The real challenge of Information Management and Archiving is the integration of the various technology components to obtain a solution that is easy-to-use and that meets your legal, regulatory and business requirements. Arcplace’s consultants bring together comprehensive IT and process know-how and long years of project experience, and can guide you through all the phases of your project.
Using the Arcplace solutions and project-specific design, the Arcplace project teams implement specific solutions. The implementation phase comprises customization, installation and integration in existing systems, as well as tests and training of your staff.
Arcplace guides projects with flexible project, change management and reporting methods, from the planning stage through to successful implementation, thereby minimizing your project risks. Regular training sessions for your staff, planned well in advance, round off the successful introduction of the solution.
Our professional support assures the operation of your system. Qualified support staff ensure prompt processing of your calls. If desired, Arcplace can automatically install software patches and upgrades on your system, thus guaranteeing to maintain peak system quality and a long lifespan.
Arcplace has developed a number of consulting modules that can be used in different phases of your Information Management and Archiving project.
Requirements Analysis
One crucial step in the deployment of a Information Management and Archiving solution is the detailed analysis of all relevant requirements that will affect the design and operation of the company's solution. Doing this early in the process will ensure that the final solution meets the needs of the various stakeholders.
Arcplace can assist organizations by consolidating requirements based on:
- Legal requirements
- Regulatory requirements
- Corporate governance requirements
- Industry standards
- Business requirements
- Best practices
Because some requirements will be company specific (e.g. based on company corporate governance), Arcplace strongly recommends we go through the archiving requirements definition process together. For the legal and regulatory aspects, Arcplace has not only its own experience, but also access to archiving compliance specialists, auditors and lawyers who can be involved whenever necessary.
ECM / ILM Strategy
Before starting a Information Management and archiving project; it is useful to define an overall content management and information lifecycle management strategy for your organization. Arcplace recommends doing this by using the Enterprise Content Management (ECM) and Information Lifecycle Management (ILM) models.
The ECM model covers all the processes and technologies employed for managing the capture, storage, security, revision control, retrieval, distribution, preservation and destruction of documents and content. The ECM model is particularly useful for defining the scope of the applications that are required to fulfill your organization's Information Management and archiving requirements.
The ILM model focuses on the policies, processes, practices, services and tools used to align the business value of information with the most appropriate and cost effective storage infrastructure from the time information is created through its final disposition. When compared to others the ILM model is particularly valuable because it introduces a tiered storage solution.
Archiving Policy Definition
Arcplace can support you in the definition of an archiving policy. The archiving policy will contain information such as:
- What business records need to be archived (categories)
- How long the records have to be stored
- Who should have access to the records
- How rapidly the records should be accessible
The archiving policy is a key document, serving as an important input for the selection of the most appropriate archiving solution, its sizing and its configuration. The archiving policy document will also be very useful for both internal and external audits.
Solution Design
Depending on your preferences, Arcplace can either support you in setting up one of the Arcplace solutions or assist you with the design and product evaluation of a customized solution. If you choose an Arcplace solution the following design work will be performed:
- Architecture
- Solution sizing
- Definition of configuration parameters
- Integration with existing environment
- Operations processes
When you opt for a customized solution, Arcplace can develop a design with an associated RFP that will allow you to find the most suitable infrastructure and tailor it to your specific requirements.
ROI Analysis
An essential element in the deployment of a new solution is to calculate the Return on Investment (ROI). Using its experience in the field of Information Management and Archiving, as well as IT in general, Arcplace can help you with this.
The ROI analysis will contain aspects such as:
- Personnel cost analysis
- Storage infrastructure cost analysis
- Non-compliance cost analysis
The result of the ROI analysis will be to make it easier to convince the organization that the proposed solution is a must to deploy.
