Why do you need a CMS?
The IT Sector has dreamed of a paperless, electronically managed office for over 30 years - so you might ask yourself - why the sudden big push towards content management ?

The answer is that the push has not actually been that sudden.

For those old enough to remember, organisations in the 1970's were revolutionised when the typing pool was replaced with software tools like MS-Windows and Lotus Notes. The CMS is arguably more of an evolution from those tools to a new standard, than a revolution.

Typing pools had one major advantage over the technologies that replaced them, namely that the content that was produced was controlled, structured and often workflowed (albeit manually). The Achilles heel of the first generation of electronic content creation tools (at the same time as being one of their major benefits) was that anyone could suddenly produce information such as emails, letters and documents. But it is precisely this that has arguably led to the need for content management in many organisations. The escalation in the amount of electronic information that is now produced has gotten to the point where for many organisations it is literally out of control.

Yet some of the technologies that are incorporated into the term 'Content Management' are also not new. Document Management Systems have been around since the late 80's and Web Content Management Systems can be traced back to the mid 90's. So what has changed that has suddenly made content management the flavour of the month ?

For many organisations the urgency boils down to three main factors;
1. Internal pressure - the desire to create and manage content in a more efficient manner
2. An awareness that solutions are available (at a price that is not preventative to using them)
3. Legislation !! Across the globe governments are tackling the accessibility of information and forcing organisations to comply

However, it is important to recognise that the CMS solutions themselves have also evolved to the point where they are now;
1. Genuinely easy to use
2. Easier to deploy
3. Stable products
4. Less costly (which in turn improves the return (profit) on investment)
5. Standards enforcing - so that the legislative requirements can be met using the tools
6. Strategically significant to an organisations operations.

With information being seen as an 'asset' (whether through legislation and/or an organisations strategy), the only real method of storing and retrieving information is in electronic format, which in turn creates the need for a solution - or a combination of solutions - to manage the process and the content held - also known as Content Management Systems.......

Those companies that choose not to adopt CMS technology will suffer the same fate as those that thought they could carry on using the typing pool instead of implementing word processing systems. The ability of the organisation to function at the same rate as its competitors and its ability to comply with legislation, will require more resources and be less productive than if they had purchased a CMS.