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2014/12/09 16:36:19

IDGC of the Northwest: Transition to uniform EDMS became one of important stages of upgrade of IT

Creation of a single system of electronic document management became for JSC IDGC of the Northwest one of important stages in implementation of complex IT strategy of society. About why as the platform Documentum was selected as the project and with what difficulties was implemented it was necessary to meet, TAdviser was told by Yury Tsvetkov, the head of the department of corporate and technology automated control systems of JSC IDGC of the Northwest.

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TAdviser: What in general level of development of IT infrastructure of IDGC of the Northwest? What basic systems are used at the enterprise for process automation?

Yury Tsvetkov: In JSC IDGC of the Northwest the Development strategy in information technology field, automation and telecommunications until 2016 is developed and approved. In compliance with this document in society development of corporate information systems and IT infrastructure is conducted. Now we completed a stage of creation of information systems the, uniform for all branches, automating this or that business process. In line – transition to end-to-end systems, each of which automates the block of the interconnected business processes based on a single platform. The number of platforms of automation will be limited. Within implementation of this stage of Strategy by the first the project on upgrade of the Automated System of Managerial Document Flow (ASMDF) on the Documentum platform was executed.

TAdviser: Why you decided to begin with document flow upgrade? How there was it was organized before automation on EMC Documentum?

Yury Tsvetkov: In the company historically, since those times when branches were independent legal entities, there was a situation when on each branch and in executive office of Society the electronic document management system was used. These systems had the different level of development, covered different number of users. Integration of systems was not organized. Thus, the document sent from branch to executive office of society in other branch or in the opposite direction, inevitably was manually shifted from one system in another or in general continued lifecycle in paper form. All this increased document handling time, did not allow to check all chain of the instructions issued according to the document, to organize an effective control system of performing discipline. For the company need of implementation of the uniform end-to-end electronic document management system covering all employees whose activity is connected with creation and execution of documents ripened.

TAdviser: What platforms did you consider at a choice stage? By what criteria "did" the selected EDMS "move"?

Yury Tsvetkov: Many EDMS platforms were considered: and those that were already successfully operated in Society, and systems, new to it. The Automated System of Managerial Document Flow (ASMDF) of FGC UES was not for us something new: EDMS on this platform in limited scales was operated in executive office of Society since 2008. Advantage of this solution is adaptation to requirements and features of the electric grid companies, capability to work with thousands of users, the unique mechanism of federal interaction allowing to perform end-to-end document management with other companies using the same platform. A final argument for benefit of the choice of ASUD was the solution of our major shareholder – JSC Rosseti about creation of a common information space of JSC Rosseti and its subsidiary companies based on ASUD.

TAdviser: How the project was quickly implemented? Whether there were some difficulties, the interesting moments, original completions?

Yury Tsvetkov: The first stage of the project – upgrade of the operated solution and system deployment for 650 users in executive office of Society and on branches - was implemented in 10 months. The project provided transition to new versions of EMC Documentum and ASUD FGC UES which allow to organize federal interaction with other power grid enterprises using ASUD not only at the level of simple transfer of documents, but also by the organization of end-to-end business processes of approval and execution of documents and instructions. Besides, adaptation of a system to features of business processes of JSC IDGC of the Northwest was performed. Also more than 230 users underwent resident instruction to work with a system, for other users the training video seminars were held.

Certainly, so big project mentioning both the executive office of Society, and branches changing work of considerable number of specialists and heads with the majority of documents could not pass absolutely smoothly. There were problems of organizational character. As well as at any automation there was a need to modify business processes of work with documents taking into account demands which are made by use of an automated system. But they, perhaps, were the simplest for the solution. And here psychological problems were solved much more difficult. People had to change the thinking, the relation to work with documents, to accept that the document can exist also in a paperless form. Also it is possible to carry to psychological problems that users at the initial stage could not understand all advantages which end-to-end EDMS of the enterprise gives. On it insufficient knowledge of a system, lack of steady skills of work with it was still imposed. Therefore except accomplishment of technical and organizational actions it was necessary to conduct work on explanation of advantages of the automated document flow, to hold individual consultations of users on acceptances of effective work with a system. Over time understanding of additional conveniences which a system gives to ordinary users came, and began to arrive from users of the offer on expansion of the list of the documents processed in a system, on optimization of the used algorithms.

TAdviser: What upon a new system what business processes are automated on its base how many users in it work "is able to do"?

Yury Tsvetkov: We began with the list of documents, traditional for any EDMS: the entering and outgoing letters, internal correspondence, organizational and administrative documents (orders, orders, protocols, etc.). A system allows to automate complete lifecycle of documents: create draft documents, carry out their approval along a flexible route, organize signing and mailing in electronic form as on the system of federal interaction with other ASUD, and by e-mail to the organizations which are not entering in participants of federation of Rosseti, to issue instructions (resolution) and to organize execution control. Besides, a system allows to find quickly the necessary document on any known set of details or by a contents fragment. For today in a system 650 users work. All this staff of executive office of Society and key staff of management personnels of branches.

TAdviser: What notable effect was gained by the company after implementation?

Yury Tsvetkov: Despite the small term of commercial operation of a system the positive effect became notable already now. Document handling accelerated, employees began to spend less time for approval of draft documents. Became possible to receive the objective information about the employees skirting deadlines of work with documents and accomplishment of instructions. It became easy to trace all history of correspondence on any question. The uniform electronic archive of documents forms. So premises for performance improvement of work of managers of the company, cost reduction of time for routine transactions of work with documents are created.

TAdviser: Whether there are plans for further development of the project?

Yury Tsvetkov: Already at a stage of trial operation it became clear that all advantages of workflow automation can be got provided that all employees whose job responsibilities provide work with documents, will be users of ASUD. Now competitive procedures are carried out and there is a preparation for replication of a system on 2350 jobs. It will allow to connect to the system of all users in management personnels of branches and key staff of production departments. In more remote plans – expansion of the list of types of the documents processed in a system, in particular transfer of approval of agreements to an electronic form.

TAdviser: Your response about the company integrator?

Yury Tsvetkov: Works on upgrade of ASUD and system deployment on 650 jobs were executed by ID-Management Technologies company. The company positively proved during joint project implementation: competent specialists, readiness to react flexibly to the customer's requests, ability to concentrate resources on problematic issues for their fastest solution. And in general the benevolent and attentive relation of specialists of the contractor very much helped to overcome internal resistance new and unusual from a number of users. In many respects thanks to competence and persistence of her specialists it is possible to speak about success of the project.

At the same time it was not also without roughnesses. There were organizational pads at the beginning of trial operation, debugging of reports was tightened. But at joint meetings of the working group of Society and representatives of the contractor who were weekly led at a stage of trial operation problems were quickly contained and actions for their elimination which sometimes were beyond the amount of works stipulated by the agreement were jointly developed. The general aiming of both specialists of Society, and the contractor on achievement of result, and not just on formal accomplishment of obligations, undoubtedly played an important role in overcoming the arising problems.