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QMS with document control!

Discussion in 'Documentation Control, Procedures, Templates,...' started by fankriss, Jul 31, 2017.

  1. fankriss

    fankriss New Member

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    Hey guys,
    Hope you don't mind helping me with something.
    I am trying to find a document control software that suits the requirements at my canned food company. Too much documents is ruining the process quality at work.
    I found a lot of quality management software on the Internet that offers this feature and most of those have so many other features as well. Which all features are considered to be a must, if I want to focus and improve the quality of the product? Are these softwares helpful in any way for us to conform to ISO 22000 and other required quality standards?
    Thanks!
     
    fankriss, Jul 31, 2017
    #1
  2. RoxaneB

    RoxaneB Moderator Staff Member

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    Hello, fankriss, and welcome to QFO! Congrats on your first post, as well! :)

    Can you determine the clients that use the software programs you've been looking at. Are any of those clients in the same industry as your organization? That could be a good indicator that the software is suitable for you.

    Do any of the software programs specifically mention being aligned with ISO 22000?

    QFO members use various software - everything from SharePoint to LotusNotes to PolicyTech to...well...the list goes on and on. Each program has pros and cons. You will never receive concensus from us on the "best" software.

    We also do not know the technological maturity of your company. How comfortable with technology and software is your organizatin? This could impact which software you go with.

    That said, in my opinion, features to consider (both with the software and for your organization to consider) include - and these are the things that have immediately popped into my head:

    • Price - per license, per organization, upgrades, subscription fees, support, etc.
    • Transition - will they take all your docs and dump them in or will you need to do that?
    • Server location - maintained at your site or at theirs?
    • Backup options
    • Can anyone create a doc or only those from a group?
    • Electronic approvals - single approver, multiple approver, parallel/serial approval process
    • Notification that a document has been revised - who gets this information
    • Automatic notification of revision cycle
    • Overdue notification - review, approval, reading, etc.
    • Customization allowable and impact to price, support, etc.
    • Document master list - electronic, location of hard copies, etc.
    • Links - parent/child documents, supporting documents
    • Authorization restrictions - confidential docs, limiting readership/accessibility, etc.
     
    RoxaneB, Jul 31, 2017
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  3. yodon

    yodon Well-Known Member

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    RoxaneB is spot on with her reply. Adding on to what she said...

    You should take some time to define the requirements that you need to make it useful for your company. The considerations RoxanneB listed provide a good start at working through that thought process. Once you have those, vendors will likely (gladly) demo their offerings and show how they can meet your requirements. I've seen a number of attempts to use systems that fail primarily because they didn't take time to understand the requirements. They think that if they purchase a system, it will meet their needs right out of the box.

    Many vendors also offer a free demo. This is only a valuable exercise if you know what your requirements are. Otherwise, it's just a review of how pretty their user interface is.

    Many of the systems can be customized or tailored to your specific wants / needs. This is a 2-edged sword. It allows you to shape the tool to your business processes, but if not managed, you can turn system management into a full-time job (or more). (Oh, there's a unique document situation, let's create yet another workflow...). Biting off more than you can chew is another way I've seen such initiatives fail.

    If you do implement any of these systems, you should expect some overhead for administration. Ensure you have sufficient resources available. This is yet another way I've seen these things fail. No resources were allocated for adaptation and administration and so it never got off the ground.
     
    yodon, Jul 31, 2017
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