PowerDMS Reviews

This software has been GOD SENT as I'm able to training, testing and other activities

Comments: This software has been most beneficial to not only me but to the other employees as they are able to use it while during their professional and personal time.

Pros:

What I like most about this software is the "GO GREEN" concept and not having to search the entire department for things. Before encouraging the company to purchase it, it was a nightmare locating employee files, training materials, records, attempting to get employees assembled in one location on one particular day for training. Investing in this software was a great decision as I'm able to better manage employee files, training materials, records, and no longer have worry about assembling employees on a particular date for training.

Cons:

Currently I the pros are outweighing the cons, as right now I don't have any to share. I've used this software for 8 years now and it has worked wonders.

My experience has been excellent thus far. Makes my job managing accreditation exponentially easier

Pros:

The was document management blends seamlessly into accreditation management is a huge benefit to me. I can easily update my accreditation assessment when policies and forms are revised. The software tells you which documents are used to proof which standards, and when those documents have been revised and need to updated in the accreditation assessment.

Cons:

I really don't have any negatives. The company is extremely open to customer feedback and is continually adding features that I and others have recommended. I have participated in several usability sessions with the development team. They are awesome. Their training and support teams are top notch too!

I like the program

Pros:

The program is okay. I like that people can go in and see the documents that they have and sign for their stuff to show proof. They did look at a document.

Cons:

When I go to signature and print off who sign their documents a lot of times it doesn't show that person sign for their stuff, but if I go in that person name it will show they have sign for their documents. It is weird at times

Documents management with no secrets

Pros:

I've tried a lot of dms before and every one of them misses something o mrss come really useful features. This prodicut can fulfill all of your wishes about document management

Cons:

Some workflows are a little tricky and they could be improved

It's Great

Comments: Overall, my experience has been excellent. Once a policy is entered, all users are notified via email and the link include brings you directly to the login screen.

Pros:

We have been using PowerDMS for a few years now and it has been slightly better than perfect. It has allowed us to completely streamline policy distribution and get much closer to being paperless. The ability to track when a user has reviewed a policy is excellent. I highly recommend this product to anyone looking for a system to deliver and track policies, memos, etc.

Cons:

As a user, I have nothing negative to say about the software.

PowerDMS makes my life so much easier.

Comments: This software is beneficial to our company by stream-lining our policy process. The turn-around time from when a policy is written, goes through an approval process, and is sent to staff to review can be as little as one day.

Pros:

The software is great at keeping all of our policies, newsletters, and training organized. It's structured, but there's freedom to really customize it in a way that makes sense to each individual company. It's easy to run reports to see if everyone has signed off on a policy or test. It allows us to prepare for future accreditation surveys well in advance.

Cons:

There is a bit of a learning curve. It takes some time to fully understand how everything fits together. To help with this though, a consultant comes along side you until they feel you understand it enough to be on your own. They also have a lot of resources (webinars, reading material, videos, a chat feature that you can talk with a representative, and more) to help with any questions or problems that may arise.

Simple to use and highly effective

Comments: My overall experience has been really positive and I will continue to use PowerDMS for as much as I can in my role.

Pros:

PowerDMS makes housing documents and records really really simple and I no longer have to worry about losing a record or messing up a revision to a document, since it's all tracked in the system.

Cons:

Sometimes I will create a user profile, but then not be able to find them when I search for them afterwards. It normally fixes itself in a few hours or a day, but I dont always have time to wait. Its just a glitch I believe.

Powerhouse software for document, training and policy management.

Comments: This software manages policy and accreditation files. It's used as a central location for users to access any documents or forms related to their jobs.

Pros:

The search functionality makes find exactly what you need a breeze. Imagine having a google-like search of all your policies and documents.

Cons:

There is a learning curve to using this software as it is very feature-rich. However, the on-boarding and training offered is great and the support team as well as the user-driven support community are second to none.

A powerful tool to make policy and document management a breeze

Pros:

I love the ease of information dissemination and access. We literally give our employees everything right in the palm of their hands.

Cons:

Initial configuration took me a bit because we didn't take advantage of document conversion (OUR mistake, not PowerDMS'). Otherwise, I have loved everything so far.

Great for a one stop shop!

Comments: It has been great! The more people use it the easier it becomes for them.

Pros:

Its ease of use and functionality. We have found several ways to move things on line versus using paper to complete tasks.

Cons:

Sometime it is a bit hard to get the workflows correct.

PowerDMS really gets you organized!

Comments: The benefits gained through using PowerDMS is the ability to store all training documents in one place... no more digging through files to find requested documents. It is also easy to track who has attended training and who hasn't. PowerDMS is great for policy sign-off and being able to see who has sign-off on their policies and when for in-house and litigation purposes. Our agency also uses this system for accreditation tracking and training purposes. Another benefit is the ability to create our own online training courses for employees to complete at their convenience, freeing up time for hands-on training.

Pros:

Ability to track policy sign-offs, training completion, and create reports. I also like being able to upload all of our training documents to each employees' files for ease of finding later. PowerDMS is great for creating training courses, tests & surveys.

Cons:

The inability to add additional tabs for personalized purposes (such as a transfer history tab). The inability to assign rights for who can view the files tab, where we store employees' training documents. The inability for users to have a print button to print their own training certificates (options: PDF, Excel, Word and they don't look great). Currently, a supervisor can print his employees' certificate history, but not their own. The inability for supervisors to be able to enroll their employees in training. Employees must enroll themselves, which doesn't go over well with our agency.

PowerDMS has streamlined our entire policy and procedure process.

Comments: The single biggest benefit is that all of our policies are in a centralized location. No more paper binders, and no more having to track down every old copy when a revision needs to be made.

Pros:

All of the program features are very easy to use. The best thing I can say about DMS is that it works exactly the way you would expect it to. The features are all very straightforward. Honestly, most experienced computer users don't require any specialized training in DMS. Even our directors who are less tech savvy catch on with DMS fairly quickly.

Cons:

The only complaint I have heard routinely from my directors is that the file size limits can make it difficult to utilize DMS for training since videos, and even some PowerPoint presentations are too large to upload. They can be hosted in a different location and linked to the trainings in DMS, but this adds complications. The more complicated a training is, the less likely our employees are to complete it.

Couldn't do my job without PowerDMS

Comments: I am the only person managing CALEA accreditation, training and policy release. Without the tools and functionality of PowerDMS there is no way I could do my job without assistance. We even use the tests for new employees and some of our job promotions. The archive features have allowed me to assist internal affairs with documentation of when a particular version of policy was signed off by the employee. Alerts are also critical to keep the employees aware of when items are needing there attention. The report function is easy to use and makes communicating with supervisors on items their employees may not have completed by the deadline. I have used the program for years and have seen wonderful progress as the program features advance and grow. Again, I can't emphasis enough that I could not do my job without more people if I did not have PowerDMS!

Pros:

Multiple functions covering all the aspects and components needed to manage accreditation.

Cons:

Doesn't have a rolling due date window for when new employees start. They start have over 100 overdue documents.

PowerDMS is a Document Managers best friend!

Comments: The Novi Police Department began using PowerDMS in July of 2014 to help us through our accreditation process with CALEA. Since that time, we have experienced several benefits from the system, including having all of our agency policies, forms and documents in an electronic format for all agency employees. The reporting tool in PowerDMS allows us to hold our employees accountable for the policies that they acknowledge. We have also incorporated PowerDMS into our training program, tracking all of our agency training and being able to run reports of the amount and type of training each officer has attended. This helps cut down on civil liability claims of deliberate indifference as we can prove there has been no failure to train in our organization. We also create courses in PowerDMS to move some mandatory training which does not need to be instructor led into a blended learning environment, thus saving valuable training time for more practical exercises.

Pros:

Very user friendly and allows us to make a lot of our document management paper-free!

Cons:

Nothing

The best system I have ever used.

Comments: I would describe myself as an advanced software application user administrator. I am the user administrator for several systems for my agency and have been a decision-maker in purchasing such systems. I am also a very discerning and critical user myself. PowerDMS is hands-down the best computer system of ANY kind I have ever used. Its user interface is simple and elegant, its design and functionality are logical, and the user support (videos, step-by-step instructions, phone support) sets the standard by which all others pale in comparison. We continue to find new ways to take advantage of the system's flexibility. Does it do everything I want it to do? Of course not. But this is perhaps my favorite thing about the company. They are constantly working to improve the product and actively include their users in the process. I live in constant fear that the other shoe will someday drop. I do not give this five stars in all categories lightly. Fantastic!

Incredibly powerful tool

Comments: We never have to wonder if our people are up to date or know where to find information. This has made that an easy and very automated function compared to old fashioned paper and folder methods. I cannot begin to describe how invaluable that is to us.

Pros:

The automation of a lot of processes that we manually managed prior to this has made our workload much easier. A single source repository for data tracking is immeasurably valuable!

Cons:

Honestly, the only "con" in my opinion is that sometimes the software times out when I am actually doing a task like reviewing a document. It doesn't seem to sense when you are scrolling down the document. That can get frustrating, but the flip side of that is I very much understand the security aspect of why that is done.

Best document/audit management tool

Comments: Overall just a great document and workflow management tool that has significantly cut down on our paper usage and creates an easy place for all staff to view and sign off on policies.

Pros:

Great for managing documents and workflows. Easy to track changes that other people made to improve accountability. Also very useful tool for managing audit documents and easily lets you highlight the areas that auditors need to look at in a document to cut down on time they would have to spend looking through the document.

Cons:

There is a bit of a learning curve with setting up workflows and managing documents but once you have it learned, it is very straight forward.

Transformative

Comments: Everything is one place and it's digital and everyone with my department can come and log in and get all of the information in one place.

Pros:

All policies, procedures, guidelines, training, certificates, forms, memorandums and open records requests are all in one place. Major reduction in paper and ink usage. Can hold employees accountable. Extremely easy to update documents and notify other employees of changes. Workflow feature makes it so much easier to get feedback from everyone involved.

Cons:

That is can't upload documents and information by osmosis. I've been using the software for a while now and I really can't think of a single thing which I don't like about it.

One-stop Shop for Internal Documents

Comments: Overall, PowerDMS has been a great tool to keep track of policies, notices and other internal documentation that never had a single home. Finding things is a lot easier than it used to be.

Pros:

My favorite part about PowerDMS is how robust its change-tracking capabilities are. Our policies change often, but it's also important to be able to refer back to the policy that was in effect at the time of an incident. Tracking training and certification is a huge help too.

Cons:

Probably the learning curve. Super simple for regular users, but on the administration side figuring out how to create workflows and courses took some time.

PowerDMS from Law Enforcement Perspective

Comments: Everything that comes out of PowerDMS is very professional. Their newsletters are easy to understand and maneuver. Everyone at the company is helpful and stands ready to help with any problem you may be having. The company is very open to any new features you would like to discuss and assist in developing. The suite makes it very easy to work on, distribute, and sign off on policies. One of the features include a comparison between policies in effect and all changes in the policy so you don't have to read the entire policy. The Accreditation module is easy to use and makes for a very easy upload straight from your policy module. Highlighting and attaching is simple. PowerDMS works with many accreditation bodies to assist in ease of use.

PowerDMS provides the tools to streamline processes and eliminate unnecessary bulk load of paper.

Pros:

Coming from an environment that was inundated with paper files and policies, the software has made the effort to go paperless a more tangible pursuit. It has allowed us to provide an electronic policy and accreditation files.

Cons:

The training module is still a work in progress. The ability to conduct training through PowerDMS is a cost and time saving, however, the training request is not a living document. It is hard to ensure that the request is accurate when there are so many external variables that may need to change and the ability to update is not available.

PowerDMS is a great platform for document management and has streamlined our processes.

Comments: Greater staff accountability, less process, and one place to go for all of our procedural documents.

Pros:

The customer support staff at PowerDMS is invested in providing the user with the best experience possible and it shows with each and every phone call and/or chat session! The ease of document edits using tools (Microsoft products) our staff are already familiar with provided a smooth transition. Document assignments and signature authentication, along with tests on the information provided, eliminates confusion as to whether or not the user read and understood the material provided. The help community provides great resources and solves the stickiest problems.

Cons:

Workflows! But who doesn't. They are challenging in any software application environment. The dashboard tabs drive me crazy, you don't see everything you need to do at one glance.

Fantabulous product

Pros:

It is fairly easy to set up users (I always make sure to enter hire dates - this feature has been very useful when going back to find employees no longer working for us). Also, I love being able to set a user with a termination date of use, so I don't have to remember to go back in to "deactivate" the user. The ease of uploading documents could not be more simple.

Cons:

The only thing I seem to have a problem with is the highlighting feature. Highlighting phrases within a document can be a little difficult , but can be done.

Excellent Software for our police department

Comments: We have been a PowerDMS client for more than six years. The modules help us disseminate documents, training, surveys, and policies in an extremely efficient manner. We can check on the progress/receipt and signatures, which helps us locate those who are lacking in the documents assigned. We can build CALEA files much more quickly. We can also keep up with revised policies used in CALEA standards. Receiving updated CALEA manuals is a simple process that takes no time at all. It is an excellent program.

Pros:

Helps with organization of documents, training, standards, and policies.

Cons:

Some of the tutorials could be a little more detailed.

Customer Service

Comments: We have been able to increase transparency, stay more organized, and make more documents available to employees, quickly. The customer service is exceptional.

Pros:

PowerDMS is easy to use and has all the features to keep your agency organized. The public facing documents portal has made our lives so much easier.

Cons:

Just like with any new system, the integration can be time consuming and tedious, especially if you are going to sync manually. BUT, it is all worth it in the end.