Cabinet NG White Paper Sample

Providing remote access to documents can be as simple as setting up a VPN (Virtual Private Network) and giving access to a server where documents are stored. Many companies already have this type of system in place today. Remote workers connect to a server and get to documents they need. Most companies start out by putting these documents into a filing structure using the Windows Explorer filing tree method. For example, on the server drive there is a folder called Clients which contains a folder for each client. Each client folder can contain subfolders and documents. The advantage to this approach is that it is an inexpensive way to get started with basic remote access and it relies on common and relatively inexpensive Microsoft technology. The downfalls to this approach are the lack of control and problematic scalability. Controlling the filing structure and how people go about adding and naming documents, even editing and deleting documents becomes a major challenge with this approach. And as the number of people using the system increases, this challenge grows. Without strong controls on the filing structure and user rights within the filing structure, the risk of losing or inadvertently deleting documents is very high.

Now extend this approach to document provisioning for customers. Many businesses store customer documentation that is occasionally required by the customer. The customer calls or emails to request certain documents. An employee retrieves these documents from a file cabinet or from a computer and faxes or scans and emails or sometimes even ships hardcopies to the customer. What if a customer could access their documents on a “self-service” basis? The customer wins because they don’t have to wait to get what they need and the company wins twice. First, by saving on time spent providing this service to the customer and second, by providing better service to the customer. The challenge here is with security. How is a secure connection provided for the customer to retrieve documents? The VPN approach is generally not acceptable in this case because essentially the customer gains access to the server and network. The best solution seems to lie in what is known as a Customer Document Portal. A portal provides a way for remote system users to access information.