Electronic Document Management and Processing System

of Ramon Magsaysay Technological University

Daniel Angeles Bachillar

Ramon Magsaysay Technological University
dbachillar@rmtu.edu.ph

Abstract

The Ramon Magsaysay Technological University manages huge volumes of

documents within its day to day process. Often this documents are essential for
everything to work properly. However, documents may be viable for loss or decay
eventually resulting to loss of information and interference on the workflow. Thus, the
objective of this study was geared on the development of a document management
solution for the university. Moreover, this specifically aimed to measure the following
aspects: (1) the level of software quality of the system through ISO/IEC 25010; (2) the
level of acceptability of adapting the system; and (3) the level of readiness of the
university upon its implementation. Descriptive method of research was employed and a
total of one hundred twenty-eight (128) respondents using purposive sampling had taken
part in the study that includes head officials and staff of the university. Through them, the
system was evaluated and pretested. Findings had revealed a high and satisfactory rate on
the evaluation on the factors stated above. This indicates that the users recognize the
appropriateness and usability of the system. Furthermore, the results had indicated that
there was no significant difference on the evaluation and perception of the head official
and staff respondents on the systems’ software quality and the level of acceptability and
readiness of the university. Thus, both group understand the need and suitability of the
system on better document managing.
Keywords: Document, Software Quality, DMS, ISO/IEC 25010, RMTU

Introduction

Globalization has grown vastly and workplaces had been more physically
dispersed. Storage prices were falling while its capacity even increasing. This means that
document production had increased rapidly and been used more than ever in several
places. One tree yields 8,333 sheets of paper, that’s 768 million trees to produce world’s
annual paper supply and each office worker prints 1,000 pages per month but 45% of
documents are thrown out within 24 hours (Schoen, et. al., 2016).
Probably one of the best definitions of a document is proposed by Andrea
Wharton, who describes it as simply a "container for information". Its format could be
visual or audio and its media could be paper, electronic file or multimedia (Smith, 1998).
Documents are very important in any aspects as this is the lifeblood of every institution.
Often these documents are the reason such institution exists merely because these
represents their work product or it’s essential for everything to work properly.
Ramon Magsaysay Technological University as a Higher Education Institution
has always had to deal with an abundance of paperwork. Traditionally, the university rely
on the physical filing of documents such as memos, reports, forms and the like. Large
spaces of filing cabinets were stock in different offices, causing a limited workspace.
Although papers were all filed neatly, a closer inspection will show that a lot were
missing or were never created. Furthermore, these documents may be viable for loss or
decay eventually, resulting to loss of information and interference on the workflow. Even
the electronic form of documentation does have the same problems such as keeping the
track of where the documents are, who was the last person to work on them and what
were the revisions. Time and effort were wasted trying to find such existing information
and documents.
Time is of the essence, thus processing of documents such as approval were
major concern. Workflow is an essential part of document processing such that it enables
the documents to be shared and passed through different offices. Most documents were in
need for an authorization before putting in public viewing and some approval were
composed of numerous individual. On those supervisory positions, work were not limited
on going to the university alone, official business outside must be considered. Thus,
document processing halt when one was not available.
Hence, the researcher developed an Electronic Document Management and
Processing System. A specially designed software for document and workflow
management using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) that recognize and identify texts
present on documents. With this tool, it will enable smooth and firm exchange of
documents within the different offices lessening the dreary task of manually taking them.
Because of the integrated feature and user-friendly interface, it will provide all users with
security and accuracy of data and information, fast and reliable accessibility and efficient
way of document and workflow management optimizing the university’s productivity at
ease.

Methods

Upon the development of Electronic Document Management and Processing

System, the researcher had chosen Rapid Application Development (RAD) - a software
development methodology that focuses on rapid prototyping. It lets the users to be
involved from planning to the development of the system and speeds up the development
process as the users help in providing feedbacks and comments regarding the system
being developed in order to know if the requirements of the users are considered (Del
Rosario et. al, 2016). This lessen the technical risk and defects that could occur and made
the system more flexible and adaptable to changes. Moreover, this methodology was
chosen with consideration of the short span of time the researcher had during the
development process and the availability of the users who can reliably assess the system.
On obtaining the opinions and evaluation on the system, descriptive research was
used. According to Burns and Grove (2003:201), descriptive research is designed to
provide a picture of a situation as it naturally happens and may be used to justify current
practice and make judgment and also to develop theories [1]. For that reason, this study
covered the view of the head officials and staff of the university on the level of software
quality of the system using the ISO/IEC 25010 metrics - a quality model determines
which quality characteristics will be taken into account when evaluating the properties of
a software product (ISO25000, 2017). Likewise, their level of acceptability and the
institution’s readiness in the implementation of the developed system was included.
The study was conducted in the selected campuses of Ramon Magsaysay
Technological University in the province of Zambales and selected personnel from
different offices had taken part. Purposive sampling was used in this study. Parahoo
(1997:232) describes purposive sampling as a method of sampling where the researcher
deliberately chooses who to include in the study based on their ability to provide
necessary data [1]. The rationale for choosing this approach is that the researcher was
seeking knowledge about the respondents’ opinion on document and workflow
management in which the participants provide by virtue of their experience. Given a
population size of 188 with a margin error of 0.05, 68% percent was taken as respondents
in which each answered on the questionnaire through a Likert scale. To interpret the
gathered data effectively, the researcher had employed frequency and percentage
distribution, weighted mean and t-test as statistical treatments.

Results
Table 1
Head official and staff Respondents’ Evaluation on the Software Quality of Electronic
Document Management and Processing System using ISO/IEC 25010 metrics
Head Officials Staff
INDICATORS
Mean Description Mean Description
Functionality Suitability 4.42 Excellent 4.26 Excellent
Performance Efficiency 4.32 Excellent 4.15 Good
Compatibility 4.32 Excellent 4.17 Good
Usability 4.34 Excellent 4.33 Excellent
Reliability 4.19 Good 4.16 Good
Security 4.41 Excellent 4.22 Excellent
Maintainability 4.29 Excellent 4.19 Good
Portability 4.36 Excellent 4.21 Excellent

As shown in table 1, a high evaluation was given both by the head officials and
staff. An average rating of above 4.0 on functionality as to adequacy and completeness on
a document management system indicates a high level of satisfaction (Beverly, 2017).
The reason for such was the systems capability to provide necessary features of document
managing with accurate and precise results. The system was not good because it does
what is should be, but by doing it efficiently and effectively. However, slight difference
on the evaluation was made on some parameters. As the system works, some unexpected
situations related to technical issues may occur. This may be connected upon its
interaction within the environment. The behavior of the system depends on the different
modules that affect each other, which is define by its architecture. In addition, upon the
initial development and implementation of the system, there is a need for modification.
Without this, the system will not be able to evolve and adopt on a changing environment.

Table 2
Head official and Staff Respondents’ Evaluation on the Level of Acceptability
of the Electronic Document Management and Processing System
Head Officials Staff
INDICATORS
Mean Description Mean Description
Functionality 4.42 Highly Accepted 4.30 Highly Accepted
Performance 4.36 Highly Accepted 4.34 Highly Accepted

On the level of acceptability, both group perceived high acceptance on the system
as illustrated on table 2. Considering the increasing amount of documents necessary to the
university, there was a need for a system to manage this complexity. With a document
management system, the university can enhance the automation of processes within
documents’ classification, processing, archiving and distribution. By digitizing paper
documents, not only you can easily manipulate them, but also you can control access and
guarantee its confidentiality and integrity.

Table 3
Head official and Staff Respondents’ Evaluation on the Level of Readiness in the
implementation of Electronic Document Management and Processing System
Head Officials Staff
INDICATORS
Mean Description Mean Description
Information System Facility 3.98 Ready 4.00 Ready
User/Technical Personnel 4.11 Ready 4.13 Ready

Table 3 presents the perception of the respondents on the level of readiness of the
university upon implementation. Such undertakings involve amenities and stuffs, certain
hardware and software requirements, and a suitable and safe place. As the university was
adapting with the emerging technologies, some of the equipment and resources needed by
the system to operate were already available. However, both group’s perception were
affected by the fact that purchasing materials and supplies in a state university would take
a little time and much process. Furthermore, a need for suitable understanding of a
document management system’s design and functionality as well as its usage and
preservation for concerned users was necessary. The success of implementation is directly
related to the amount of effort and collaboration, thus it is important to train select
individuals on how to administer and maintain the system (Laserfiche, 2007).

Table 4
Significant Difference between the Head official and Staff Respondents’ Evaluation
of Electronic Document Management and Processing System
SOFTWARE QUALITY
Indicators t Stat t Critical one-tail Result
Functionality Suitability 1.40 1.66 Not Significant
Performance Efficiency 1.50 1.66 Not Significant
Compatibility 1.36 1.66 Not Significant
Usability 0.14 1.66 Not Significant
Reliability 0.24 1.66 Not Significant
Security 1.61 1.66 Not Significant
Maintainability 0.85 1.66 Not Significant
Portability 1.26 1.66 Not Significant
LEVEL OF ACCEPTABILITY
Indicators t Stat t Critical one-tail Result
Functionality 1.11 1.66 Not Significant
Performance 0.17 1.66 Not Significant
LEVEL OF READINESS
Indicators t Stat t Critical one-tail Result
Information System Facility -0.10 1.66 Not Significant
User/Technical Personnel -0.19 1.66 Not Significant

To test the difference between the perceptions of the head officials and staff
respondents on the Electronic Document Management and Processing System, the
researcher had made use of one-tailed t-test at 0.05 level of significance. Although there
were slight difference between the evaluations in some parameters of the software quality,
the result shown in table 4 denotes that both groups most likely have the same perception.
The impact of technologies in our today’s world have transformed the world of work and
the ability to use and become accustomed was becoming an essential skill. A recent study
shows a positive feedback towards establishing a document management system in local
universities, such that it improves efficiency and effectiveness of managing, retrieving
and sharing documents, and create new opportunities for collaboration, coordination, and
information exchange (Baban, et. al., 2010). Merging in the fast lane of changes, both the
head officials and staff of the university thinks it was necessary to adapt. Thus, resulted to
a high and similar response on the evaluation of the system.

Discussion

The study clearly stated the suitability of adapting the developed Electronic
Document Management and Processing System for Ramon Magsaysay Technological
University. With an almost outstanding rating on its software quality, the user’s level of
acceptability and the level of readiness of the university, the system was a reliable tool for
the institution on becoming more productive in document managing. Employees could
now focused on important matters rather than wasting minutes tracking a particular
document.
However, upon implementation, the following should be considered: (1) as the
system manage enormous amount of documents and handles simultaneous processes, it is
essential to have a fast and reliable internet connection upon implementation; (2) a more
secure web hosting with features such as large amount of storage capacity, easy and
manageable control panel and other capabilities relative hereto must also be considered;
(3) the need of a full time personnel that will manage and administer problems that will
arise upon the implementation and use of the system and must be in the place accessible
to all other offices; (4) Acquisition of supplies and other resources that will be used either
by the system or the end users; and (5) Continuous development and maintenance of the
system should be undertaken so that it will be at pace with the constant changing trends
of information technology.
On the other hand, this study focused only upon the development and evaluation
of the system. Thus, a need for future research to assess the level of effectives of adapting
such was advised. Moreover, as the system was being used continuously, its performance
will be measured thoroughly. Measuring the performance of document processes would
expect to enhance efficiency, reduce cost, and yield a higher return on investment in
document process activities (Neal, 2008).

References
1. Baban, Hediyah, Mokhtar, Salimah (2010). Online Document Management
System for Academic Institutes. 3rd International Conference on Information
Management, Innovation Management and Industrial Engineering. ISBN: 978-1-
4244-8829-2

2. Beverly, Jon Patrick (2017). Software Engineering Document Management

System. The University of Texas at Austin
3. Del Rosario, Elin, del Rosario, Julian, Nieva, Mirro, Tan, Tiara, Tangkeko,
Marivic (2016). “CollaborateIT: A CCS IT Thesis Portal with Electronic
Document Management System”. College of Computer Studies, De La Salle
University

4. ISO25000 (2017). ISO/IEC 25010. Retrieved from

http://iso25000.com/index.php/en/iso-25000-standards/iso-25010

5. Laserfiche (2007). Document Management Overview. Compulink Management

Center, Inc. Long Beach Blvd, CA, USA. ISBN 0-9726861-0-X

6. Neal, Ken (2008). Driving Better Business Performance with Document

Management Processes. Retrieved from
http://content.arma.org/IMM/NovDec2008/Driving_Better_Business_Performanc
e.aspx
[1]
7. Research Design and Methodology (2018). Retrieved from
http://ais.utm.my/researchportal/files/2015/02/Example3-Res-Design.pdf

8. Schoen, Richard, Schmidt, Greg (2016). 8 Reasons It’s Time to Implement

Electronic Document Management

9. Smith, Christopher L. R. (1998). Development and Deployment of Document

Management Technology into Rover. Department of Engineering, University of
Warwick