should be 

advanced access control with role-based 

permissions and granular access rights. 

Another necessary and expected safeguard 

is robust encryption to ensure data privacy. 

Aspects of document management that 

are not always fully implemented are 

automated solutions to cater for industryspecific 

regulations, such as GDPR, FERPA 

and HIPAA. 

More organisations will take advantage 

of comprehensive document management 

compliance features that include timestamped 

audit trails, automated data 

retention policies, redaction and secure 

storage. Enhanced compliance features 

enable companies to meet regulatory 

requirements, avoid penalties and 

reputational damage, and significantly 

reduce the costs and disruption associated 

with internal and external audits. 

5. Collaboration and customer portals 

Staff, customers and partners are the 

lifeblood of any business. Close 

collaboration is a constant goal, and the 

Covid pandemic accelerated the search for 

ways to collaborate effectively without 

meeting in person. 

Digital document management enables 

workers to collaborate on documents 

from any location. At the same time, 

managers have oversight to ensure that 

protocols are followed and no process 

bottlenecks emerge. 

Email has been the most common tool 

used for collaborating on documents. 

However, email collaboration is 

cumbersome, for example, when tracking 

changes or making reference to file 

versions. When collaborating in a central 

space, confusion is far less likely. 

Document management software is 

particularly effective in enabling teams to 

work on routine departmental matters, 

such as in Accounts, HR and Logistics. 

Documentation can also be shared 

between project managers, partners and 

clients via customer portals, which prove 

especially valuable in just-in-time sectors 

such as manufacturing. 

Two contributing success factors, once 

again, are integration and centralisation 

that overcome the workaround nature of 

historical departmental and project 

management software that function as 

stand-alone systems. 

6.Interface 'nice-to-haves' become 

'must-haves' 

The full potential of applications has been 

constrained in the past by the static user 

experience provided by many document 

management systems. The need to give 

system users the option to adapt the user 

interface to meet their business 

requirements has become a significant 

document management trend. 

The promise that a system allows you to 

"work the way you work" is a promise that 

users expect system providers to keep. 

Typical users have a priority task list and 

information that they have to check on a 

regular basis. 

Anyone buying a DM system in 2024 

should expect the system to provide an 

intuitive, customisable user interface or 

dashboard that can be configured to 

represent the needs of individual users, the 

department and/or the company. 

Dashboards should be simple to configure 

to accommodate pinned frequent 

searches, and new and completed tasks 

panels, which can be used in combination 

with secure sharing functions. 

A GREAT YEAR AHEAD 

The 2023 DM Awards provided evidence 

of our sector's continued innovation and 

multiple contributions to better digital 

business. The year ahead looks extremely 

positive for organisations looking to 

enhance business agility with smarter, 

faster, more accurate process 

management solutions. 

More info: www.document-logistix.com 




15

Dm CASE STUDY: HOUSE OF BRUAR 

Connecting the dots 

Scottish independent retailer The House of Bruar has 

transformed its retail operations with the help of Filestream 

and PFU solutions 

The House of Bruar is a familyowned 

independent country 

fashion retailer in Scotland, which 

has been operating for nearly three 

decades. The business specialises in highend 

knitwear, homewares, and home 

goods for the Scottish market. Operating 

out of a large, centralised office in 

highland Perthshire, with a large mail 

order distribution centre 15 miles south, 

the company serves customers both instore 

and through mail orders. 

The House of Bruar decided in 2021 to 

fully embrace digitisation and transition 

to electronic archiving. This article 

explores The House of Bruar's 

implementation of Filestream software in 

conjunction with PFU scanners. 

THE NEED TO STREAMLINE 

Until recently, The House of Bruar had 

been relying primarily on paper-based 

processes and physical record keeping. 

With suppliers spread across the UK, 

Europe, China, the Far East and Australia, 

the staff manage a large volume of 

paperwork on a daily basis, and found it 

challenging 'connecting the dots' 

between the warehouse and suppliers. 

Due to HMRC requirements, invoices 

from suppliers also had to be processed 

and physically stored in one of their 

eight filing cabinets within The House of 

Bruar's main office, which made records 

difficult to manage and keep track of. 

The management recognised that their 

operations could be streamlined by 

implementing a digital system, managed 

from their central office. 

While The House of Bruar had some 

office-based scanners already, they 

weren't central to operations and had no 

formalised purpose within the business. 

Management recognised the many 

potential benefits of investing in 

scanning systems and implementing 

them as part of their employees' 

workflows, but also knew the business 

required a solution that could cater to 

their particular needs. The goal was to 

seamlessly connect the warehouse, 

suppliers, and internal processes all 

through one centralised system. 

MARKET EVALUATION 

To find the best possible system, The 

House of Bruar evaluated the market, 

weighing up various options based on 



CASE STUDY: HOUSE OF BRUAR Dm 

"WHILE WE DIDN'T IMPLEMENT THIS ON THE BASIS OF A COST-SAVING EXERCISE, THERE ARE INHERENT 

FINANCIAL BENEFITS TO HAVING A DIGITISED SYSTEM. BUT THE REAL BENEFIT IS FELT BY OUR EMPLOYEES, IN 

THE TIME SAVED WHICH ALLOWS THEM TO FOCUS ON VALUE-ADDING TASKS RATHER THAN ADMIN." 

functionality and cost. After 

consideration, Filestream - a document 

management software provider - 

recommended PFU scanners that were 

well-matched to The House of Bruar's 

needs. The models selected, the PFU 

SP-113O and fi-7140, are renowned 

for their scan quality, compact 

dimensions, and capability to handle 

various paper sizes. 

This matched the needs of The House 

of Bruar, as they receive documents of 

all sizes, including invoices, receipts 

and additional business-related 

communication. The company 

implemented the scanning system, 

consisting of five SP-1130s and two fi- 

7140s which operate with Filestream 

software, across all operations and 

began the process of integrating the 

devices into their existing workflow. 

The scanners proved to be highly 

efficient and produced high-quality 

scans, even for documents of many 

different sizes. With the best-in-class 

software, scanned documents could 

be directly uploaded into the 

Filestream system, allowing an 

accessible end-to-end process even for 

first time users. 

TRANSITION TO CLOUD 

The switch to Filestream facilitated the 

transition from the paper-based 

system to a cloud-connected digital 

system, immediately offering inherent 

cost benefits and enhanced 

accessibility to information for all 

employees and eliminating the need 

for physical document storage. 

The House of Bruar plans to phase 

out all eight of the filing cabinets that 

occupy valuable space in their facility. 

By ensuring every new document that 

enters the business is immediately 

digitised, over time the documentation 

stored physically will become 

outdated. This is a common practice 

when businesses decide to digitise, as 

it doesn't constitute an immediate and 

total overhaul of the previous system, 

but rather a phased approach. This 

benefits staff, as they can adjust to the 

new digitised system while the 

previous physical system still exists for 

their reference. 

EMBRACING CHANGE 

While any change can be challenging, 

the vast majority of House of Bruar's 

staff embraced the digitisation 

initiative and quickly realised the 

advantages of digital archiving. Head 

of Finance at House of Bruar, Gary 

Sullivan, commented: "While we didn't 

implement this on the basis of a costsaving 

exercise, there are inherent 

financial benefits to having a digitised 

system. But the real benefit is felt by 

our employees, in the time saved 

which allows them to focus on valueadding 

tasks rather than admin." 

The benefits to staff have been 

noticeable, with more efficient 

document retrieval and reduced paper 

waste and clutter around the office. 

Gary added, "The scanners are small 

and unobtrusive and the quality of the 

scans, compared to those of our 

previous scanners, is excellent." 

In today's digitised world, it's 

important for all companies to 

consider digitisation for their own 

benefit, as Gary Sullivan concludes: 

"We'd wholeheartedly recommend the 

Filestream system in conjunction with 

PFU devices to any business. If 

companies aren't embracing 

digitisation and electronic archiving by 

now, it's time to do so." 

More info: www.pfu-emea.ricoh.com 




17

Dm OPINION: AI 

Safety warnings highlight the 

importance of AI ethics 

While we should undoubtedly proceed with care and caution, underpinning AI 

deployment with good data allows organisations to balance regulatory and moral 

risks, argues Yohan Lobo, Industry Solutions Manager, Financial Services at M-Files 

AI safety and security has been a 

hotly discussed topic in recent 

times - numerous high-profile 

figures expressed concern at the rate of 

global AI development at the UK's AI 

Safety Summit, held at Bletchley Park. 

Even King Charles weighed in on the 

subject when virtually addressing the 

summit's attendees stating, "There is a 

clear imperative to ensure that this 

rapidly evolving technology remains 

safe and secure." Additionally, in his first 

King's speech he set out the UK 

government's legislative agenda for the 

coming session of parliament. King 

Charles explained the government's 

intention to establish "new legal 

frameworks to support the safe 

commercial development" of 

revolutionary technologies such as AI. 

At M-Files we believe that avoiding the 

pitfalls brought to our attention at the 

summit and in the King's Speech hinges 

on organisations leveraging AI solutions 

that are built on a foundation of highquality 

data. 

Mass adoption of AI presents one of 

the most significant opportunities in 

corporate history, which businesses will 

do their utmost to cash in on, with this 

technology capable of delivering 

exponential increases in efficiency and 

allowing organisations to scale at 

speed. 

However, concerns rightfully raised at 

the UK's Global AI Safety Summit and 

reinforced in the King's Speech 

demonstrate the importance of 

developing AI ethically and ensuring 

that organisations looking to take 

advantage of AI solutions consider how 

they can best protect their customers. 

Data quality lies at the heart of the 

global AI conundrum - if organisations 

intend to start deploying Generative AI 

(GenAI) on a wider scale, it's vital that 

they understand how Large Language 

Models (LLMs) operate and whether 

the solution they implement is reliable 

and accurate. 

The key to this understanding is 

having control over the location of the 

data the LLM gains its knowledge from. 

For example, if a GenAI solution is given 

free rein to scour the internet for 

information, then the suggestions it 

provides will be untrustworthy, as you 

can't be sure whether it has come from 

a reliable source. Bad data in always 

means bad language out. 

In contrast, if you only allow a model 

to draw from internal company data, 

the degree of certainty that any answers 

provided can be relied upon is 

significantly higher. Any LLMs grounded 

in trusted information can be incredibly 

powerful tools and a guaranteed way of 

boosting the efficiency of an 

organisation. 

The level of human involvement in AI 

integration will also play a crucial role 

in its safe use. We must continually 

treat AI like an intern, even if a solution 

has been operating dependably for an 

extended period of time. This means 

regular audits and considering the 

findings of AI as recommendations 

rather than instructions. 

Ultimately, companies can contribute 

to the safe and responsible development 

of AI by only deploying GenAI solutions 

that they can trust and that they fully 

understand. This begins by controlling 

the data the technology is based on and 

ensuring that a human is involved at 

every stage of deployment. 

More info: www.m-files.com 

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Dm ANALYSIS: CONTENT GROWTH 

Is AI making tech even less 

environmentally friendly? 

Tom Dunning, CEO of Ad 

Signal, looks at the 

potential environmental 

impact of relentless 

content growth 

The amount of digital data in the 

world is growing by 23 per cent year 

on year and, as a result, is quickly 

becoming a serious environmental issue. 

Crucially, many people are unaware that 

this is even an issue at all. At any point in 

time the world is only using 20 per cent of 

the available capacity, yet organisations 

continue to provision more capacity, partly 

due to the concern over limited availability 

driven by rarity of resources. 

Backup upon backup is created of each 

item of content so that each organisation 

in the chain can meet Service Level 

Agreements (SLAs) and Disaster Recovery 

(DR) requirements; multiply this by the 

rapid growth of social content and the 

number of photos/videos people now take 

for each shot they use. Streaming services 

continue to grow in viewership and offer 

an ever-increasing library of content. 

We are collectively stumbling down a 

path of environmental damage that will 

grow exponentially unless we take 

immediate action. 

THE DANGER OF RISING DATA 

We're living in an era of rapid 

technological development and it's 

unreasonable to expect people and 

businesses to stop innovating, stop 

adopting, and stop using technology 

altogether in order to reduce the carbon 

emissions caused by rising data. 

The key, therefore, is to find solutions 

that can scale the reduction of carbon 

emissions of data alongside the growth 

of data content. 

Over 3.5 per cent of global 

CO2 emissions are 

estimated to be generated 

by data centres and 

network traffic. This 

makes network traffic 

responsible for even 

more CO2 emissions 

than the global 

aviation industry (2.1 

per cent). 

That figure is a 

significant issue, and one made even 

worse by predictions that data centres will 

generate 14 per cent of global CO2 

emissions by 2040, comparable to the 

agricultural industry. 

Businesses and large organisations in 

particular are taking data and technology 

for granted, focusing on how they can 

leverage it to boost efficiency and generate 

bigger profits. All the time this is happening, 

data volumes are rising, and network traffic 

is increasing with little to no thought from 

the people doing the damage. Video 

storage is a particular environmental danger, 

accounting for an estimated 70 per cent of 

the CO2 emissions generated by data 

centres. It's the densest content format that 

we have and equates to roughly 1.84 per 

cent of the world's CO2 emissions. 

Ultimately there are only three ways to 

reduce the carbon related to content 

storage: 

1.Reduce file sizes - normally through 

compression rather than reduced quality 

2.Store less - challenging as content 

grows 

3.Store it on more sustainable solutions 

In reality, a high volume of the large video 

storage comes from duplicated versions, 

many of which producers struggle to 

identify. As a result, content producers and 

holders can have a huge impact on 

emissions reduction just by de-duplicating 

high volumes of video storage. One UK 

broadcaster is holding 127 versions of the 

same episode but only around 20 of these 

are unique needed versions. 

The technology to achieve this is already 

out in the marketplace, solutions like Ad 

Signal's Match and Compose products can 

reduce emissions down from 1.84 to 0.5 

per cent, for example, while also making it 

commercially beneficial to do so by 

reducing the storage and data transfer 

burden of duplicated videos. Video is the 

low hanging fruit; it isn't feasible for 

industries like aviation to make such a 

drastic reduction. 

20 




ANALYSIS: CONTENT GROWTH Dm 

HOW 'AI WILL BURN THE WORLD' 

The biggest threat to sustainability across 

the board is AI. AI has seen rapid adoption 

across the world this year, whether it be 

businesses utilising large language models 

(LLMs) such as ChatGPT to drive 

efficiencies or generating data to 

understand the content and its potential 

usage. However, there is an enormous 

environmental cost associated with AI 

that's only increasing alongside adoption. 

While businesses and people have seen 

benefits from AI, the components that 

power it, such as Graphics Processing Units 

(GPUs), require carbon-heavy materials to 

produce. Alongside that, the powering of 

these components and the colossal cooling 

required significantly multiply the carbon 

emissions produced by AI. 

AI is plotted for a 37.3 per cent 

Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) 

by 2030 which we believe to be 

underestimated. The training, reviewing 

and retraining process for AI models 

typically takes numerous iterations before 

it is ready for commercialisation. It's this 

training process which has the biggest 

compute demand and therefore the 

majority of the environmental damage, 

which we should expect to happen in the 

next 2-3 years, rather than by 2030. 

Our Match product can reduce the cost 

and carbon of AI processing on video by 

more than 75 per cent. 

A further damaging feature is the object 

storage of AI models, requiring libraries of 

images, audio and video for training 

purposes. In this area at least, companies 

can adopt carbon efficient solutions for 

deduplication to reduce some of these 

emissions. 

AI IS NOT THE PEG FOR EVERY HOLE 

Collectively, we need to understand that 

the best thing for businesses and for 

longevity is a healthy environment. 

That has not been the approach taken by 

many business decision makers when it 

comes to AI. IDC forecasts 90 per cent of 

new enterprise apps will use AI by 2025. 

In reality, many of these applications do 

not need AI (many using it as a gimmick) 

or could achieve the same benefits with 

other technology. 

While it's impossible to expect everyone 

to give up AI, especially since it has 

brought some benefits for businesses, it's 

those jumping on the AI trend blindly that 

are contributing to the stark rise in 

network traffic, data volumes and 

subsequently carbon emissions. 

HOW TECH PLAYERS CAN REDUCE 

EMISSIONS 

The biggest and arguably most important 

step that we can collectively take to reduce 

the environmental impact of data content 

growth is raising awareness of the extent 

of the issue. We all have our own 

preconceived notions of 'sustainability' but 

ultimately, we're talking about climate 

change and reducing carbon emissions. 

The definition of our collective goal as a 

society is important and as part of that, it 

is essential that greenwashing is stopped. 

Organisations such as the Digital 

Sustainability Alliance are playing a crucial 

role in this, bringing together innovative 

businesses that are pulling together to 

make a difference in the field. That starts 

with universal transparent monitoring led 

by legislation in order to measure the 

climate impact of organisations and hold 

them accountable. 

Carbon calculators should be available 

for all AI products that use non-renewable 

energy, even if it is carbon offset. Carbon 

offset does not outright prevent damage: 

it seeks to mitigate it and it cannot be the 

whole solution to our problems, though 

mitigation is better than nothing. 

We also need monitoring for thermal 

damage not related to power, such as 

immersion cooling. Immersion cooling 

reduces power for cooling by 30 per cent, 

however the server heat is still released on 

the planet, causing damage. Without 

transparent monitoring services, 

consumers cannot make informed choices 

and we are obscuring key information on 

the impact on our planet. 

Between businesses, organisations and 

education bodies, we can all gather the 

pieces of the sustainability puzzle and it's 

important to aggregate that data 

together so that we all have a combined 

understanding. 

SUSTAINABLE TECH FOR THE FUTURE 

Ultimately, sustainability is a choice. That 

remains true even through economic 

uncertainty and budget constraints. There 

is a plethora of companies out there with 

sustainable technology solutions and these 

companies should be considered when 

businesses are making tech choices. 

A common misconception is that 

sustainability comes at the expense of cost 

or performance, but many of the 

companies developing these sustainable 

technologies are doing it with an 

environmental-first approach. This not 

only ensures carbon savings, but also cost 

savings and performance boosts, making 

them an obvious tech choice and an easy 

way to reduce the emissions of rising data. 

More info: www.ad-signal.io 




21

Dm TRENDS: PRINT 

Ten trends for print in 2024 

The print industry is 

poised for change in 

2024 as businesses 

embrace workplace 

transformation, AI, and 

sustainability, according 

to the latest research 

report from Quocirca 

Quocirca predicts that the rapidly 

transforming workplace and 

accelerating introduction of AI, 

automation, and collaboration tools will 

shape the print industry in 2024. Vendors and 

channel businesses will need to adapt fast to 

get ahead of the curve and capture business 

opportunities for print infrastructure 

modernisation and digitisation. 

As businesses strive to support today's hybrid 

workforce, they will seek to modernise their 

print infrastructure. With many organisations 

accelerating digital transformation initiatives 

over the coming year, driven by cost-efficiency 

and sustainability goals, print volumes will 

continue to decline. Traditional MPS providers 

are well positioned to extend their products 

and services to support digitisation, while 

ensuring businesses operate a secure and 

sustainable print infrastructure. 

Quocirca CEO Louella Fernandes predicts: 

"The coming year will see companies 

accelerate on multiple fronts, from digitisation 

to AI adoption and security to sustainability. 

They are keen to embrace new technology 

that will deliver cost, efficiency, and 

productivity benefits. They are also open to 

new buying channels and supplier models, 

meaning the convergence of MPS and 

Managed IT will gather pace. Vendors and 

channel partners need to position themselves 

to respond by building partnerships and 

developing expertise across all areas." 

Quocirca's Ten Key Trends for 2024 are: 

1. AI takes centre stage. 56% of organisations 

plan to increase investment in AI and machine 

learning technology in the next year but while 

generative AI adoption is now mainstream, it 

will continue to be hindered by security and 

ethical concerns. Print suppliers will need to 

carefully evaluate how they can embed AI 

into existing products and services that help 

augment workplace productivity. Intelligent 

Document Processing is a key area where 

vendors can draw on existing expertise and 

build out AI solutions. 

2. The office is redefined. The changing 

purpose of the office will continue to focus 



TRENDS: PRINT Dm 

"THE COMING YEAR WILL SEE COMPANIES ACCELERATE ON MULTIPLE FRONTS, FROM DIGITISATION TO AI ADOPTION 

AND SECURITY TO SUSTAINABILITY. THEY ARE KEEN TO EMBRACE NEW TECHNOLOGY THAT WILL DELIVER COST, 

EFFICIENCY, AND PRODUCTIVITY BENEFITS. THEY ARE ALSO OPEN TO NEW BUYING CHANNELS AND SUPPLIER 

MODELS, MEANING THE CONVERGENCE OF MPS AND MANAGED IT WILL GATHER PACE. VENDORS AND CHANNEL 

PARTNERS NEED TO POSITION THEMSELVES TO RESPOND BY BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS AND DEVELOPING EXPERTISE 

ACROSS ALL AREAS." 

on collaboration and connection, with 

37% of participants in Quocirca's Future of 

Work study saying in-person collaboration 

is the most important benefit of the office. 

While return-to-office policies will help 

print volumes recover in some sectors, the 

opportunity for print suppliers will be 

around delivering workplace technology 

that supports hybrid workers. 

3. Digitisation continues to erode print 

resilience. Only 11% of organisations 

currently operate a paperless environment, 

but 75% are accelerating paper 

digitisation initiatives. This will create new 

opportunities for integrated digital 

workflow automation and tailored 

digitisation solutions that correspond to 

the customer's digital maturity. 

4. The cybersecurity battleground 

intensifies. The threat landscape continues 

to grow, and the print infrastructure 

remains vulnerable, with 61% reporting a 

print-related data loss in the past year. 

With organisations struggling to keep on 

top of print security challenges, suppliers 

will need to deepen security service 

offerings, embrace AI-enabled security to 

help customers better detect, protect and 

monitor the print environment. 

5. MPS transformation boosts 

modernisation strategies. 2024 will see 

organisations continue to refresh and 

redesign their print environment to better 

support the hybrid workplace. Addressing 

cost challenges around hardware, 

consumables along with a need to reduce 

wasteful printing will create more demand 

for next generation MPS that helps 

organisations operate a secure and 

sustainable print infrastructure. MPS 

remains a key enabler for digital 

transformation helping organisations 

better integrate print and digital 

workflows with 36% of organisations 

saying it is very important to their 

digitisation initiatives. 

6. Sustainability transparency drives 

progress. Customers are demanding more 

insight into the environmental impact of 

their print environment and their print 

suppliers. 70% of organisations say it is 

important their print supplier provides a 

range of sustainable products and 

services and 69% say it is important print 

suppliers show they are reducing their 

own environmental impact. This will 

create opportunities for suppliers to 

deliver more value-led sustainability 

focused assessments, products and 

services to support their customers' 

environmental goals. 

7. A break in the clouds impacts cloud 

print adoption. Despite a shift to cloud 

print management, organisations will 

continue to experience print server sprawl. 

This along with a fragmented market with 

many players will hinder cloud print 

adoption. Suppliers will need to overcome 

the top barriers to adoption, which are 

security (36%) and lack of clarity around 

cost benefits (29%). 

8. Industry leaders embrace data 

innovation. Data will be key to competitive 

advantage in the mature print market and 

we can expect to see leading vendors 

enhancing AI-driven analytics capabilities. 

This will primarily be used to enhance 

predictive maintenance but will also 

extend to the use of AI to improve 

customer service, detect and identify 

security threats, and better analyse and 

predict print and scan usage to uncover 

opportunities for new products and 

services. 

9. MPS and managed IT convergence 

gains momentum. 2024 will see more 

managed IT providers moving into print 

and vice versa. More than two-thirds of 

respondents to Quocirca's Managed IT 

Services 2023 study are open to using a 

single provider for IT services and MPS, 

anticipating cost and efficiency savings 

from using a single supplier. However, 

MPS providers have more work to do to 

establish credibility in the IT services 

space and partnerships will be key to 

achieving this. 

10. Marketplaces unlock new 

opportunities. The acceleration of cloud 

adoption is leading to increased use of 

cloud-based marketplaces by B2B buyers, 

with Quocirca research indicating that 

50% now use them for cloud print 

technology procurement. Marketplaces 

provide an opportunity to create added 

value for customers and channel 

businesses should explore diversifying their 

sales models to capitalise. 

Louella Fernandes adds: "The coming year 

will be a time of change for print vendors 

and the channel, reflecting the changes 

their customers are undergoing. It's 

important that the industry capitalises on 

opportunities and moves beyond its core 

business to build capabilities that meet 

customer needs." 

The full report can be downloaded via 

the URL below. 

More info: print2025.com/reports/printindustry-trends-2024/ 




23

Dm TECHNOLOGY: GENERATIVE AI 

Generative AI changes EVERYTHING 

Dirk Bode, CEO of fme, warns companies to get ahead of the impact of Generative 

AI now - but asserts that the focus shouldn't be about developing a separate AI 

strategy, but rather weaving Generative AI into their core business strategy 

AI, and specifically Generative AI, is 

going to transform IT delivery as well 

as a whole host of other corporate 

functions, and that's assured. From secure 

company-wide intranets that draw on 

open, cloud-based AI platforms, to 

intelligent bot-enabled business functions 

and regulatory processes, ChatGPT and 

tools like it are going to transform the way 

entire organisations access, collate and 

distribute knowledge, and create new 

assets - as well as what they do with 

all of it. 

Very soon (if they aren't already 

piloting projects) companies will 

first scrutinise and clean up, then 

migrate content to a secure, cloudbased 

intranet harnessing the likes 

of Microsoft's Azure OpenAI, 

making valuable knowledge and 

content assets securely searchable 

and collatable. 

This will have a bearing on the way 

that new employees find 

answers to almost any 

query, as part of 

everyday 

business workflow. If teams need a 

summary of all the latest regulations with a 

bearing on a given task, or need to pull 

together the latest findings on a particular 

topic, they can simply ask the question and 

let the technology do the legwork - 

presenting the information back to them in 

a meaningful, context-appropriate way. 

Quickly, over time, the returned answers 

will improve too - because users will have 

the facility to rate them with a quick 

thumbs up, or thumbs down. As this 

happens, processes will become ever more 

efficient, transforming outcomes for teams 

and the internal and external stakeholders 

they serve. 

A GLIMPSE OF THE VERY NEAR FUTURE 

This is a glimpse into next-generation 

content and data management, and it 

really isn't all that far away. But it comes 

with challenges for the C-suite, as the 

surrounding organisational transformation 

could take many years to see through fully. 

Beyond information and content 

management and analytics, the next level of 

Generative AI application will be in 

transforming core processes - from HR, 

sales, creative marketing, and finance 

management, to IT development, and web 

site creation. 

As the technology matures, more 

controlled areas such as regulatory 

information management (in affected 

industries) can and will become a focus. 

Of course, this won't happen overnight. 

But it does require senior business leaders 

to take the long-term view - today. For now, 

the immediate preoccupations for 

companies - particularly regulated 

organisations including Life Sciences 

companies, industrial manufacturers, and 

finance institutions (which often face severe 

challenges in their digital transformation of 

content and content access) - might have 

more to do with reducing dependency on 

24 


November/December 2024 


The right information, the 

right people, the right time. 

Exclusively available to Document Manager readers 

Drive your digital evolution. Watch Hyland Summit on-demand >> 

Our recent UKI customer conference in London brought together 

400+ information management professionals to share best 

practices for connecting content, data and business processes 

across the enterprise. Access the speaker sessions including 

inspiring customer success stories from Amazon, Aviva and more 

on demand now.

Dm TECHNOLOGY: GENERATIVE AI 

"EVEN A YEAR AGO, NO ONE COULD HAVE PREDICTED HOW RAPIDLY GENERATIVE AI WOULD TAKE HOLD AND 

GROW IN ITS APPLICATION. ACCEPTING AND FULLY EMBRACING THE IMPLICATIONS IS GOING TO REQUIRE 

SIGNIFICANT CULTURE CHANGE FOR COMPANIES, AN ORGANISATIONAL TRANSFORMATION THAT CAN TAKE A 

GOOD MANY YEARS TO SEE THROUGH - NOT TO MENTION A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF BLOOD, SWEAT 

AND TEARS. GIVEN THAT THE TYPICAL TENURE OF A CEO IS 4-5 YEARS, ORGANISATIONS MUST NOW INFUSE 

THE ENTIRE BOARD WITH A VISION AND APPETITE FOR GENERATIVE AI'S POTENTIAL ACROSS THEIR 

OPERATIONS." 

legacy systems; consolidating content 

following a merger; or becoming more 

responsive to regulatory changes. 

Whatever their ostensible and immediate 

focus, ultimately such initiatives are about 

being better at information, content, and 

knowledge management. And in the nottoo-distant 

future, transformed data, 

content, and knowledge management will 

involve Generative AI as both the enabler 

and the intuitive user interface. 

LONG-TERM BOARD-LEVEL BUY-IN 

REQUIRED 

Even a year ago, no one could have 

predicted how rapidly Generative AI would 

take hold and grow in its application. 

Accepting and fully embracing the 

implications is going to require significant 

culture change for companies, an 

organisational transformation that can take 

a good many years to see through - not to 

mention a considerable amount of blood, 

sweat and tears. Given that the typical 

tenure of a CEO is 4-5 years, organisations 

must now infuse the entire Board with a 

vision and appetite for Generative AI's 

potential across their operations. 

Beyond information and content 

management and analytics, the next level of 

Generative AI application is likely to be in 

transforming core processes - from HR, 

sales, creative marketing, and finance 

management, to IT development, and web 

site creation (think: "Please generate a web 

site that does X"). Then, as the technology 

matures, and trust builds, companies in 

affected markets can more boldly branch 

out into similar treatment of regulated 

areas and workflows. 

The important point is that AI - and 

Generative AI specifically - is not going 

anywhere. In fact, it will change the world. 

Its presence is already prominent, and its 

potential reach is all-pervasive. 

The focus shouldn't be about 

developing a separate AI strategy, or even 

updating the organisation's digital 

transformation strategy. It should be 

about weaving Generative AI, and indeed 

any other aspect of digital 

transformation, into an organisation's 

core business strategy - and establishing 

where the technology could and should 

be harnessed to help deliver this. 

NO TEAM UNAFFECTED 

As to the impact of Generative AI on the 

role of humans, undoubtedly this will be 

significant. While human expertise will 

remain vital in checking, feeding back, 

refining and improving/embellishing AI's 

findings, in time the size of IT/Web 

development teams, HR functions, finance 

teams, and so on will inevitably reduce as 

more of the groundwork is covered by 

intelligent technology. 

It isn't just the search and filter intelligence 

that's transformative in all of this: it's the 

user experience. The way that individuals 

engage and interact with an application or 

tool is at least as importance as the clever 

things it can do, after all. And this has a 

bearing on everything from middleware or 

IT admin tools, to a more advanced stack of 

content enrichment and workflow 

management capabilities. 

The priority must be to keep looking 

ahead and anticipating what will be 

possible - and indeed expected - within 3-5 

years, and to keep tracking development 

and innovating, underpinned by an 

optimised core business strategy that 

encompasses and provides for those 

priorities in plenty of time. 

More info: en.fme.de/ 

26 November/December 2024 www.document-manager.com 


Dm CASE STUDY: HEINEKEN 

Refreshing the parts other AP solutions can't reach 

World-renowned brewing business Heineken has been able to 

significantly reduce the resources needed for its Accounts Payable 

function since implementing Basware 

By consolidating its finance functions 

into a single shared service centre 

(SCC) and implementing Basware AP 

automation, Heineken has achieved 

significant time and cost savings. Today 

over 90% of Heineken's purchase invoices 

are matched automatically. 

Heineken is one of the world's leading 

brewers, with a wide international 

presence through a global network of 

distributors and breweries. In 2016 

Heineken Netherlands took the decision to 

consolidate its IT, HR Facilities 

Management and Finance functions into a 

single Shared Service Centre (SSC) which 

would service the 25 business and sales 

units across the country. 

The goal was to reduce the time and 

resource dedicated to the manual 

processing of these invoices and to create 

an end-to-end automated invoice 

processing solution, from scanning, order 

matching through to archiving. 

MULTIPLE CHALLENGES 

Heineken's SSC Accounts Payable 

department handled 430,000 purchases 

invoices every year, many of which were still 

paper-based. Both electronic and paper 

invoices matching needed to 

dramatically 

increase to reduce time and resource spent 

on invoice approval workflow. 

Another significant challenge was to find 

a solution which could integrate with five 

separate ERP instances (two SAP 4.5 

systems, SAP 4.7 and 5.0 as well as an inhouse 

system, Proost). 

Finally, Heineken has over 14,000 suppliers 

that make up its supply chain adding an 

additional complexity and scale to the 

implementation project. 

CONTROL & EFFICIENCY 

Having looked at the solutions available, 

Heineken selected Basware AP Automation 

to deliver the control and efficiency the AP 

department required. The solution was 

particularly strong in two key areas for 

Heineken; Basware any ERP provided easy 

integration with Heineken's multiple ERP 

systems, and the matching delivered the 

accuracy and speed of invoice processing to 

streamline the AP department workflow. 

The system was successfully rolled out 

across the SSC in just nine months, from 

first proof of concept to going live with the 

first SAP environment. 

"The Basware solution has helped us 

achieve significant savings across the 

accounts payable department," commented 

Ed Prins, Financial Services Manager at 

Heineken. 

Today, the Basware solution accesses five 

different ERP systems to find the relevant 

Purchase Orders (PO) after which it 

automatically matches the incoming 

purchase invoices with the pre-approved 

purchase orders. This eliminates the need 

for further approval workflow and 

generates both time and cost savings. Once 

the system has matched the purchase 

invoice to the PO, coding and audit trail on 

the POs is automatically copied to the 

invoice, which is then automatically 

forwarded to the ERP system for payment. 

DRAMATIC RESULTS 

The Basware solution now processes 

230,000 electronic and 200,000 paper 

invoices. Of the 230,000 electronic invoices, 

210,000 are now completely automated 

from receipt to payment. 

"The time to approve paper and electronic 

invoice has fallen dramatically, allowing us 

to devote resource to higher value core 

tasks," explains Ed Prins. Overall, Basware 

helped cut the approval time for orderrelated 

electronic invoices by 95%, for all 

order-related paper invoices by 60% and for 

non-order-related invoices by 40%. 

In addition, explained Prins, Heineken 

now automatically matches over 90% of 

incoming e-invoices. The accuracy of 

automated order matching was a key 

metric for the success of the project, and 

the Basware solution has exceeded 

expectations. 

"The Basware solution has greatly 

improved the accuracy and speed of our AP 

process. Today, we are achieving automated 

matching rates of up to 97% on electronic 

invoices," concluded Ed Prins. This has 

resulted in a significant productivity gain 

with Heineken able to reduce the dedicated 

resource to Accounts Payable by 40%. 

More info: www.basware.com 


Dm MANAGEMENT: DATA ARCHITECTURE 

Embracing open data architecture 

Matt Peachey, Vice President, International at Dremio, argues that open is the smart way 

forward for data management 

For the past decades, data has been 

propelling business operations. 

Whether an organisation offers 

tangible goods or intangible services, 

crucial information about partners, 

workforce, processes, and clients forms 

the backbone of a company's wellbeing. 

At the heart of any computing system is 

data storage, therefore the selection of 

the appropriate solution to store it will 

significantly impact how efficiently an 

organisation's network and 

accompanying infrastructure cater to the 

business requirements. 

The primary expectation from a data 

storage system is to safely keep valuable 

data while allowing users and applications 

to retrieve it seamlessly and swiftly when 

required. However, with the volume of 

data growing exponentially and never 

deleted, businesses started to add more 

storage capacity. 

The issue deepens where data warehouse 

vendors store data in a proprietary format. 

Data gets locked into the platform, 

making it difficult and costly to extract if 

and when a business wants to. Further, 

maintaining and troubleshooting issues 

often require teams with deep subject 

matter expertise in the ecosystem - an 

expensive outlay. 

Given the multitude of data storage 

alternatives and system setups, 

organisations can get dragged into the 

rabbit hole whilst adding more data to 

their systems - a very inefficient approach. 

Organisations must embrace open-source 

standards, technologies and formats to 

ensure fast and cost-effective analytics 

with the best engine for each workload. 

This provides the agility to innovate with 

the next wave of technology without 

draining resources or time. 

EVOLUTION OF DATA ARCHITECTURE 

Previously, companies depended on 

conventional databases or warehouses for 

their Business Intelligence (BI) demands. 

However, these systems presented certain 

difficulties. The typical data warehouse 

setup requires investing in expensive onpremises 

hardware, maintaining structured 

data in proprietary formats, and 

dependence on a centralised IT and data 

department for analysis. Other obstacles 

included technical interoperability, system 

orchestration, and, more critically, scalability. 

However, things changed in 2006 with the 

launch of Hadoop, built on the Map-Reduce 

paradigm capable of parallel processing and 

producing enormous data sets over large 

clusters of commoditised hardware. This 

framework facilitated handling vast datasets 

distributed over computer clusters, making 

it immensely appealing for businesses 

accumulating more data with each passing 

day. Still, databases like Teradata and Oracle 

encapsulated storage, computation, and 

data within a single, interconnected system, 

offering no separation of compute and 

storage components. 

Between 2015 and 2020, however, the 

widespread usage of the public cloud 

altered this approach, enabling the 

separation of compute and storage. Cloud 

data vendors like AWS and Snowflake 

facilitated this separation in cloud 

warehouses, enhancing scalability and 

efficiency. Nevertheless, data still had to be 

ingested, loaded, and duplicated into a 

single proprietary system, which was 

attached to a solitary query engine. 

Employing multiple databases or data 

warehouses necessitated the storage of 

multiple data copies. Moreover, companies 

were still charged for transferring their data 

into and out of the proprietary system, 

which resulted in excessive costs. 

Enter more contemporary and open data 

architecture, where data exists as an 

independent layer. This includes highlighting 

a clear division between data and compute. 

Data is stored in open-source file formats 

and table formats and accessed by 

decoupled and elastic compute engines. 

Consequently, different engines can access 

the same data in a loosely tied architecture. 

In these architectures, data is stored as its 

own independent tier source in open 

formats within the company's cloud account 

and made accessible to downstream 

consumers through various services. 

This transformation parallels the shift in 

applications from monolithic architectures 

to microservices. A comparable transition 

is presently occurring in data analytics, 

with companies migrating from 

proprietary data warehouses and ceaseless 

ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes to 

open data architectures like cloud data 

lakes and lakehouses. 

SEPARATING COMPUTE AND STORAGE 

FOR EFFICIENCY 

Over the years, there have been many 

discussions around the detachment of 

compute from storage within the industry, 

primarily due to its contribution to 

enhancing efficiency, which resulted in 

several advantages. 

Firstly, the reduction in raw storage costs 

was so significant that they practically 

disappeared from IT budget spreadsheets. 

Secondly, compute costs became 

segregated, leading to customers paying 

only for what they utilised during data 

processing, which lowered overall expenses. 



MANAGEMENT: DATA ARCHITECTURE Dm 

"DECOUPLING COMPUTE AND STORAGE IN PUBLIC CLOUDS IS MORE STRAIGHTFORWARD TO 

ADMINISTER AND RELATIVELY INEXPENSIVE. BESIDES, THESE COMPUTE AND STORAGE CLOUD SERVICES 

ARE VIRTUALLY UNLIMITED IN SCALABILITY, ELIMINATING LEGACY HARDWARE PROCUREMENT ISSUES. 

THEY ALSO OFFER SUPREME LEVELS OF AVAILABILITY AND PERFORMANCE." 

Lastly, the independent scalability of both 

storage and compute facilitated ondemand, 

elastic resource precision, adding 

flexibility to architecture designs. 

However, these changes took time to 

materialise. Expensive Storage Area 

Networks (SANs) and less costly but often 

complex Network Attached Storage (NAS) 

systems have existed for quite a while. Both 

storage models were limited due to 

administrative and procurement 

overheads. Mass adoption of separating 

compute and storage only became feasible 

with public cloud computing. 

Decoupling compute and storage in 

public clouds is more straightforward to 

administer and relatively inexpensive. 

Besides, these compute and storage cloud 

services are virtually unlimited in scalability, 

eliminating legacy hardware procurement 

issues. They also offer supreme levels of 

availability and performance. Therefore, the 

separation of compute from data brings 

forth three immediate benefits: 

A significant reduction in complicated 

and expensive data copies and 

movements as the data warehouse as 

the sole source of truth gets replaced 

by accessing data in open formats in 

the data lake, eliminating data silos. 

Open data standards and formats 

provide universal data access from 

infinite services and applications, 

creating the freedom to pick the best 

solutions. 

An open architecture ensures that 

future cloud services can directly access 

the data, avoiding going through a 

data warehouse vendor's proprietary 

format or moving/copying data from 

the data warehouse. 

THE OPPORTUNITIES OF OPEN 

ARCHITECTURE 

Cloud data warehouse providers enticed 

firms with the allure of scalability and costefficiency 

that was unsustainable with onpremises 

solutions. However, after 

uploading their data into the warehouse, 

organisations were restricted entirely to the 

vendor's ecosystem or denied access to 

other promising technologies that could 

extract more value from their data. 

Open architecture is a significant 

advantage of cloud data lake/lakehouse 

over the data warehouse. As a result, 

organisations are reassessing their 

strategies to use an open architecture that 

promotes flexibility and re-establishes 

ownership of their data. This shift signifies 

three things: 

The flexibility to utilise various superior 

services and engines on the company's 

data. This allows the use of diverse 

technologies like superior SQL, 

Databricks or any other data-processing 

tool. Given that companies have 

numerous use cases and requirements, 

utilising the best-suited tool yields 

higher productivity - especially for data 

teams - and lower cloud costs. It's also 

important to remember that no single 

vendor can offer all the processing 

capabilities a company requires. 

Not being confined to one vendor. 

Platform changes become profoundly 

challenging when dealing with a data 

warehouse holding up to a million 

tables and hundreds of complex 

ingestion pipelines. Comparatively, if an 

organisation uses a superior SQL on its 

cloud data lake today and a new tool 

emerges tomorrow, it's possible to 

query the existing data with the new 

system without migrating it. 

The ability to benefit from future 

technological advancements. Avoiding 

becoming locked-in is crucial, as it 

keeps vendors from exploiting a 

company financially. But more 

significant is the capacity to adopt and 

benefit from emerging technology, 

even if the current vendor remains 

favourable. If a superior machine 

learning service or a better batch 

processing engine is invented, 

organisations can have peace of mind 

that they can use the tool freely. 

Application architectures have 

demonstrated that a service-oriented 

approach allows maximum scale, 

flexibility, and agility. While separating 

compute and storage marked an essential 

first step in reducing analytic costs, it 

doesn't offer the kind of benefits visible in 

modern application architectures. 

However, by disengaging compute from 

data, the benefits of application design 

can now be used for data analytics, 

especially given the critical importance of 

data for all businesses. 

As a result, open data architecture brings 

forth many benefits, from flexibility, 

independence, and future-proofing to 

creating new avenues for gaining valuable 

business insights. In the rapidly evolving 

digital era, embracing open data 

architectures is more than a strategic 

choice; it's a decisive move towards a more 

flexible, scalable, and insightful future. 

More info: www.dremio.com 




31

Dm CASE STUDY: EVELYN PARTNERS 

Digital documents first 

In an implementation 

that won the prestigious 

Project of the Year 

(Private Sector) trophy at 

this year's DM Awards, 

wealth management firm 

Evelyn Partners has 

moved to a 'digital first' 

approach for its 

document processing 

Evelyn Partners is an integrated 

provider of wealth management, 

online investing and accountancy 

services, that has been helping its 

clientèle achieve their financial goals for 

over 185 years. With over 170,000 

clients and some £50billion-plus of 

assets under management, the business 

is recognised as a 'top ten' accountancy 

firm. It has 27 local offices and over 

3,000 staff across the UK, Ireland and 

the Channel Islands. 

LACK OF OVERSIGHT 

Throughout the business there was no 

central location where all client 

documents were stored, leading to 

fragmented approaches to client 

engagement and service. Inconsistent 

practices across teams, locations and 

colleagues made it difficult to share 

resources. Inefficient processes included 

a lot of manual interventions and a large 

amount of paper. In some areas filing 

clerks were being used to deliver paper 

files to colleagues, while a lot of paper 

was posted to clients, leading to 

additional costs and delays. 

Prior to Covid, Evelyn Partners was 

printing almost 20 million pieces of A4 

per year. This paper was printed to either 

store, send to a client or be read and 

thrown away. In addition, a vast amount 

of physical office space was being used 

for document storage: in London alone, 

the equivalent of the space for 53 desks. 

Extra space was actually being rented for 

storage of archived documents. 

The business recognised that the 

situation was unsustainable: there was a 

lack of clear ownership and oversight of 

all documents and processes with no 

auditable document sign off process. It 

was difficult to adhere to document 

retention policies and a lack of standards 

for control and governance. Crucially, 

colleagues were spending time doing 

unnecessary administration when they 

could be completing fee earning work. 

GAINING AN EDGE 

Having realised that it was increasingly 

difficult to engage digitally with their 

clients, Evelyn Partners decided to take 

the opportunity to use technology and 

business change to gain a competitive 

edge in the Professional Services 

marketplace. 

As a result, the Digital Document 

Enablement Programme was developed 

to deliver and embed efficient and 

consistent document management 

principles and practices - all enabled by 

cutting edge technology. This meant to 

ensure that Evelyn Partners had the 

foundation to fundamentally move to a 

"digital document first" approach 

internally and for our clients. 

32 




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Dm CASE STUDY: EVELYN PARTNERS 

The initial programme delivered to 

around 1,200 colleagues across 11 

business lines in 8 office locations. In 

some cases these colleagues had worked 

the same, inconsistent and traditional 

way for decades which lead the project 

team to not only focus on the 

technology but also the culture and 

processes. 

The project philosophy that emerged 

was "This isn't an IT project. This is a 

Business Change Programme, which will 

change the way we all work." 

The initial aims of the programme were 

defined as: 

To store all client correspondence, 

documents and data securely and 

centrally for access by all colleagues. 

To deliver efficient and digital first 

ways of working to free up 

colleagues' time allowing them to 

work on further value adding tasks. 

To reduce the embedded risk in the 

business through automation and 

consistent document practices. 

To deliver a cloud based foundation 

for future client digital enablement 

and transformation. 

To reduce the amount of paper being 

printed and stored to enhance 

business environmental targets and 

reduce costs. 

NEW WAYS OF WORKING 

The technical aspect of the programme 

delivered a cloud based platform that 

enables new ways of working across 

Evelyn Partners, based on technologies 

from Hyland and Kofax. Firstly, Hyland 

OnBase provides a configurable cloud 

based content and document platform. 

It manages the access to and 

maintenance of documents along with 

automating the secure retention and 

destruction. OnBase gives a consistent 

approach to all aspects of document 

management through all business lines. 

OnBase also allows in-depth 

monitoring of the entire organisation's 

document management though 

management information and reporting 

dashboards. 

Meanwhile Kofax technologies support 

AI-driven document and process 

automation, including the extraction of 

relevant data and information from 

documents to reuse in other platforms 

and processes. 

Alongside the technology innovations 

though, the programme focused on the 

delivery of business change. Culture change 

was core to the organisation's digital 

transformation - a foundational piece. 

The main focus was on 'digital first' 

and the reduction in the need for 

physical files and paper. Consistency was 

also a key target: across the organisation 

(no matter what team) general 

document practices were made 

consistent, so that each person in 

individual teams would do their jobs in 

the same way. Efficiency was the other 

main focus of the cultural changes 

addressed, with the aim of instilling a 

'curiosity' to remove wasteful tasks and 

give practitioners more responsibility. 

A 'ONCE IN A DECADE 

TRANSFORMATION' 

The results of the programme have 

been simply transformational for Evelyn 

Partners and its staff: over 10 million 

documents uploaded to date, and some 

13 million A4 sheets saved from being 

printed. 182,000 client emails have 

been filed with no manual intervention, 

and over 7,000 client emails have now 

been generated automatically (saving 

hundreds of resource hours). The 

savings on ground rental for paper 

archive storage alone is estimated at 

around £850,000 a year. 

In addition to the tangible savings 

there are numerous business process 

benefits as well: documents are now 

fully secure with colleagues able to 

access what they need through role 

based access, while retention policies 

ensure the company is adhering to all 

rules and guidelines (e.g. GDPR). 

The platform offers 99.9% availability, 

an easy to use and intuitive User 

Experience including document search. 

Overall, the programme has changed 

the way all Evelyn Partners colleagues 

do their jobs for the better. 

More info: www.hyland.com 



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DM Nov-Dec 2023

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