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Twenty percent of employees claim they don’t know what document management tools their employer uses, according to an Accusoft survey of more than 100 U.S. IT managers and 250 full-time employees.
The survey also found 66 percent of employees said two to three versions of a document are created before final approval, pointing to vague document management processes.
Steve Wilson, vice president of product at Accusoft, told eWEEK the most concerning finding from the study was that 90 percent of IT managers are confident they have the tools to protect their organization’s documents, yet 34 percent have had sensitive information compromised due to poor file management practices.
“This proves there is a major disconnect when it comes to understanding what the right tools can do for an organization,” he said. “While these data breaches could be chalked up to inevitable situations, sophisticated file management systems allow IT departments to control viewing and editing permissions.”
According to the survey, transparency between IT managers and employees is one of the biggest challenges facing organizations when it comes to document management strategies.
“Security is a pressing issue for businesses across the board, so it’s important that IT managers are communicating document security best practices continuously and effectively so employees can follow those guidelines,” he said.
He also noted the lack of knowledge among employees about the document management solutions their employer uses, which ties back to transparency among IT and the rest of the company.
“Employees need to be informed about what’s available to them and why the company uses specific document management solutions,” Wilson said.
The study also took a look at the growing use of mobile devices in the workplace and its impact on document management and security.
According to Accusoft’s findings, 74 percent of organizations have implemented some form of a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy, but only half of this group require that employees have their devices approved by the IT department.
The survey results indicated that as more employees move toward mobile, IT departments have a growing need to create adaptable and secure processes.
“We undoubtedly will see shifts toward the cloud for content management, and we can also expect to see more employee training programs around file management best practices,” Wilson said. “Organizations are dealing with so many developments that directly impact file management, like BYOD and employee mobility.”
He explained an organization’s office isn’t the only place work gets done anymore, so full-featured mobile solutions that allow people to work the same way they would on a desktop is increasingly important.
“Businesses need to remain agile and implement the right tools to make sure they are keeping up with the constant developments in file management to remain efficient and secure,” Wilson said.