Ecm in banking

ECM for Banking and Finance: Looking Beyond Document Management
By Paul Fochler, Project Manager, Optical Image Technology Competition, mergers, and regulation within the financial services industry have led to dramatic changes in the way that banks and credit unions conduct business. Historically, transactions were the main priority of lending institutions. Now, banks, brokers, mortgagecompanies, and credit unions find themselves responding to constantly-changing customer needs. Institutions are likely to concentrate on cross-selling, up-selling, improving access to data, and other activities that strengthen the customer relationship. To be successful in a competitive marketplace, lending institutions require tools that enable them to gain a complete overview of their customertransactions. Usually, this involves the ability to access information that is housed in legacy systems and to search both structured and unstructured data. At the same time, they must demonstrate strict adherence to regulatory compliance mandates. Organizations with paper-based processes are at a severe disadvantage when it comes to efficiency and productivity. At the same time, lending institutions thathave transitioned to electronic processes without considering interoperability may not be getting the most out of their investments in technology. Fortunately, enterprise content management (ECM) software has evolved to serve the needs of banking and finance organizations in their efforts to optimize customer service, address regulatory responsibilities, and improve accessibility to information.Bank examinations: minimizing your risk

Supervisory agencies are required to periodically evaluate assets and liabilities; competence; and compliance with regulations. Under a system that is paper-based, these evaluations can be disruptive and extremely drawn out. Auditing and examination teams set up shop within your institution for weeks or months at a time while they evaluate commercialloans, credit files, loan portfolios, and additional information that might indicate risk factors. Massive accordion files have to be located, retrieved, and scrutinized. Files are pulled apart and reconstructed; they potentially could be lost, duplicated, or misplaced.
By automating your processes, you can be assured that you have the security in place to guarantee that the right people are seeingthe right information and signing off after tasks are completed. Audit trails address compliance requirements by serving as indisputable evidence that controls are in place that reflect established policies and are being followed.

Even for organizations that have transitioned away from paper processes, bank exams can be tedious if data is not easily attainable. Many financial serviceorganizations house customer and financial data in mainframe and legacy systems that are not readily accessible from other applications. Consequently, their electronic systems—sometimes functioning less efficiently than their paper-based system— may not address the need for increased organization during Safety and Soundness and other exams.

An ECM system can dramatically increase the efficiency of theentire examination process, often shortening its duration by days (and in some cases, even weeks). Examiners have quick, immediate access to files, COLD reports, and records, minimizing the disruption to your business process. They can even be granted the rights to view data securely from an off-site location, minimizing office disruption. Electronic access to information offers greater benefitsthan mere convenience. The continuity of files remains intact; staff resources are not expended; and office space is freed for better use.

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Lessening your regulatory burden

Unfortunately, it is unrealistic to think that your organization can completely eliminate risk. Strategically, you should plan to enact procedures that enable you to manage and minimize risks....