Big data is no longer the buzzword that it was five or ten years ago, but the effects of big data still influence businesses, agencies, and institutions. The more paperwork a company producers, the wider the wake of its paper trail. The wider the paper trail, the more data there is to be reviewed. Reporting and analytics solutions turn over every last stone for you – see who is doing what in your company, when, with what, and for how long. If you haven’t invested in reporting tools yet, you’re behind the curve, and chances are that your competitors already know what you don’t even know that you don’t know.

Enterprise reporting is part of enterprise content management

Big data feeds on large quantities of documents. It’s in the name, after all. You can’t analyze a small sample size. So you will need a way to get a lot of files into the system quickly. Document management software allows you to bulk upload documents and then batch process anything urgent right away.

By indexing your files, you not only make searching easier but also create parameters which give shape to your data. Set up access permissions based on role or department; by knowing who is opening and editing what, you can monitor productivity and project development.

Processes and reporting software

Content management or document management solutions can provide users with ways to share documents. Edit, review, annotate, stamp, redact text, add comments, or approve and eSign documents in a digital workflow. Staff will especially benefit from digitizing complex business processes, such as long projects involving several departments or multi-step approval processes for regulatory forms.

Just as a healthy number of tags and index fields will transform a document into a flare amidst your filing structure, manifold workflows will give your IT business analyst insight into the processes those documents travel along. That includes the notes, changes, and annotations applied to documents in workflow.

Analytics dashboard software

All of this rich information allows for visibility – both into your digital files and processes, and into your office’s productivity and efficiency. Tasks assigned to employees will enter their to-do list, and they will receive notifications about upcoming deadlines or review dates.

Users can check their dashboard for updates or even metrics delivered via data visualization. Business analysts with admin access will have a clear view into the internal workings of the company and can then put that insight to good use.

Data analytics and reporting, applied

Information visualization is not a miracle cure on its own. You need to take what you’ve learned about your business, examine it, and make changes. Find out where your documents are getting lost; literally – leverage audit trail or workflow reports to find out where the latest version of a file has taken a detour. Then prevent detours altogether with access permissions.

Identify weak links in your workflows, and reach out to those teams or employees. You can give them special attention, work closely with them, and improve their speed and productivity.

Through business analysis, you may find that many steps or processes are altogether unnecessary and can be folded into larger chains or nix them entirely. Start packaging other files into larger documents with which they are associated – more stakeholders means more parties safeguarding those files’ integrity and expediting disposition.