SmartDMS
// Getting started

The SmartDMS Guide

Everything from your first upload to approval chains and plain-English search — in thirteen short chapters.

// Chapter 12

Tailor SmartDMS to your industry

A new, empty organization can choose one or more ecosystems to extend the document vocabulary SmartDMS uses for its work.

Choose ecosystems during onboarding

  1. Select every area that applies

    The screen asks What kinds of documents do you work with? and allows more than one non-regulated card. The button reflects your count, such as Get started (2).

  2. Finish or skip

    Choose Get started to enable the selection, or Skip for now to dismiss the screen for the current session. It may appear again until you enable an ecosystem or start using the organization.

  3. Change the selection later

    Admins and owners can manage ecosystems from Settings → Configuration → Document Ecosystems. SmartDMS can also suggest disabled ecosystems based on recent activity or related enabled ecosystems; suggestions never enable anything automatically.

What enabling an ecosystem changes

An enabled ecosystem adds its specialized document types to the organization's classification vocabulary. It also applies missing default retention policies for that ecosystem without overwriting a policy you have already customized.

For example, Construction & Trades adds document types such as lien waivers, change orders, permits, insurance certificates, RFIs, submittals, shop drawings, and inspection reports.

Explore the 20 ecosystems

The six universal collections are:

  • Contracts & Agreements
  • HR & People
  • Vendors & Procurement
  • Compliance & Risk
  • Projects & Deliverables
  • Assets & Equipment

The fourteen industry collections are:

  • Construction & Trades, Real Estate & Property, and Professional Services
  • Legal, CPA & Accounting, and HR Compliance
  • Healthcare, Financial Services, and Insurance
  • Manufacturing, Government, Transportation & Logistics, Education, and Nonprofit

Regulated-industry gates

Healthcare, Financial Services, and Insurance appear locked during onboarding withRequires compliance setup — coming soon. An admin or owner can enable one later from Settings only after entering the acknowledgement I understand. Cloud Healthcare also requires an active Business Associate Agreement before the enablement request can succeed.

Enabling a regulated ecosystem does not by itself make an environment compliant. Contract, provider, operational, and data-handling requirements still apply. Do not upload regulated data until the required setup and agreements are complete.