Authorities of the Astrakhan region (Directum)

In 2008 the administration of the governor of the Astrakhan region adopted the target program directed to increase in efficiency of executive bodies of the government. Creation of the uniform information and technology infrastructure of authorities integrating geographically distributed information resources became one of the main tasks. As an integral part of a new system it was required to create an electronic document management system and with its help to establish operational and transparent cooperation of more than 40 structural units which are in department of the governor of the Astrakhan region among which — 12 ministries, 9 agencies and 8 services.

It was necessary to select the reliable and checked in practice software product which would become a basis of the created solution and also to find the company capable to provide successful delivery and professional system implementation. According to the results of the tender held in the summer of 2008, preference was given to the DIRECTUM platform, and creation of an electronic document management system and interaction management of structural divisions of authorities was entrusted to the Astrakhan representative office of JSC ICL-KPO VS — the certified partner of DIRECTUM company.

Tasks and project objectives

Thanks to creation of the uniform automated electronic document management system the administration of the Astrakhan region expected to increase efficiency of activity of executive bodies:

• it is qualitative to improve work with documents,
• accelerate approval processes,
• strengthen control of execution of solutions,
• provide reliable storage of documentation,
• it is strict to regulate data access,
• reduce labor costs of staff of bodies of management.

The DIRECTUM platform had to become a part of an end-to-end system by means of which representatives of authorities of the Astrakhan region could make the weighed management decisions. This system includes a number of the blocks integrated among themselves: accounting system, project management packet, geographic information system, portal of public authorities and portal of public services of the Astrakhan region.

Unified information system of management

Ensuring close interaction of separate solution components is especially important for a full-fledged work of the electronic government: in systems unified registers and reference books are used; the information management system is closely integrated with the portals orintirovanny on rendering public services and acceptance of citizens' appeals; control panels where key data are displayed in the form of charts, diagrams, pivot tables and histograms are developed for heads (the governor, the Prime Minister of the Astrakhan region and his deputies and also for ministers and heads of divisions). Such seamless integration significantly simplifies decision making processes and helps to control their execution better.

When implementing the project it was necessary to consider not only complex branched structure of subordinated organizations (more than 40 structural units), but also high intensity of information flows: in a year in administration of the governor is registered about 10,000 entering and 1,500 outgoing documents, and the total amount of the stored documentation is about 150,000 documents.

Project Progress

At the first stage specialists of the Astrakhan representative office "ICL-KPO of AF" investigated the applied schemes and rules of document flow. Interviews with key users were for this purpose conducted, questionnaires are filled and processed, abilities to integrate with other information systems are studied.

Then they generalized and analyzed all collected data to consider features of work of users, to define structure of the implemented business processes and to describe modifications which should be entered to initial solutions. Within the project the universal schemes of movement of documents considering specifics of work of the customer were developed and modules ("Administrative documents", Expedition) and additional reference books are added new, created for authorities ("Drafts of resolutions and orders", Citizens, Address directory).

Heads of regional administration (ministers and their deputies) had an opportunity to use specially developed interface providing access only to key functions of document flow - the solution allows to accept documents for consideration, to write instructions (text, hand-written and voice) and also to approve the papers prepared by assistants.

As the Astrakhan representative office "ICL-KPO of AF" is one of the Centers of the certified training of DIRECTUM company, the staff of regional administration could actually without separation from the work take training courses on use of software products of DIRECTUM and pass certification examinations.

The implementation project of DIRECTUM was begun in September, 2008, and by January 1, 2009 a system was installed on the server and jobs and completely configured. During New Year's vacation specialists converted data from all applied programs, having transferred them to DIRECTUM, and since January 10 commercial operation of a system began. At the time of start in a system 100 employees – as the heads accepting documents in electronic form for consideration and the ordinary employees receiving resolutions and orders were registered.

The created solution

Today in the DIRECTUM system 1300 people are registered, from them more than 200 users daily use it in the activity. Being the government of the Astrakhan region set in workplaces of heads of executive bodies, in receptions, the secretariats and offices, DIRECTUM allowed to automate work of responsibles and to provide rapid response to citizens' appeals.

The interface for work with documents and tasks for heads

DIRECTUM allows to solve all complex of the problems connected with documentation. The possibility of registration of the entering and outgoing correspondence — in the centralized mode decentralized and mixed is provided. Account of all internal and administrative documents, agreements (agreements) and office correspondence is kept; work with the interconnected documents is supported. Electronic images of all documentation, regardless of its format, are stored in uniform electronic archive, and access to it is provided according to predefined user rights. Mechanisms of write-off of documents according to the nomenclature of affairs admitted to administrations and rules of preparation of documents for destruction are provided.

A system provides document management both between internal divisions of administration of the governor, and between executive bodies of the government of the Astrakhan region. Document transfer is conducted according to accurately set schemes that allows to coordinate carefully work of bodies and increases its efficiency. The employee who is temporarily absent in a workplace (for example, being in a business trip), has continuous access to the DIRECTUM system via the Internet.

Through DIRECTUM it is possible to control timely execution of instructions of the management, to respond to the requests of the organizations and citizens. A system supports validation and timeliness of execution of documents, provides preparation and performance of the resolutions and orders adopted by the governor and the government of the Astrakhan region since a stage of creation of the project and finishing with removal from control and delivery of documents in archive.

At last, one of important advantages of use of DIRECTUM is accomplishment of functions of office-work according to the existing Russian standards and regulations.

Results and development plans

To implementation of DIRECTUM in the organization of work of regional administration there were significant changes, and improvements affected both qualitative, and quantitative indices of activity of employees. Work with main types of documents (protocols, letters, petitions from citizens, etc.) is now conducted only in electronic form. Internal documents rassmatrivayetsya twice quicker, and time spent for control and the analysis of execution of instructions was reduced four times.

The possibility of loss of information is almost excluded - all documents, including the history of their approval and consideration, are stored in electronic form in the single database. At the same time, thanks to implementation of DIRECTUM, search time of any of them was reduced by 9 times. A system is completely integrated with the internal portal of executive authorities of the Astrakhan region.

In development plans for infrastructure - further scaling of the DIRECTUM system that will allow to distribute the solution to all executive bodies of the government of the Astrakhan region. Besides, it is supposed to expand functionality of a system, including due to providing an opportunity to all responsible to the employees to apply the electronic digital signature to vising of documents.