What’s the Real Problem Evidence Management Solves?
Most teams can collect evidence. The pain is managing it in a way that stands up to scrutiny: current, owned, approved, traceable.
Without a system, evidence quickly becomes:
- Stale — nobody’s sure what the latest version is.
- Orphaned — owners move on; context disappears.
- Unprovable — “we think it was approved… somewhere”.
- Slow to retrieve — audit time becomes screenshot time.
A GRC platform with evidence management makes proof a natural output of governance, not a separate project you rebuild every quarter.
What Should You Look for in a GRC Platform With Evidence Management?
When buyers say “evidence management”, they’re usually trying to solve three jobs:
- Capture proof as work happens (policies, tasks, decisions, changes).
- Keep it connected (so evidence has context and ownership).
- Get it out fast (exports and reporting for audits and stakeholders).
Here’s a quick evaluation table you can use in demos and comparisons:
| Evidence challenge | What “good” looks like | How ISMS.online helps | What you get out of it |
|---|---|---|---|
| “We can’t prove approvals” | Named approvers + timestamps | Visible approval process with timestamps/approvers | Defensible sign-off trail |
| “Nobody knows what’s happening” | A living activity timeline | Personalised Updates feed with clickable links to the exact change | Less chasing; faster answers |
| “Policies exist, but rollout is fuzzy” | Distribution + progress tracking | Export/print Policy Packs + export user progress | Proof of rollout and completion |
| “We rebuild reports manually” | Exportable work lists + fields | Export project Tasks/Activities to CSV, choose fields | Less spreadsheet admin |
| “Operational work lives elsewhere” | Connected workflows | Native integrations (Jira/Slack/ServiceNow) | Evidence aligned to reality |
Bottom line: a good GRC platform turns “we think we have evidence” into “here’s the trail”.
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Why Does ISMS.online Make Evidence “Happen by Default”?
ISMS.online is set up so evidence is created by the way you run the work — meaning fewer “please send me proof” messages and more “here it is” moments.
Two examples that matter day-to-day:
- The Updates feed gives users a tailored timeline of events they’re involved in, and links straight to where the update happened.
- In Clusters, Updates aggregate changes across the work areas inside a Cluster, so you can monitor programme activity without opening ten tabs.
Benefit: when someone asks “what changed since last quarter?” you have a navigable trail — not a memory exercise.
Where Do Policies Turn Into Evidence – Not Just Documents?
Policies are often the first thing auditors ask for. The challenge is proving they weren’t just uploaded — they were actually managed.
With ISMS.online Policy Packs you can:
- Export a Policy Pack via the Actions dropdown (useful for external formatting/branding).
- Print a Policy Pack as a PDF (clean artefact for sharing).
- Export users’ Policy Pack progress, including assigned users, status, due date, and completion date.
- Monitor rollout metrics like % of compliance tasks completed and % of policies read for a Policy Pack.
Benefit: you can answer “who’s completed this?” with an export — without stitching together evidence from read receipts and spreadsheets.
How Do Approvals Become Audit-Ready Proof?
Approvals are where evidence management becomes real. It’s the difference between “we meant to review it” and “it was reviewed, approved, and recorded.”
ISMS.online supports:
- A structured approval process for policies and controls, with a visible approval flow including timestamps and approvers.
- Project-level approval settings (Full / Selected Activities only / Off) to match how strict you need to be.
- A workflow where users can submit activities for approval, triggering an “Awaiting approval” status and notifying approvers.
- Approved items that clearly show who submitted and who approved, with date/time, plus comments captured as discussion.
Benefit: fewer audit arguments and a clearer governance story for customers and stakeholders.
How Do You Keep Day-To-Day Programme Work Visible And Evidenced?
Evidence isn’t just documents — it’s operational proof that work is planned, owned, progressing, and reviewed.
In ISMS.online Projects, you can:
- Use a progress view with filters (by person and status like overdue/incomplete) to focus effort where it matters.
- Use fast edit to update multiple activities quickly; changes are saved and relevant parties are notified.
Benefit: less time chasing updates, more time moving the programme forward — while still producing a reliable trail.
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How Do You Get Evidence Out Quickly When Someone Asks?
At some point, evidence has to leave the platform: audits, procurement, exec updates, customer assurance packs. Evidence management only counts if exporting is straightforward.
ISMS.online supports:
- Exporting project Activities or Tasks as a CSV, with the ability to choose included fields.
- Copying the entire project into a word processor via the Headlines tab export button (useful for narratives and audit packs).
- Cluster Reports that provide insight and stats across work in a Cluster (e.g., project progress and activity stats).
Benefit: faster responses, less manual reporting, and fewer last-minute “can someone pull this together?” requests.
How Do You Connect Evidence to Operations?
A lot of your strongest evidence starts life in operational tooling: incidents, vulnerabilities, corrective actions, and service workflows. Evidence management gets easier when your GRC platform connects to that reality.
ISMS.online includes native integrations and supporting guides for tools including Jira, Slack, and ServiceNow. For example:
- Jira integration can create tickets based on Track statuses and update statuses based on Jira ticket progress.
- ServiceNow integration supports incident and corrective action workflows to reduce double-handling.
- Slack integration can notify channels when new incidents, vulnerabilities, or corrective actions are created.
Benefit: you don’t have to force teams to “work twice” to create evidence — operational flow contributes to your assurance story.
FAQs
What is a “GRC platform with evidence management”?
A GRC platform that captures proof (actions, decisions, approvals, progress) in a way that’s traceable and exportable.
Can I export policy evidence for audits?
Yes — Policy Packs can be exported and printed as a PDF, giving you a clean artefact for auditors and stakeholders.
Can I prove who completed policy actions?
Yes — Policy Pack user progress can be exported, including status, due date, and completion date.
Does ISMS.online record approvals with timestamps?
Yes — approval workflows include timestamps and approvers, and clearly show who submitted and who approved each item.
Can I export project evidence?
Yes — you can export Tasks/Activities to CSV and choose the fields you want, as well as export project contents for narrative reporting.
Do you integrate with Jira, ServiceNow, and Slack?
Yes — native integrations are available (with supporting guides) so operational work in Jira, ServiceNow, and Slack can feed into your evidence story.
