Fileshare System Restructure

As a result of both an office relocation and associated internal company reorganisation, the existing NT fileshare is no longer best suited to meet business needs of our client's offices in Aberdeen.

Venture's ongoing work is enabling them not only to realign their fileshare to reflect the new business organisation but is also proposing the implementation of a strategy for holistic information management and delivery irrespective of any possible future organisational restructurings

Background

Occurring at the same time as the office relocation, the internal business reorganisation presented the opportunity to restructure business documents and records within their file share environment to reflect the new functional organisation. Not only will this provide users with a file structure consistent with the new business organisation, but also the opportunity to clean the existing fileshare – simplifying the depth and complexity of the structure, revising user access control lists, weeding out redundant and duplicated documents, and ensuring corporate compliance regarding record retention.

In the preliminary phases of this ongoing project Venture has been tasked to analyse the existing data and filing structures and undertake a series of interviews with selected business and team representatives in order that current work practices (both good and bad) can be evaluated. The present fileshare structure and reasoning behind it can then be appraised and understood before design a new folder structure, transferring data and deciding a course of action for the remaining data.

Outcome

Through the two preliminary phases, (fileshare analysis and business interviews), Venture has been able to assess team needs and requirements, from which a redesigned fileshare structure can be developed and an implementation plan with each business unit.

Concurrent with the preliminary phases Venture has also developed a conceptual model for holistic information management, through which synergies both within and between each business process and activity can be maximised. This will ensure a consistent strategy for ongoing information management and delivery irrespective of any future organisational restructurings.

This model, which is both adaptable and transferable across the energy industry, brings all information management projects into a holistic perspective, thereby helping to drive information and technology consistencies, maximise return on project investments and reduce overall information management expenditure.

Benefits

As a result of the fileshare restructuring exercise our client's business units will have:

• More rapid, logical, and timely access to business documents and records
• Improved and updated security and access control lists
• Disposal of both duplicated and redundant information
• Increased compliance with both the internal and external document and records management environments
• A model for ongoing management of project, working and final documentation within the fileshare that is organisationally independent.