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Organizations have high expectations for the ROI of content-driven applications

Organizations have high expectations for the ROI of content-driven applications
 
2001 marked what we view as one of the most significant periods of vendor consolidation and technology convergence since the market for content-driven applications quite literally “exploded” in the form of content management, portal, digital asset management, document management, and collaboration solutions. The range of convergence over 2001 – and in the acquisition sense, consolidation – represents a simultaneous shift in the perception of both vendors and organizational stakeholders in terms of how to best meet the ongoing need to solve strategic and tactical content-related issues. We say “simultaneous” since both vendors and companies are combining multiple content-centric technologies and capabilities to define a “solution” or content-driven application.

In December 2001, CAP Ventures conducted a Web-based survey, which revealed that seventy-three percent of respondents had a software strategy to manage the creation, management, and delivery of content to employees, partners or customers. We defined “content” as a range of information sources such as text, images, graphics, multimedia, and documents. Respondents cited “Knowledge Management and Collaboration” as the primary business driver for content-driven strategies, followed closely by “Marketing and Communications”.

Given our views on what we feel is a “convergence precipice”, we also wanted to identify the combinations of content-driven systems that organizations believe will fit their business needs. (Note that survey participants were able to check more than one system type.

Implementation Strategies for Content-Driven Applications

Expectations for ROI Achievements 

The increased market demand for measurable ROI for content-driven applications illustrates both positive and negative trends directly related to the value of content.  On the one hand, there is a resurgence of ”knowledge management” (whether it is still called that or not), due to the proliferation of information driven by Web-based technologies. The positive effect of this “resurrection” is that organizations are more focused on capturing, retaining, and accessing corporate knowledge as well as using that knowledge to pursue new business opportunities and achieve competitive distinction.

On the other hand, the “confusion” produced by an evolving dynamic content marketplace has transformed into a very real sense of cautiousness in terms of both how to best develop content-driven products (e.g., the vendor perspective) and how to use them effectively (e.g., the organizational perspective). Regardless, ROI expectations are predominance in the evaluation, implementation, planning, and expansion strategies for content-driven applications.

The preceding analysis is an excerpt from the CAP Ventures’ report, “Focus on Content-Driven Applications: Understanding ROI Expectations in a Consolidating Marketplace”. For more information on the study, please contact Keith LaVangie at ext. 126 or via email at .