What is enterprise information management?
Enterprise information management is a method of organizing and processing information generated by a business. EIM involves data storage, optimization, and governance across all areas of the organization. Enterprise information management is used to create data transparency and ensure security throughout the data lifecycle. EIM allows enterprise information to be accessed by the right business units and processes at the right time. This access allows the organization to move more efficiently, instead of waiting for the information to be discovered from disparate systems.
Central to enterprise information management is increasing access to relevant information no matter what system it originates from. This is essential for gaining insight from historical and newly gathered information. With EIM software, businesses have access to all their information in one place. This unified view of structured and unstructured information gathered from multiple systems allows faster market response and more effective collaboration. Enterprise data can more easily be accessed through business intelligence tools that help surface actionable insights.
Enterprise information management allows businesses to have a more complete view of the organization’s information, across business units and data formats. Businesses that have an information management strategy that includes this complete view of all their information can better govern what can be done with it. In some industries, data governance is a requirement for regulatory compliance. For example, data collected from European Union residents requires special handling to comply with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). GDPR requires specific governance of data collected from EU residents, no matter where the organization itself is located.
What are the business benefits of enterprise information management?
- Improved Data Governance. Discoverable data is more easily managed than data that is stored away in difficult to reach systems. Enterprise information management brings together data from multiple sources, even legacy systems.
- Quicker Market Response. Response to market changes can be done faster and more efficiently when all the information needed to make such decisions is readily available.
- Information Transparency Across Business Units. Privileged users can access information relevant to their line of business from a single location, rather than pulling the information from disparate sources.
- Improved Profitability. Enterprise information management allows businesses better access to all their data, no matter where it resides. This access can improve responsiveness to market shifts, increasing profitability for the organization.
- Improved Collaboration Among Business Units. Insights gained from better information visibility can improve collaboration among departments and business units. Improved collaboration can help improve efficiency within areas that require access to business information to move projects forward.
- Surface Important Trends. More accurate data analytics findings are possible with proper data management. Analyzing data to spot trends related to a particular supply chain, for example, can help surface relevant business insight for improving overall efficiency.