Copyright © Joe Gollner 2014

Getting a Handle on the Content Life Cycle

@joegollner

Getting a Handle on the Content Life Cycle

Topics

Content Life Cycle Models

Back to Basics: Definitions

Content Life Cycle Working Model

Content Strategy & the Life Cycle Model

Building Content Solutions

A Brief History of Content Life Cycle Models

Content Life Cycle Models

Business Process in a central position

Management is just one of the stages

Features influences from Information Management

CM Pros Content Life Cycle Model

Collect – Manage – Publish is simple but it covers a lot of detail

Bob Boiko CM Model

Bob Boiko

http://ischool.uw.edu/people/faculty/bboiko

Brings analysis to the fore

Simple quadrant model that is easy to remember & use

Rahel Bailie – Content Life Cycle Model

http://thecontentstrategybook.com/

Product Content Model developed for a Telecom Enterprise in 2000

Revisited more recently to distill the key elements

ProductContent Strategy

Product Content Life cycle Model

Content Strategy & Corporate Collapse

Share

Price

Content Life Cycle Model introduced as part of an Enterprise Content Strategy

“It’s not my fault”

- Joe Gollner

Content

Information

Publishing

Documents

Data

Knowledge

Back to Basics: Key Definitions

Content & Information

Content Is what we plan, design, create, reuse & manage so that we can deliver effective information products

Content is potential information (an asset)

Information Is the meaningful organization of data communicated in a specific context with the purpose of influencing others

Information is a transaction (an action) that contains Content

Visual Credit: oneiromancernjv.deviantart.com

Content Components Text Modules

Media Resources

Data Sources

Relationship Links

Metadata Properties

Concept Taxonomies

Assembly Maps

Governing Models

Validation Criteria

Processing Rules

Distribution Rights

Formatting Instructions

Authority Precedents

Technology Factors [Technology is never neutral]

Management Systems

Authoring Environments

Publishing Processes

Discovery Interfaces

Social Media Venues

Mobile Devices

An information transaction is composed

of numerous content components

coming together to create an effective

information experience

Content & Information: In Practical Terms

Publishing

The process of transforming content assets into information products that can be effectively transacted

Documents

Documents are the persistent form of information transactions that have been exchanged as part of a business process. Documents are a fact of life & can take many forms.

Publishing & Documents

Data & Knowledge

Data

The meaningful representation of experience. The building blocks of communication.

Knowledge

The meaningful organization of information expressing an evolving understanding of a subject and establishing the basis for judgement and the potential for effective action

Information

Data

Knowledge

Content

Substantiated Information Content is the most valuable

asset an enterprise has – it is Liquid Knowledge

Needed a Model that would

Align with the grounded definitions of core concepts

Provide a prominent & practical position for the ascendant practice of “Content Strategy”

Limits the prominence of “Content Management”

Provides a prominent position for “Content Engagement” to reflect the rise of social media, user generated content, & analytics

Content Life Cycle Working Model

Content Life Cycle: Core Activities

ContentAcquisition

ContentManagement

ContentDelivery

ContentEngagement

Content Acquisition

Designing

Creating

Converting

Licensing

Content Acquisition

ContentAcquisition

Key Points:

- Maximize quality

- Minimize costs

- Support authors

- Formalize & optimize

supplier channels

Content Delivery

Selecting

Resolving

Filtering

Compiling

Rendering

Deploying

Content Delivery

ContentDelivery

Key Points:

- Maximize automation

- Increase abstraction of rules

- Manage complexity

Print Delivery

Deliver

- Resolve

- Compile

- Publish

Content

Re

so

lve

Publish

Deploy

Digital

Products

Deploy

Printable

Products

XML

XHTML

HTML5

OOXML

PDF / EPS

InDesign

Quark

MS Word

Templates

Output Plan

(Map & View)

Assets

Rules

Ou

tpu

t V

aria

nts

Re

nd

er

Tra

nsfo

rma

tio

ns

Compile

Content

Digital Delivery

Content Management

ContentManagement

Content Management

Facilitating content workflows • Editorial

• Production

Protecting content value • Security

• Recovery / Roll-back

Facilitating Reuse • Discovery

• Reference

• Resolution

Managing links to data sources

Enabling reporting services

Key Points:

- Formalize processes

- Control access

- Facilitate change

- content

- processes

- components

- users

Content Engagement

ContentEngagement

Content Engagement

Tapping into user experiences

Soliciting user feedback

Incorporating user contributions

Leveraging user analytics

Maximizing user effectiveness

Facilitating user collaboration Key Points:

- Published information optimized for users

- Provides user support services, specifically “discovery”

- Traceability back to source content maintained

- Drive content evolution

Best Practice: Maintaining Life Cycle Balance

ContentAcquisition

ContentManagement

ContentDelivery

ContentEngagement

Over-investment in any one area can be a problem

A strategy is a plan of

action directed towards

achieving a long-term goal

through the coordination,

integration and application

of the resources and

capabilities available to

an enterprise

A Content Strategy seeks to make content a strategic asset that

can be leveraged by state-of-the-art technology to achieve

concrete business goals. It will determine what content is

needed and why.

ContentAcquisition

ContentManagement

ContentDelivery

ContentEngagement

ContentStrategy

Content Strategy

Introducing a Measurement Framework

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For a Content Strategy to be a genuine plan of action,

it must deploy measurement in order to target & monitor investments.

Content Metrics reflect the measurements that an organization

deems important. The first step is determining what needs to be measured.

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As Is

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4.0

8.3

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Content Metrics

“As Is” Current Score: 45 “To Be” Target Score: 281

Grounded Content Strategy

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ContentStrategy

A grounded Content Strategy is one that identifies concrete & measurable

objectives for balanced investments in the Content Life Cycle.

Content Strategy & the Content Life Cycle

ContentAcquisition

ContentManagement

ContentDelivery

ContentEngagement

ContentStrategy

A continuously evolving Content Strategy

will drive a continuously improving Content Life Cycle

which delivers continuously increasing benefits to the enterprise

Content Engineering, Technology & Solutions

Content Engineering

ContentAcquisition

ContentManagement

ContentDelivery

ContentEngagement

ContentStrategy

Content Technology

Content Solutions

Content Engineering

Content Engineering:

The application of engineering discipline to the

design, acquisition, delivery, management, and use

of content and to the technologies

deployed to support the full content life cycle

The Language of Content Strategy

A Definition of Engineering

Engineering:

Engineering is the application of scientific principles to the

design, development, support and use of systems which are

themselves made up of structures and processes.

Engineering entails the

methodical & documented use of

precedents

standards

experiments

measurements

tests

best practices

past experience

state-of-the-art

technology

Metadata Model

Discovery support

Connect semantic markup to application behaviour

Content Model

Core content types

Support essential patterns

Integrate with metadata model

Content Process Model

Establishes interim representations, points of validation, output goals & results

Content Engineering in Practice

Models provide

context for markup

Markup supports

processing

Content Technology

Technology that has been specifically designed to create, store, manage & process content with all its complexity including content that has been optimized for portability & processability using open standards

Some technologies have been designed to work with content

Many technologies can be made to work with content

Content Technology

Content Technology

ContentAcquisition

ContentDelivery

ContentManagement

ContentEngagement

Authoring tools: XML Editors / Augmented Word Processors & DTP

Conversion services: Full Service Providers / SaaS Options

External sourcing: Electronic aggregation & validation

Open Source Options: DITA OT / FOP

Transformation Tools: Saxon / MSXML

Formatting Tools: AntennaHouse / RenderX

CCMSs: Trisoft / Ixiasoft / Bluestream / Componize

Augmented CMSs: DITAExchange / Documentum

Alternatives: SaaS (EasyDITA / DocZone) / VCSs

Dynamic Delivery: SDL LiveContent / SuiteShare

Help Publishers: WebWorks / MadCap / RoboHelp

XML Databases: Ixiasoft TextML / MarkLogic / EMC Dynamic Server

Social Media / WCMS: MindTouch, Ingeniux,…

Some Representative Examples

Content Solutions

Technology

Knowledge

Bus

ines

s

ContentSolutions

Cont

ent

Man

agem

ent Know

ledge

Managem

ent

BusinessSystems

Documented & Integrated

Glo

bal &

Dyn

amic

Open &

Extensible

Content Solutions

are far more important for the

modern enterprise than is appreciated

Content Solutions

integrate the three

key enterprise domains:

- Knowledge

- Business

- Technology

Historically, the

failure to integrate

these domains has

been a major

stumbling block

impeding

improvement

Life Cycle Models

Should be judged by how useful they are in helping content initiatives to succeed

Should help organizations to understand the real nature of content as well as the challenges and opportunities surrounding its effective use

Should help organizations to approach their content assets strategically and to tackle long-standing integration problems…

Getting a Handle on the Content Life Cycle

Making Connections

Joe Gollner Gnostyx Research Inc. www.gnostyx.com jag@gnostyx.com

Twitter: @joegollner

Blog: The Content Philosopher

www.gollner.ca