Last July, I conducted several email interviews to prepare my column on how to survive a Content Management System (CMS) implementation for the October 2006 issue of University Business: “10 Tips for Surviving a CMS Switchâ€
Mark Greenfield, Director of Web Services at the State University of New York at Buffalo, shared 5 tips of his own at this time.
Know the specific business problem you are trying to solve.
Are you looking at a CMS to give non-technical staff the ability to update content? Do you need editorial workflow? Do you want to syndicate content?
Look at implementing different solutions for different needs.
A one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t necessarily work well at a university.
Look beyond traditional CMS products.
Blogging platforms such as WordPress and Movable Type can easily be deployed as a CMS, and work well for sites where the content is more dynamic than static.
Understand the campus culture, especially when looking at implementing a campus-wide CMS.
Universities are devolved organizations, with individual schools and departments operating with a great deal of autonomy.
A CMS will not necessarily improve the quality of the content.
Well trained writers and editors are required, even more so when distributing authorship through a CMS.