The Contribution Revolution: Letting Volunteers Build Your Business

Intuit’s cofounder challenges traditional companies to follow the lead of internet superstars—and of innovative peers such as Honda, Procter and Gamble, and Hyatt—in tapping the contributions of countless people beyond their organizations.

Cook, Scott. Harvard Business Review (2008). Articles>Management>Content Management>Wikis

Content Reuse: Is It Harmful?

For a number of years it has been a matter of faith that the more content a technical documentation team reuses, the more efficient they are presumed to be. But, are you really more efficient? Let’s take a deeper look.

Hamilton, Richard. Content Wrangler, The (2008). Articles>Content Management

Content is King

Are you getting hung up with the XML and all of the other Content Management goodies and forgetting about the CONTENT?

Great Technical Writing (2008). Articles>Writing>Technical Writing>Content Management

Customer Focus: First Rule of Scientific Content Management

The science of content management begins with a deep understanding of your customer. The Web is more likely to push your customer away than to bring them closer.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2006). Articles>Content Management>Audience Analysis

Six Steps to Effective Discussion Forums on your Intranet

When you have a small base of users (say, under 10,000), everything has to be perfect to create effective discussion forums. Here are 6 guidelines.

McGrath, Chris. One Intranets (2006). Articles>Content Management>Community Building>Intranets

Not All Content Needs to Be of Equal Quality

One of the greatest challenges confronting intranets is ensuring that content is up-to-date, accurate and useful. In many organisations, much thought and effort is put into maintaining (and enhancing) the quality of published content. What must be realised, however, is that not all content on an intranet needs to be of equal quality. Only once this is recognised can successful strategies be put in place to support content authoring and publishing.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2005). Articles>Content Management>Web Design>Intranets

Sixteen Steps to a Renewed Corporate Intranet

The growing status of content management systems (CMSs) is now providing many organisations with an impetus to revisit and renew their intranets. Unfortunately, while the technical aspects of implementing a CMS are well understood, many organisations are struggling to identify the issues with the content, structure and management of their intranets. The good news is that by following a disciplined approach, it is possible to re-invigorate an intranet, making it deliver real business benefits, and supporting strategic goals. This article outlines a sixteen step process which guides you through to a refreshed and dynamic new intranet.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2002). Articles>Web Design>Intranets>Content Management

Making Knowledge Sharing Work

The intranet is beginning to restructure the organization in more ways than one. Content is now an asset, and the people who manage it need to treat it as such. Managing editors, and their team, understand how technology can facilitate effective publishing, collaboration and self-service focused application development.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2003). Articles>Web Design>Intranets>Content Management

Publish What You Can Manage

There is a view in some organizations that an intranet is only for staff, so you can publish what you want. Quality content matters as much on an intranet as on a public website. Get your content right to begin with. Keep it right by removing out-of-date content.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2003). Articles>Web Design>Intranets>Content Management

Improving Plone and Zope Market Acceptance  

The worldwide ecosystem of interested parties involved in website and web application development has become enormous. Accordingly, there are few unifying themes among the various parties other than the mutual goal of having a “good” website as the final product. However the definition of what is good is entirely subjective. Many other requirements such as the ability to leverage existing resources and a desire to integrate the new project with existing enterprise applications contend for attention in the decision process. To get a clear idea of how we might increase the buzz and attention for Plone and Zope, let's profile some of the interested parties.

Burgoyne, Robert. Plone.org (2006). Articles>Content Management>Software>Plone

Six Strategies for Low-Cost Content Management

Although Gartner says software licensing for basic content services can cost less than US$100 per user for large volume deals, requirements for extra functions will increase the initial software costs if content management components are not included. How do you set aside enough money to solve the initial ECM pain points and create a strategy for the future? We asked the experts for some ideas.

Schick, Shane. IT World Canada (2008). Articles>Content Management>Open Source

Are You Publishing Too Much On Your Website?

Many websites are still publishing content that is not core to their business. The justification is that such content will indirectly deliver benefit. This is not a good idea. Focus on the content that is directly applicable to your organization’s objectives. Any other content confuses. It wastes time and money.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2004). Articles>Web Design>Content Management

Avoid Santa Claus Approach to Content Management

The Santa Claus approach to content management creates a content management software wish list. It believes in the magic of technology to sweep away any and every problem. Typically, those who believe in Santa don't believe in defining their processes, or figuring out just why they need a website in the first place.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2004). Articles>Content Management>Web Design>Technology

Content Manangement Without A System

It is quite possible, in fact could be preferable, to manage content and distributed authorship without the use of a content management system (CMS). Regardless, it’s very important to have a process in place before you choose a CMS.

Robinson, D. Keith. Asterisk (2004). Articles>Content Management>Software

Content Reuse in Practice

Few organisations are able to realise this vision of content reuse in practice. Instead, content reuse is typically only used in a few limited situations, with authoring and publishing continuing unchanged to a large extent.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2004). Articles>Content Management

Creating a Content Strategy for Your Website

People are looking for content to help them reach their goals, and you should start any site redevelopment by drawing up a content strategy designed to satisfy the user. We're currently doing this for a couple of our clients, and working through it ourselves now we've finally found the time to revamp our own presence (the cobbler's children and all that).

Moore, David. IQcontent (2003). Articles>Web Design>Content Management>Content Strategy

Doing a Content Inventory (Or, A Mind-Numbingly Detailed Odyssey Through Your Web Site)

A content inventory is a relatively straightforward process of clicking through your Web site and recording what you find. We’ve developed a simple Excel spreadsheet to help you structure your findings, and some tips on how to get through it.

Veen, Jeffrey. Adaptive Path (2002). Articles>Web Design>Content Management

Do You Manage a Website or a Warehouse?

There are two types of people involved in websites today: those who see content as an asset, and those who see it as a commodity. The latter better start looking for a new career.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2004). Articles>Web Design>Content Management

Measuring Your Web Publishing Processes

What's really important to measure for your website? Firstly, you need to measure how successful you are at creating, editing and publishing content. These are your web content management processes. Secondly, you need to measure reader behavior. There will also be some core website performance issues to measure. This week, I'd like to examine key web content management process measurables.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2003). Articles>Web Design>Content Management

Quality Publishing is About Saying No

Are the people who have least to say in your organization publishing most on your intranet or public website? Are the people who have most to say publishing least? You're not alone. Organizations are slowly realizing that managing a website is as much about what you don't publish as what you do.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2003). Articles>Content Management>Web Design

Scientific Content Management

Management is the pursuit of the best way. Content is an increasingly important resource and activity within organizations. It is time it was professionally managed.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2006). Articles>Content Management>Management

Should You Centralize or Decentralize Your Publishing?

Large websites often struggle to develop an efficient and cost-effective publishing model. Centralizing publishing ensures a consistent quality of what is published, but is often slow and frustrating. Decentralized publishing is faster and often more cost-effective, but can result in inconsistent quality, unless rigorous publishing standards are adhered to.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2003). Articles>Content Management>Web Design

Start Measuring the Cost and Value of Your Content

Frederick W. Taylor, in his book, The Principles of Scientific Management (1911), wrote about how waste in activity was a greater problem than material waste. He wrote about planning, organizing, training, management and measurement, as ways to address the problem. Today, we require a new form of Taylorism; one that addresses efficiency in content publishing.

McGovern, Gerry. New Thinking (2003). Articles>Content Management

Successfully Deploying a Content Management System

This article outlines a structured approach to deploying a CMS, as well as providing a range of practical guidelines and tips that will assist the implementation team.

Robertson, James. Step Two (2004). Articles>Content Management

Taking a Content Inventory

You take a content inventory because, before redesigning a website or intranet, you need to know what you have. This is especially important if you will be migrating your content to a new structure or new CMS - at some point you need to know every single content element.

Spenser, Donna. DonnaM (2006). Articles>Content Management>Web Design