Documents are indispensable for users of different management systems, but the mere term “documentation” is a red rag to a lot of persons dealing with it.
According to (the German version of) Wikipedia, documentation is “the utilization of information for further use”. In terms related to norms and standards, for example in quality management, reference is made to so-called “documented information”. Following DIN EN ISO 9000:2015 – 3.8.6, this is any information which is helpful to a company and therefore needs to be managed, irrespectively of the medium.
This means that anything, for instance, a piece of paper, an electronic file, a video recording, a component, or a liquid, etc., can be a document in terms of the standard.