FormKiQ for Engineering and Product Teams

Document Management functionality can be costly and difficult to build into an existing application, and off-the-shelf solutions are not likely to integrate completely.

The majority of applications will eventually require one or more of the four essential features of document management. This could be for storage of documents created for customers, processing and transformation of customer-provided documents, or categorization and discovery of a large collection of documents and their metadata.

Many development teams opt to implement their own document management, i.e., build-your-own (BYO), whether using file shares or cloud solutions such as Amazon S3. However, the storage of the documents is only a portion of the requirements; almost all applications need to include the addition, management, and discovery of those documents, and many also require more advanced functionality like optical character recognition, full-text search, or even intelligent document processing using artifical intelligence.

Alternatively, some organizations may attempt to find an off-the-shelf (OTS) solution in the hope that integrating that solution will be successful within a reasonable timeframe and at an acceptable cost.

Here are some of the challenges that are likely to affect one or both approaches, and how FormKiQ can solve these challenges:

1. Complexity of Implementation:

   Building document management features can be technically complex, involving intricate details like version control, access management, data processing and transformation, real-time collaboration, and more. This could require significant development effort and expertise.

   FormKiQ provides all of the essential functionality for document management and enterprise content management:

   • document storage, archival, and retention
   • document organization and classification
   • document processing and transformation
   • document discovery and integration

   Implementing FormKiQ's features into a new or existing product ensures that every aspect of document management is able to be handled seamlessly as part of that product.

2. Integration and Interoperability:

   Ensuring seamless integration between the document management software and the existing application or system can be difficult, particularly if they are built with very different architectures and/or have different types of data and file storage. This can also be a major issue when it comes to authentication and authorization; the access control will likely not be compatible, even if the authentication can be adapted for single sign-on.

   FormKiQ is designed for integration and interoperability, with its API-First design and by providing source code for its Core and, with some restrictions, its Enterprise offerings. FormKiQ's actions and workflows allow for robust control of documents and data as they move in and through FormKiQ and interact with other systems. FormKiQ also provides custom authentication with SAML and other SSO options, and can enable standardization of access controls, whether role-based or attribute-based.

3. User Interface and Experience:

   The system should be easy to use and intuitive, ensuring that users can efficiently manage and collaborate on documents. Achieving this balance between functionality and usability can be challenging.

   FormKiQ provides a user interface as part of its web console, designed according to usability principles and in step with other thoughtful file and document management products. This interface can be customized or even cannibalized as desired, with options to copy code, fork the repository, or deployed as-is and tailored with specific configuration options.

4. Migration:

   Unless the system is net new, with no existing data and file storage, migration will be a problem to solve; it is unlikely that the existing data and file storage will be interoperable with the new solution.

   FormKiQ provides multiple methods for migration, while enabling its workflows, actions, and hooks to ensure that data is processed and transformed effectively and accurately during the importation of documents and metadata.

5. Performance and Scalability:

   As mentioned above, document management features add complexity to the application, and that complexity can have a negative impact on performance. In addition, the design of these features may not be scalable without careful consideration and a solid understanding of the infrastructure and architecture decisions required to allow for vertical scaling in a cost-effective manner.

   FormKiQ is built with scalability as a primary goal, using Amazon Web Services and its serverless and managed services to ensure the best results in scaling for both increases and decreases in usage. This scalable design not only allows the application to keep pace with higher usage, it also allows for non-prod and test environments to run with minimal required resources and creates efficiency in times of reduced usage, such as seasonal lulls.

6. Data and Document Security:

   Protecting sensitive information is crucial. Implementing robust security measures, such as encryption, secure access controls, and audit trails can be a challenging task. While off-the-shelf software is often considered to be moderately secure, it will still need monitoring for the introduction of vulnerabilities that could render it insecure over time. For custom build-your-own (BYO) solutions, the risk of gaps in security is significantly higher, partly due to the specific requirements of document management functionality.

   FormKiQ not only provides encryption in-transit and at-rest, it also enables granular access controls through user management, multi-site partitions, and both role- and attribute-based access control options. FormKiQ is built using the principles of least privilege and security by design.

7. Regulatory Compliance:

   Depending on the sector, there might be strict regulations for data handling and storage. Ensuring that the document management functionality maintains compliance with regulations such as GDPR and PIPAA is critical, and the investigation and tasks required to have confidence that the document management system is compliant can be difficult and time-consuming. While off-the-shelf (OTS) software is expected to follow security best practices, it may be lacking in some areas required to ensure compliance, such as access control and auditing, and as a result may not be compliant with all regulatory regimes.

   FormKiQ is designed to meet the rigors of the Amazon Web Services Well-Architected Framework, with one of its major pillars being security. By relying on battle-tested AWS technologies that meet compliance through rigourous cerfications and controls such as FedRamp and NIST 800-53, and by enabling encryption in-transit and at-rest, FormKiQ reduces the risk of security issues, unauthorized access, and data breaches.

8. Customization:

   Off-the-shelf software is built for specific use cases and are built according to set workflows; integrating additional processes and functionality may require customization that is difficult or even impossible to implement.

   FormKiQ provides document management functionality in a flexible manner, allowing customization of its user interface (as mentioned above) and integration into other applications. As wel, our restful API can function as a headless document managment, connecting to any type of user interface, such as a mobile application.

9. Training and Support:

   Off-the-shelf software may provide documentation, training, and support for its functionality, but will not be able to support any functionality that is custom-built to work alongside that off-the-shelf functionality. Alternatively, custom build-your-own document management features require the creation of onboarding and training materials, as well as other forms of documentation and operational support.

   FormKiQ not only provides documentation and support, but we can work with your existing project documentation and support processes to ensure a consistent training and support model between your software and FormKiQ's document management functionality.

10. Infrastructure:

    Off-the-shelf software comes with specific infrastructure requirements, and those requirements may present additional challenges around integration, security, and cost. When building your own document management functionality, infrastructure must be planned and deployed, adding additional complexity to the project plan, and adding risk around security and cost.

    FormKiQ deploys directly into an Amazon Web Services cloud account that is under your organization's control, with our cloud and application experts providing as much or as little cloud management as you require. Any cross-account or cross-region networking can be planned and executed with the guidance and even hands-on contributions of our engineers, ensuring that your final implementation will be as cost-effective, performant, and scalable as possible.

FormKiQ was specifically created to empower organizations to grow their existing products and create new ones with document management as an integral component, without imposing any restrictions on how that functionality is integrated and extended.

Contact us to discuss how FormKiQ can reduce development time and agony for your team as you add document management functionality to your products.