E-mail was perhaps the biggest driver of Internet use in general. It was (often) free, easy to use and connected people from all over the world.

Whereas initially e-mail was used for communication, later on more and more people started using e-mail for more purposes. From attempts at collaboration, to exchanging documents and files.

And there a new problem was born: the source of information fragmentation in organisations.

The most common problems of circulating e-mails and attachments

When e-mail is used as the main tool for collaboration, a number of problems arise with regard to information management.

Version management

Imagine the following situation: you are working in a team of five on a business plan. You are ultimately responsible for the document and send the latest version to your four colleagues.

Anyone can make changes and should at least give their approval. 

By the end of the week, your inbox is full of four different versions, full of edits, changes and comments.

Because even from the colleagues who did not post any changes, you do want to know if they have reviewed the document. As a result, you have to chase your colleagues to get this done.

Eventually, you try to consolidate all these versions into one final version. And that is a difficult and, above all, error-prone process.

This is not the most efficient way of working together in 2020.

With an intelligent information platform like M-Files, you easily share the document via a link, including an automatic notification as the deadline approaches for their changes and review. Moreover, all changes take place in one version of the document. 

That way, you could have seen at a glance who added, changed or reviewed what, where and when. 

Storage problem

When everyone uses e-mail attachments to exchange files and documents, storage problems quickly arise. Not only does it hit the performance and capacity of email servers, but all downloaded attachments get lost in local storage locations such as desktops, hard drives and USB sticks.

Security and governance risks

Even with small documents, where multiple copies are stored on different cloud accounts, employee laptops and as e-mail attachments, the likelihood of security breaches increases dramatically. 

If there is also sensitive information or private data in between, as an organisation you have a big problem with laws and regulations.

With a smart information platform like M-Files, document owners can set rules that provide access only to the right people. 

This not only protects information, it also allows the organisation to demonstrate externally that it complies with the rules around protecting information.

Challenges around information ownership

It happens often enough: new people join and others leave the organisation. But what if someone leaving the organisation has the latest version of accounting on their laptop? And has deleted the documents and files on this laptop, because those are the company guidelines for departing staff?

With M-Files, there is one version of a document in the cloud and the owner or owners can quickly be changed centrally. Ideal when roles change in the organisation. 

Prevent information fragmentation with intelligent information management

No one doubts the importance of e-mail. It helped grow the internet into what it is today and revolutionised communication. 

Yet many companies still rely on email for more than its core function. Simply grown out of habit. Not surprising either when you consider that for many people, e-mail is the first and most widely used application. 

Combining email with a platform like M-Files helps people collaborate more securely and smartly, keep track of versions, manage audits, automate business processes and prevent data breaches.

Try M-Files for free and find out what step forward your organisation can take.