Welcome to Part One of our Enterprise Content Management (ECM) series.

We know that there’s a lot of jargon out there, so if you’re having trouble telling your DAMs from your DMS, or your CRMs from your ECMs, we’re here to help.

Get our strategy checklist in Part Two of this blog post series.

What is Enterprise Content Management?

Enterprise content management is “Neither a single technology nor a methodology nor a process, it is a dynamic combination of strategies, methods, and tools used to capture, manage, store, preserve, and deliver information supporting key organizational processes through its entire lifecycle.”

If you understood that — or perhaps you know it as as intelligent information management — then you realize how it can facilitate a convenient means for tracking your data. If you consider the fact that the most valuable asset a company has is data, then it makes sense to provide immediate access to relevant data, at any time for authorized users.

To remain competitive in any industry, it is essential to have a system that offers easy organization and delivery in a timely manner. ECM technologies were designed to do just that and more. With an ECM system, you can centralize your documents so that they are searchable and instantly sync to aligned accounts and end users.

Yet, as of March 2017, AIIM retired this general ECM definition, and even the term ECM altogether, instead using the term “Intelligent Information Management” (IIM).

As technology in the ECM space has evolved, IIM is a more comprehensive term that defines all the strategies, methods and tools utilized to capture, create, store, secure, analyze, deliver and automate data.

It also refers to the conversion of data between paper and microfilm to digital and more. When you think of ECM, what is really important is the fact that it encompasses all of these items:

• Search
• Collaboration
• Records management
• Digital asset management
• Workflow management
• Capture and scanning
• Document management
• Template management
• Web content management

This is management of the entire data and content lifecycle from creation to archiving and disposal.

In terms of ECM delivery, it can be applied in four ways:

1. Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)
2. On-premises and SaaS hybrid
3. On-premises software
4. Infrastructure-as-a-Service

In today’s hyper-connected world, it no longer makes sense to have files and documents scattered across various hard drives, email accounts and smartphones. You don’t want to waste time looking for critical pieces of data while your competition is already out there, transforming the industry.

The rise of cloud-based enterprise content management should come as no surprise. Many enterprise companies have sought out an ECM solution to address content issues around distributed workforces that need data access from anywhere, at any time.

According to a recent report, the global market for Cloud Enterprise Content Management, which reached $18.7 billion in 2020, is projected to grow to more than $97 billion by 2026.

ECM is so attractive because it offers a defined set of methods and processes to store, organize and deliver data at any time to its intended recipients. Since data can double in a matter of months, ECM is a critical tool for overcoming the challenge of handling too much paper and removing bottlenecks to information.

What is Enterprise Content Management Software?

Final thoughts