In short: A good DMS is GDPR-compliant (ideally hosted in Germany), GoBD/audit-proof, has strong full-text search with OCR, fits into your systems via interfaces and can be rolled out without an army of consultants. Beyond price, watch migration and user adoption.
Key selection criteria
- Data protection & hosting – server location Germany/EU, DPA, no US subcontractors.
- GoBD & audit-proofing – unchangeable storage, versioning, audit log.
- Search & OCR – full-text search including scanned documents.
- Interfaces – DATEV, Office/e-mail, cloud storage, open API.
- Rights & roles – granular permissions, client portal.
- Migration – import of existing folder structures and legacy data.
- Usability – fast onboarding, high team acceptance.
Cost factors
Total cost consists of licence/subscription fees (usually per user per month), storage, setup/onboarding, migration and training. Look for transparent pricing without hidden module costs – smaller teams in particular can otherwise pay more than expected.
A rollout that works
Success depends less on the software than on the change behind it: clarify beforehand which workflows are broken, which deserve automation and how to secure adoption beyond the first weeks. Start with a clear pilot area rather than everything at once.
Why Aktenplatz
Aktenplatz is a sovereign, GDPR-compliant DMS from Germany: audit-proof, with strong search, interfaces to DATEV, Nextcloud & co., a client portal and fair, transparent pricing.