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Managing Enterprise Content
The authors, Ann Rockley, Pamela Kostur, and Steve Manning, make the case for their "Unified Content Strategy" -- a practical and logical way of researching, planning, preparing, testing, implementing and selling content management across an enterprise. The lessons contained in this easy-to-read volume are not lost on smaller organizations, however; departments, small work groups, even individuals, will also benefit from learning innovative ways to effectively create, use and manage content.
The author's main message is that a well-planned "unified content strategy" can provide a dramatic improvement in the way content is created in an organization. A "Unified Content Strategy" is defined as "a repeatable method of identifying all content requirements up front, creating consistently structured content for reuse, managing that content in a definitive source, and assembling content on demand to meet your customers' needs." According to the authors, improvements that result from implementing such a strategy include "increased quality and consistency and long-term reduced time and costs for development and maintenance. In addition, reuse provides support for rapid re-configuration of your content to meet changing needs."
Of particular importance, the authors provide guidance on selecting a strategy before you get started; they explain their Unified Content Strategy, the importance of single sourcing (write it once, use it often), and how a properly planned content management initiative can help your organization deliver the right content to the right people at the right time in the format they desire. The authors also cover topics including: information modeling (the key to content reuse), content analysis, usability, IT and Business partnerships, metadata strategies, the importance of XML, tool selection, change management, training and more.
Section one of the book includes three chapters that address content creation, content reuse, and the return on investment a Unified Content Strategy can provide content-laden organizations. The authors set the stage for the introduction of their methods in Chapter One, "The Basis of a Unified Content Strategy," by illustrating the demons involved in what they call, "The Content Silo Trap" -- a common situation in which content is created by authors working in isolation from one anther, oftentimes re-creating the same types of content over and over again for different purposes (e.g. print, web, online help, marketing collateral, call center/help desk, computer-based training, etc.) The authors say content silos negatively impact the bottom line of any organization because they don't promote collaboration, leverage existing content creation activities, nor do they support the overall goals of the enterprise. Far too often, according to the book, silos create inconsistency, inaccuracy, and costly, unnecessary content re-creation expense. By adopting a Unified Content Strategy, organizations can enjoy faster time to market, reduced costs, improved quality and usability of content, improved workplace and customer satisfaction, as well as unique opportunities to innovate. Each of these topics is explored in the chapter with examples sprinkled throughout the book.
Chapter 2 describes, in detail, the "Fundamental Concepts of Reuse." It's an excellent chapter for those attempting to better understand the content their organizations create and how content re-use can help streamline the content creation process. The authors explore why you should re-use content, who's been doing it and why, as well as the two types of content reuse -- opportunistic and systematic -- and the benefits and drawbacks of each. Examples are provided for these methods in addition to a description of circumstances where reuse may not be appropriate. The entire chapter is available for download.
Chapter three, "Assessing a Return on Investment," helps readers determine the anticipated savings realized by adopting a Unified Content Strategy. A discussion of how to quantify and qualify the goals of such an effort are discussed, and information is provided to help you start assessing your actual costs (training, technology, consulting, lost productivity, etc). If you've got to sell your project to upper management and demonstrate potential ROI, this chapter is an excellent starting point. Don't overlook the section on developing metrics -- it's extremely useful.
Section two, "Performing a Substantive Audit: Determining Business Requirements," is a four-chapter compendium of information designed to help you establish where the content pains are in your organization and how you can address them. Chapter four and five help readers identify and understand their "content lifecycle" (to determine where improvements can be made to your existing processes) and chapter six, "Performing a Content Audit," seeks to help readers gain an "intimate understanding" of the nature and structure of the content to be managed. The authors describe how to perform a content audit, and provide several excellent examples of the process using scenarios that many readers will understand (medical devices, consumer electronics, banking institutions, learning materials). Instructions for building a reuse map -- a tool that identifies which content elements are reusable, where reuse would be beneficial, and whether the content would be reused "as is" (identical reuse) or with modification (derivative reuse) -- are provided. This section will not be lost on IT pros who have been using object-oriented programming reuse strategies for years. However, managing content is not the same as managing code. Content appropriate for public consumption has some unique considerations that the authors discuss in detail. Practical examples will help you think through content issues you may not have considered before.
Chapter 7, "Envisioning the Content Lifecycle," examines requirements gathering by using two fictitious companies as examples. A series of tables and explanatory text is provided to help readers better understand how to tie requirements to a return on investment. Readers are encouraged to use the exercise as the basis for designing improvements to your business processes and tool selection. In many organizations, IT departments are ill-equipped to develop solutions that address content lifecycle issues because IT staffers don't fully understand issues affecting content creation, management, publishing, archiving and translation. The authors attempt to shine light on this issue by exploring the importance of involving a team of subject matters experts, users, clients, etc. to help ensure the requirements gathered will help create new and improved business processes. The lesson: There's no sense automating a bad business process.
Section three tackles the issue of design by introducing the concepts of information modeling, metadata, dynamic content, workflow and implementation. Each chapter is jam-packed with real-world information and examples that simplify the concepts presented. Of particular interest is Chapter 8, "Information Modeling," which helps readers understand the significance an information model plays in the formalizing of content structure, and the subsequent creation of DTDs and schemas. As well, Chapter 9, "Designing Metadata," does an excellent job of exploring the role metadata play in labeling, categorizing and describing content, thereby enabling organizations to provide dynamic content to users on demand. This chapter is also available online. Visit "A Metadata Primer" at CMSWatch.
The remainder of the book discusses objectively the tools and technologies you can use to support a Unified Content Strategy. Such familiar topics as Extensible Markup Language, selecting tools, and evaluating vendors are discussed, as well as various authoring, workflow, and delivery systems -- necessary parts of any content management initiative. The book gives equal coverage to collaborative authoring, change management, implementation challenges and transition planning, although the authors admit they aren't able to cover each topic in as much detail as some readers might desire. Readers will need to seek out additional resources for such information. A useful glossary of terms, an extensive bibliography, and several appendices are also provided. Appendix A is a "Checklist for Implementing a Unified Content Strategy"; Appendix B explores the issues affiliated with "Writing for Multiple Media"; Appendix C examines vendors and their products; Appendix D includes a "Tools Checklist"; and Appendix E explores "Content Relationships."
The book could be improved by lengthening some examples, and by providing a few more case studies (although they are admittedly hard to obtain in such a new arena). As well, the book publisher should have abandoned their table structure for one that would better accommodate the information provided. However, providing access to a companion web site is a great idea that will allow the authors to provide additional information to readers when issues arise that are not discussed fully in the book.
Regardless of your particular situation, if you've got an interest in content management, I highly recommend Managing Enterprise Content: A Unified Content Strategy as well as the book's companion web site. The site provides a solid overview of the strategy, a free chapter from the book, a Return on Investment (ROI) calculator, glossary, white papers and more. The content on this site is extremely useful and is indicative of the quality content found in the book.
Scott Abel is a content management strategist who assists his clients in planning and preparing for content management initiatives. Scott is a frequent presenter at industry and professional service seminars, an instructor at Indiana University Purdue University at Indianapolis Community Learning Network, and vice president of the Society for Technical Communication (STC), Hoosier Chapter. You can purchase Managing Enterprise Content: A Unified Content Strategy from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.
In a parting gesture, the Web publisher you fired replaced photos of board members with sheep.
So what is content management? At the smaller scope, it would just include the text from your webpage. At its largest scope, it would include your entire intranet, and the policys regarding its use.
An online Starcraft RPG? Only at
In soviet russia, all your us are belong to base!
Karma: Redundant
Online Starcraft RPG? At
Dietary fiber is like asynchronous IO-- Non-blocking!
Well, maybe I'm not the archetypal customer, but I do judge companies from their webpages when I'm about to do business with them.
In my experience, well managed websites usually means well managed business, and better produts or services.
It would be interesting to see how important this is for a business though. I doubt many people think this way when they're buying stuff. My guess is that it will become more important in the future.
How small a thought it takes to fill a whole life
I am currently the operations manager for an enterprise content management system for a large financial institution. My IT department is currently participating in an assessment, initiated by our business partners, of throwing out our version controlled dynamic webservices portal IN FAVOUR OF HTML. This boggles my mind, and seems completely idiotic, but they're in charge of the $, and they insist that they're not getting 'value' for their content presentation. The problem, as i see it, is that HTML creation is a relatively simple skillset which is easy to predict and easy for the business to understand...you want x # of pages, that takes y amount of time. Arguments like "what about version control?", expotential increase of manual maintenance effort over time, etc are hard to quantify, and my concerns are rejected as "just theory" or "technology trying to make themselves sound important, its not that complicated."
Granted, this situation is partly the result of internal politics at my corporation, but i think that if the ground work for ROI was done more thoroughly up front during the delivery of this CMS this would not be much of an issue. I for one will buy this book if only to get some insight into industry standard ways of how to caluclate ROI for things like content reuse, publication between channels of delivery, content maintenance costs, etc.
If anyone has any suggestions on how to manage this situation, or how you've dealt with similar concerns, i'd be open to your thoughts.
John Maynard Keynes: "When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do?"
Has anyone proven that a well-managed web site actually generates business?
Do you really need to ask that these days? Think about it.
Imagine, you want to buy, say, a fancy hat. How imagine two companies, one with a big web site with pictures and descriptions of all their fancy hats, and one with a single crappy web page that says "We sell fancy hats" and a phone number. Who would get your business?
I used have to expound the virtues of web sites to pointy-haired bossed five years ago, but now they mostly get it. I am suprised to find someone today on Slashdot - of all places - that apparently doesn't, and gets modded as insightful for it!
I deal with CMS systems all day, every day. I develop in and for 4 separate systems: Documentum, Interwoven, Mediasurface, and Microsoft's offering.
They all suck.
Of the lot Mediasurface (even though it's least expensive to purchase and maintain) is the best. Meaning, it sucks the least.
By the time I'm done typing this, someone will have posted "Try this Open Source offering, it's great - I've used it!". No, it's not. It sucks. I've tried every Open Source CMS and they all suck as bad as the proprietary ones. You used it for your Mom's recipie book, and it's fine for that. It's not fine for countless gigs of content and thousands of contributors.
IMHO, the problem is that these things were all designed for one thing, and shot off to become web-centric during the bubble era. Someone needs to start from go, write a new one from the ground up with a clarity of purpose. Then we'll have a decent CMS.
php is only good for a place that produces WEB content.
php isn't gonna help anyone at a daily newspaper, or an audio/video production house, or a catalog company...these are places that need and use CMS solutions. the common mistake here is to assume that "content management" only applies to websites.
Then you've obviously never worked with it... they have some incredible salesmen, some bright-eyed but mostly clueless professional services consultants and an over-engineered under-performing product.
Vignette never delivered on its personalisation promises, and once you've removed that the only thing left going for them is caching.
It is the caching and cache flushing that enables those big sites to run so well... nothing to do with managing the content at all.
Purchase some cheap boxes and throw squid onto it or configure your own reverse proxy and you will have solved the cache issue.
I've been unfortunate enough to use Vignette for several years... and the single thing I've seen nearly every organisation that has it do... is replace it. But most kept the Vignette CURL (their 'custom URL') as it did faciliate easier cache management.
The place that I currently work at uses Tomcat instead of Vignette... but if you were to look at our URLs you wouldn't have been able to tell.
All that said... they had some incredible salesmen and good relationships with Accenture... and that has seen them a very long way.
Bottom line, Vignette was never real content management, it's just an application that connects to a database and makes text files which it can then delete if something gets updated in the database.
I think most people who are responding do not get the scope of the problem in the interprise.
I work for a rather large (unnamed company) which has one of the largest data centers in California (nope not that company, you would be suprised who we are).
In any event our intranet consists of over 150,000 flat HTML pages. We have over 2000 web servers running anything from NT4 to Unix to our Mainfraims hosting web services to get data out of them.
Now look at the problem of having a couple dozen physical locations where employees work. We also have 2 physical mirrors of all our data in 2 different locations.
Now here is the problem. The guy who works in the company cafateria wants to update his webpage which has the menu for what they are selling at the cafateria in building X.
He has no idea on how to use any technical tools, but the man cooks like there is no tomorrow. So don't ask him to wack away at HTML. Do not ask him to use CVS. Do not ask him to start a script. He wants something like a word processor to go in and edit his webpage.
Now this presents another whole new problem. How do the systems administrators know Mr. Chef is allowed in. How do we do rights management accross all our servers. We have everything from Mainframes to desktops, to NT to Windows 2003 to several flavors of *nix.
Now how does the system get back ahold of Mr. Chef when he doesn't update his webpage? There is no use in having information about a cafateria menu which is 2 weeks old? How does the system know that the data is stale, and how do we get Mr. Chef to come back and update his website. There needs to be some type of self governing mechinism.
So I don't think CVS or whatever will solve this problem. Interprise CMS problems are of the non-trivial type. Our company has spent the last year or so studying the problem, and will problably spend another year or so before we actually choose the direction we are going. And to be honest we are probably looking at a $50+ million investment to roll out our CMS system. How's that for non-trivial?
Ted Tschopp
Fantasy remains a human right; we make in our measure and in our derivative mode... -- JRR Tolkien
But no one wants to die.
(sigh). Yet another book that shows us the Promised Land, but without a guide to get there. If I had a buck for every time I have cursed the lameware cobbled together to manage content on development projects...
Managers are all in favor of content management, but in my experience they don't have any idea of what that means. They would prefer to pay far more for a system developed in house instead of buying COTS components or systems developed for the very purpose.
Not that it's all their fault: IT vendors oversold their products' capabilities and ease of use & customization, so many organizations are rightly skeptical.
Still, books like this perhaps should have a chapter discussing how to motivate the managers to understand the importance of an effective system, and how to close the credibility gap.
I'm in the middle of a content management nightmare. Seems to me the biggest problem with CMS is that once you've simplified something to the level where a target user in your company can use it, another target user is utterly confused. So you try to simplify, simplify more, until you want to strangle them.
e " one more time, I'm going to freak out. And in response to that, if I hear "where do I enter that again?" one more time, I'll kill myself.
CMS is hard when users have been using FrontPage for 5 years and still can't make pages look the way they want. CMS is hard when users create a 375 page document, complete with images and tables, and ask "how can I publish this to our clients via the website? By the way, it's a Word Doc." CMS is hard when, after 5 years, your users don't understand that "save the file to servername sharename" means "file > save as > \\servername\sharename\filename.ext".
How can you create a CMS when all people know how to do is save files into "My Documents", and still manage to lose them?
If I have to say, "that means backslash-backslash-servername-backslash-sharenam
This is the heart of CMS, as I see it. CMS is stringing networking, websites/intranets/extranets, and the ol' File Manager (Explorer) together in a way that is understandable by people who refuse to learn or try to comprehend anything new.
As I've begun using Linux, I've started to see how using symbolic links could simplify things more. I could smbmount, ln -s, and say "if you want to publish that *here*, save it to siteB/filename". The only clarification I'd have to make is "no, you don't have to type anything else, just siteB/filename". Unfortuantely, we're using Windows on the clients and Web Folders and Mapped Drives just don't do the trick.
My advice to anyone who embarks on a CMS project: Don't. In fact, better advice: Kill yourself.
Vignette's software is a giant, expensive mess that doesn't actually do much of anything. The only working part is the database cache, and that's not exactly rocket science. The rest is all marketing, and unfortunately marketing and engineering don't talk much. The biggest thing Vignette has going for them is the $300m or so in the bank, which has been pretty much the only thing keeping their head above water for the past few years.
signed,
a former Vignette employee (quit, not laid off/fired)
I work for a law firm, and we originally had a fantastic content management system: an attorney would have a case and an issue would arise that had been addressed before, and he would go grab the old file (perhaps from a different client) and reuse the forms or follow the procedures from a prior case.
Since that point, we've evolved it to more of an "electronic" filing cabinet. A networked box holds sanitized example documents by category of law (divorce, custody, personal injury, business formation, wills and probate, etc.). It is more useful than things were before, but it is not ideal. If you do something that is unusual or especially good, you are encouraged to submit it to the file.
In addition, "how to" documents are created for new or unusual practice areas as guidelines or checklists for various procedures (how to handle a basic will, checklists for complaints, client interview checklists for various types of cases, etc.). None of this eliminates the use of sound judgment or experience, but the documents serve as tools to assist the attorneys -- it is sometimes hard to stay on track or get everything in a client interview that can last for over an hour. The checklists help with that.
Not everybody contributes to the file repository and there is nobody in charge of vetting the documents to ensure that they are "best of breed" type documents. It does prevent the "reinventing the wheel" problem to some extent, however.
When I worked for Ernst & Young, they were really pushing to make information retention and reuse a priority. Contributions to the document repository were considered in performance evaluations. The resources were aggressively managed (vetted, categorized, reviewed documents to prevent "staleness") by knowledgable individuals for each practice area and there were a number of groups which were extremely focused on reselling knowledge.
IT people who can provide this sort of service are going to do well. Service businesses cannot improve margins without making use of technology to improve efficiencies, and content management is a fantastic way to help them get there. Very very few small to medium sized businesses really make use of content management to increase their margins, and this is one area where, even in a bad economy, IT can really help to make a positive contribution to the bottom line.
GF.
Lots of petrified grits
After just having returned from two content management conferences in Paris and Leon, I would just like to make a few statements to put a few things in context.
1. Content management is NOT making web sites. Sure web sites can be built off the back of a content repository (Vignette + Documentum for example). Enterprise Content Management is a blanket term for the storage, management, collaboration, publishing of many forms of content. This content could be, for example in Life Sciences, highly regulated documents outlining manufacturing principles of drugs. Or it could be "How to use the water cooler". One of the many challenges that enterprises face today is how to extract business content from employees brains and make it accessible as such that you don't lose intellectual property when you lose staff.
2. The XML thing. This is the tricky one. The majority of content today is authored in MS Office. Users of all walks of life author content. Many attempts at WYSIWYG XML editors have failed pretty dismally. The reason being is that users do no like to change the way they work. Two years ago, at the same set of conferences, everyone was talking about authoring in XML. It hasn't happened and it won't. Just plain old Microsoft Word styles are a pain in the butt to use - and thats just marking up style, not context or meta. Try asking a user to describe every paragraph within some form of taxonomy tree. You get blank faces or grimaces.
Anyway, just some food for thought from, dare I say, the real world!
If they want HTML, and you want version control, why not use CVS to manage changes to HTML documents? If you need search, use htdig.
Dynamic is a word that is thrown around an awful lot. How is your content system dynamic. Does it change based on who is viewing it? Or do you mean by dynamic someone updates the content via some interface and then it changes. That's not really that different than editing a file. It's not really all that dynamic.
Without more information, I'm leaning towards HTML. Why don't you tell us why this content management system is so great so we know why it's worth saving?
But it doesn't really sound like the problem is your managers don't understand the value of the ROI of this dynamic content system. It sounds like your managers are unhappy. Like any other client, you need to make them happy, or they will look for another solution (even a really bad one) beceause they just don't like the current solution. Don't tell them they're wrong, find out what makes them unhappy, and tell them how you're going to fix it. If you can't make them happy, you won't be able to convince them you have the right solution.
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