M-Files document management in practice: setup, metadata, workflows, integrations, client applications and compliance features.
When people think about consultants, they usually focus on expertise. “They bring experience, frameworks, and best practices.”That’s true, of course. However, that is not the most impactful aspect of the role.The real shift happens somewhere less visible: positioning. As an outsider, you don’t just join a team. You become something different. Over time, I’ve come to think of it as…
As I’ve mentioned in some of my previous blog posts, ECM projects don’t fail because of the chosen technology. Most products can meet the necessary requirements. The choice of a solution is driven more by other aspects, such as the effort required for deployment and maintenance, the end-user interface, and the integration capabilities. As I wrote earlier, an ECM implementation…
You know, metadata is the key of a nice Enterprise Content Management system. It is supposed to make work easier, promising order instead of chaos, findability instead of frustration, control instead of clutter. In the world of document management, metadata is often treated as the solution, the moment where unstructured content becomes manageable. In reality, in many organizations, metadata quietly…
This is the fourth and final blog post in the series, that highlights the drawbacks of poor ECM implementation. In almost every enterprise content management (ECM) initiative, the phrase “Let’s get some quick wins” appears early, often with good intentions. Quick wins promise momentum. They reassure sponsors. They demonstrate value quickly.This is an important phase, especially in complex ECM programs.…
It started like any normal Tuesday.No alarms. No warning signs. No urgent emails flooding inboxes before 8 AM.Just a regular working day, until people tried to open documents.At first, it was a single complaint.“Hey, I can’t access the invoice archive.”Then another.“The HR files are taking forever to load.”Then ten more.“Nothing is opening.”And within an hour, the entire ECM system, the…
Last week a wrote about the reasons why ECM projects fails. M-Files is a wonderful tool and probably my favorite ECM, but it won’t solve your problem. Companies that initiate digitalization projects like to convince themselves that investing in an ECM will solve all their problems: no more chaos, data loss, inefficiency, or lack of collaboration. I’m sorry to break…
First, for those unfamiliar with the term, low-code is a software development approach that uses visual, drag-and-drop interfaces and pre-built components to create applications, rather than manual coding. Low-code doesn’t always have a good reputation in the IT world because “real” programmers write code. But why reinvent the wheel? I have worked in the ECM world for more than fifteen…
Last week, I wrote about the importance of soft skills in the daily lives of ECM consultants (link here, but sorry in french): communication, empathy, influence, active listening, and all the human elements that determine whether projects succeed or fail.These skills remain essential, and no amount of technology will replace them (at least in a near future).Today, however, I want…
Enterprise Content Management (ECM) projects often start with good intentions: reducing chaos, improving compliance, and streamlining processes.Yet many companies underestimate one crucial aspect: the financial impact. The project is often driven solely by the cost of licenses and implementation, such as consulting for a tailor-made solution. But productivity gains are rarely measured! The truth is simple: A well-implemented ECM system…
My colleague, David Hueber, and I had the pleasure of attending the M-Files Global Kick-Off 2026 (GKO 2026) in Lisbon, Portugal, this week. The weather was unfortunate, but that’s not what matters. From January 26 to January 29, this event brought together M-Files employees and partners from around the world for the first time. They aligned their strategy, exchanged views,…
If your team keeps asking: “What’s the status of that project?” “Where is this document?” “Is it approved?” You don’t have a people problem, you have an information problem! No one likes to ask their colleagues these questions, and answering them is also tedious because it interrupts the flow of work. Repetitive questions are a symptom of deeper issues, such…
As I’ve said many times, I like M-Files because each monthly release not only fixes bugs, but also introduces new features. This time (December 2025), they worked on the sharing feature.It’s not entirely new, as it was already possible to create links to share documents with external users. However, it was clearly not user-friendly and difficult to manage. Let’s take…
