Frequently asked questions
Question:
Do I need to cost justify an EDRM solution?
Answer:
That depends on your education organisation and how successful you are in promoting the case for an EDRM solution. If you do need to cost justify the investment then the above steps give you the tools to build the case. Increasingly, however, organisations are less inclined to try and justify an investment in EDRM on staff savings and space savings and other savings. Rather they take the view that EDRM is an infrastructure investment. You need an EDRM system to manage your records effectively so provided you can afford to implement and support a system you should implement one. Very few education organisations cost justify an investment in a finance system or a human resource system or e-mail or the telephone system. They are accepted as core tools and technologies. The same approach can and should increasingly be taken to EDRM.
Question:
Where can education organisation obtain real financial savings?
Answer:
See Step One of this stage. The main financial savings result from real core virtual staff savings; increased student numbers; space savings; reduced telephone, printing, stationery and copying costs and improved cash flow.
Question:
What are the key strategic benefits?
Answer:
See Step Two of this stage. The importance of each strategic benefit will vary from one education organisation to another. Key benefits include improved customer service; support for electronic service delivery and e-learning; reduced delivery cycles for new courseware and the fact that these solution enable your organisation to fully meet its record keeping requirements and support the move to team working and a knowledge management culture.
Question:
How can we quantify savings?
Answer:
Staff costs can be obtained from Human resources and finance departments. Space costs can be obtained from Estates and finance departments. IT costs can be obtained from the ICT department and copying and printing costs can be obtained from Reprographics and finance department. Be persistent and you will obtain the data you need.
