InBase has published a study on the issue of "invisible content"—unstructured information (such as contracts in emails, scans without metadata, and duplicate files) that is not integrated into workflows. Analysts estimate that up to 80-90% of corporate data is unstructured, creating significant risks and hidden costs for businesses.
How this affects the sector
The accumulation of chaotic information leads to the following negative consequences:
- loss of employee working time spent searching for necessary documents;
- financial losses due to working with outdated versions or disrupted deals;
- difficulties during audits and compliance checks;
- security threats due to uncontrolled access to confidential data.
Benefits of implementing EDM
Electronic document management (EDM) allows companies to turn scattered files into controlled assets by establishing a single repository, version control, full-text search, and access rights management. For Ukrainian companies, implementing EDM provides:
- Resource optimization: freeing up employee time and reducing financial losses from errors.
- Data security: protection against cyber threats and a transparent document revision history.
- Business continuity: stable access to information for remote teams and during business relocation.
How to prepare
To resolve the issue of unstructured data and optimize corporate information, businesses should take the following practical steps:
- Implement an Electronic Document Management (EDM) system to establish a single, centralized repository for all files.
- Introduce full-text search and version control to eliminate duplicate documents and prevent working with outdated versions.
- Set up access rights management to secure confidential data and simplify compliance checks and audits.
Prepared by a Software Ukraine member. Original publication.