Document Management Saves Costs -Ononiwu

Dozie Ononiwu, group president/CEO TSC Group Inc, is man who tries to do the best he can in any given situation. His company based in Battle Creek Michigan, USA, provides cutting edge cost savings and effi­cient data management solu­tions to businesses and organizations. Ononiwu spoke to Peter Ugwu on a wide range of issues including local software; document management system and sundry issues
 
Average Savings by SMEs with Document Management System
First, I should clarify that the typical small to medium scale company has some level of document management system in place and in the most case it is a manual system with a lot of paper.

 What we are promoting is “electronic document management system” (EDMS). To answer your question, if we go by a Price Waterhouse study that found the average professional spending about 60% of his/her time managing paper in some form then you begin to place an amount on how much can be saved with an electronic document management system (EDMS).

Again, considering that the average return on investment (ROI) on a properly implemented system is typically between 3-6 months, the answer is they will save a lot of money. However, they are not only going to be saving money, they will be benefiting from improved customer services, increased associate productivity, enable disaster recovery protection and a lot more.

 Nigeria is yet to Embrace Document Management; Any Losses?
 Again, I will say a lot! Without being too technical, imagine what it is like processing payment for pensions, salaries, contracts and to some extent budget implementation? 

We can attribute a lot of these bottlenecks on the paper pushing culture we currently have.

 However we are encouraged by the bold steps of organizations like the CBN, SEC who are really promoting cashless and paperless implementation.

EDMS systems can also help promote transparency, improved customer services and operational efficiencies.


Development of Local Software
 Nigeria still got ways to go however; given the environment within which they operate.

 Our software developers are doing the best they can especially with all the handicaps and limitations they face. I read a lot about what the new minister for ICT is doing and I believe that if her efforts are sustained coupled with the bold moves organizations like NITDA are making, we will get there in due course.

Nigerian Software and its Foreign Counterpart
Considering the different scenarios they operate in, it might not be fair to do an objective comparism.

 For instance, while there are lots of grants, public and private support for development in these other countries, the Nigerian developer has to contend with very limited support.

You will also realize that it takes a while to come up with these programs and follow through with updates and technical support. Software development is a very capital intensive venture.

Take the Microsoft or Ricoh-EWS (we are one of the few RICOH-EWS resellers in the US) as examples, they first come up with the better version run them for a period before releasing into the market. Not a lot of developers can afford to do that in Nigeria

Causes of Neglected of the Document Management
Look back at the growth of organizations like Rank Xerox, HP, Microsoft et al. My take is that because the industry is always going to be evolving, innovative and dynamic.

The situation right now is that we are experiencing a shift from the traditional way we have been handling data to a more innovative way with the aid of technology.

 We are not as technologically advanced as the developed countries we are sometimes constrained to be using not the most modern applications available, besides these applications do not come cheap.

I also think it is a generational thing- most of the decision makers are barely coming to terms with how to turn on their computers and now you are talking of making the paper they are used to carrying around disappear? Therein lies some of the challenges.

Improved Information Storage and Implementation Freedom of Information Law
Yes, I totally agree with that.

Providing a total data management solution that will include long term storage is critical to any EDMS implementation and the success of the FOI law.

 In that regard, we offer a complete data management package that starts from when data is captured, through its management cycle to when it becomes static and then archived. We do this through what we call data tiering.

Career in Data Management
Depending on what level they may vary.
 But you will need an understanding of how to use computers ( obviously) entry level programming languages, network security and data base structure.

Cabinet NG (CNG) Partnership with TSC
The significance of the partnership is that Nigeria now has access to a world class, affordable, Microsoft certified partner EDMS application.

The benefit to the Nigeria market is that TSC Group Inc. is bringing its wealth of experience in implementing EDMS systems in the US to Nigeria.

It is worth mentioning that we offer a holistic approach to data management needs covering capture, management, storage, archival and back up.

Our partnership is not only with Cabinet, but includes industry leaders like Kodak, Canon, Imation, Brainware and RICH EWS.

We have also partnered with local organizations to create a robust support team with local content development.

We are also helping transfer knowledge through training.

With our entry, Nigeria businesses now have a “one stop shop to their document management needs.”

 Our affiliate organization TSC Global Systems has been working closely with local IT firms to implement our sales model that will ensure that our applications are readily available across the country with accompanying support


Where Document Management Should Be Used
Document Management should be used by every organization.

But if you ask me where are they most needed right now I will say hospitals, Insurance and financial organizations, MDA’s, Accounting& Legal firms and of course manufacturing organizations.