6 mars 2024

Document Version Control: Do the right Thing!

How many times have you found yourself working on a document only to discover that you were not working on the latest update available?

How many times have you wasted time looking for a document or file that an imaginative or simply distracted colleague had renamed incorrectly?
How many times has an obsolete or unapproved version of a document circulated within the company, or worse outside it, perhaps with negative consequences on production or brand reputation?
If you have found yourself in one or more of these questions, then it is superfluous to explain how important a correct revision control procedure is in document management because you already know it perfectly.

VERSION CONTROL

Version control is the process that ensures the tracking and management of all a document's versions (including drafts). It must include all elements of monitoring and recording changes while ensuring their integrity.

There are working areas where this process is indispensable, such as law firms or design and development departments, where meticulous records must be kept of what has been changed at various steps and what version is currently in use and approved. In reality, all companies that are minimally structured or in which it is necessary to work collaboratively on the same project are involved in audit control processes.

Despite the importance of tracking a document's creation and modifications, the coding of this process can be less simple and easy than it seems, and paradoxically, if poorly structured, it can add further problems. For example, the lack of standardization and clear rules on making and renaming revisions can make the process chaotic and difficult to manage. An overload of information and details about revisions can make it difficult to identify relevant changes.

PROCESS TRACKING AND AUTOMATION

For this reason, most companies now entrust these processes to dedicated management software.
Thanks to document management programs, it is possible to obtain "automatic versioning", that is, automatically record the creation and all changes to a project, maintain its history, and allow access to all versions. It is good to remember that version control, understood in an engineering and working sense, was born in developing processes based on paper drawings. As the work progressed, it was essential to identify the different modifications, initially by adding an incremental number (called version number, or simply "version") and labeling it with the name of the modification's author.

With this control method, the possibility of returning to the previous state of the project had to be implicit in cases where, unfortunately, a stalemate or dead end in the development was reached.

Likewise, the possibility of precisely reconstructing the genesis and evolution of a document and the state of its iterations is now fundamental in every work process.

More sophisticated management systems such as LogicalDOC allow easier use and reduce the possibility of errors during workflows, as they eliminate the need for manual naming of files, avoid the possibility of unauthorized duplicates of the same document, ensure access to both major and minor versions while maintaining a clear and unambiguous distinction between the different versions.
LogicalDOC further strengthens all these procedures, as its system provides double control over the versions of the documents and even the files attached to them.

SECURITY AND COLLABORATION

We have already introduced how, in the shared development phases of a project or document, it is equally important to encourage collaboration between the different members of the work team and, at the same time, guarantee the security and integrity of the data. LogicalDOC's software not only prevents unauthorized people from having access to documents but you can configured it to associate different levels of authorization up to the creation of an actual approval flow, which defines the management of changes and approvals in a structured and automated manner.

By tracking all changes and the user who made them, LogicalDOC ensures that even accidental errors can be easily identified and correct.

The software provides the ability to send automatic notifications – to everyone or only to qualified members – whenever changes or other selected events are made (downloads, approvals, digital signatures, etc.).

It also has the functionality to make annotations and comments, which are then stored on each new version, helping each member to stay updated on the project and the progress of the work.
Generally, even workgroups that do not have a solid background with these technologies, with very little training, can adapt quickly and find this way of collaborating simple and profitable in terms of productivity.

COMPARISON AND MANAGEMENT

LogicalDOC's version control includes not only the comparison of file contents but also of its metadata. They represent a structured system of data on data generated with the specific purpose of defining the context in which an IT document falls, their comparison takes on a very precious value for the correct management and archiving of the various versions over time.
Relying on a system with efficient audit control mechanisms is vital for compliance, efficiency, and quality in document management.

With the right information and knowledge, the correct choice of document management software can be decisive in ensuring an efficient and accurate review process.