When Document Imaging, Sharing Is Caring

We, like other people who talk about document imaging, talk a lot about how to not only reduce the amount of paper lying around the office, but make sure that going paperless increases the productivity of the organization that strives for it.

A major point of discussion in this area is how scanned documents are shared within the organization--or not shared, or partially shared, or whatnot. How to make appropriate decisions on that issue and then how to set up systems that work with those decisions. After all, the "new guy" doesn't need to be given instant access to all the company's sensitive documents.

Microsoft SharePoint is an interesting product in this respect. In typically "Microsoftean" fashion, SharePoint can do a huge number of things, but it's not easy to know what it should do for your company. Indeed, a visit to the SharePoint website can be headache-producing.

It's a product worth getting to know, though, because Microsoft has created a compelling technology which can revolutionize your company's ability to collaborate, search, and manage scanned documents. For example, SharePoint works with the other Microsoft programs such as PowerPoint, Excel, and Access.

Major corporations such as Monsanto are using this interopability to build complex systems that facilitate effective sharing of scanned documents across multiple platforms.

Some people have noted that SharePoint has not caught on yet as true business process changer, and this blog does not endorse or advertise SharePoint. However, looking at this high end product and thinking about its sharing capability can open your mind as to what you can do with scanned documents after they've been scanned.

For scanning is only the beginning of a document imaging journey.