Selecting a new web content management system (CMS) is no small matter. As discussed in one of our earliest articles, How to evaluate a CMS, this decision must be driven by an evaluation against business requirements. One question that often arises early in the process is whether the same CMS ...
Articles tagged: selection
Scoring spreadsheets, the bane of my life
Theresa Regli has written about the problems with scoring spreadsheets when conducting product evaluations. To quote: I am more cynical about quantitative methods of evaluating vendors. It makes me think of people who buy wine simply based on what The Wine Spectator rating is (without considering the food they might ...
Evaluating vendor proposals – kill your spreadsheets
Alan Pelz-Sharpe has written about evaluating vendor proposals, and recommends killing the all-too-typical evaluation spreadsheets. To quote: We strongly advocate a test-based approach to procurement, based on the value of scenarios; nevertheless, many enterprises want to apply a quantitative, spreadsheet-based assessment approach. In some cases these can become really quite ...
Are big CMS vendors hungry enough?
I'm working with a state government agency to help them select a CMS at the moment. The product is for their intranet, as part of a wholesale site redevelopment (much needed!). They have an incumbent provider of enterprise solutions, one of the large vendors, who they'd like to evaluate alongside other ...
When it is not all about the CMS software
Seth Gottlieb writes about choosing a good CMS partner, not just the right product. To quote: In one case there was a comprehensive site redesign that included digital strategy, re-branding, and information re-architecture as well as implementing new functionality. In another case, the client was shifting to an outsourced model ...
Sanity check: the final short-list of CMS products should be similar
There are literally hundreds of content management systems in the marketplace. The goal of any selection process is to progressively cut these down until only one remains: the chosen solution. Regardless of which type of evaluation process is being followed, there is a final short-list of typically three vendors. These vendors ...
Insist on a good CMS demo in 60 minutes
Janus Boye makes some excellent recommendations on getting a good CMS demo in 60 minutes. To quote: It is not unusual for vendors to ask for several hours to do a product demonstration and then only reluctantly show the product towards the very end of the sales meeting. Even when ...
CMS selection: reveal budget in the RFP?
Peter Sejersen asks the question: should we reveal the budget in a CMS tender? To quote: Vendors love when budgets are included in the RFP. This enables them to fit their proposal around the budget, naturally ensuring they spend every penny of it. As a customer you have to be ...
Why IT should not run a CMS selection project
Dorthe Raakjær Jespersen has written a post on why IT should not run a CMS selection project. To quote: This discussion often comes up during CMS selection projects, sometimes even after the process is well underway. The consequence is a delayed project, with much time wasted on meetings and emails ...
Testable stories
Janus Boye has written a post on testable stories (what we call scenarios), and how these can be used during CMS selection. To quote: Testable stories is something we at J. Boye have developed and refined together with several community of practice members and consulting customers since early 2008 whenever ...
Is there a best CMS tool for your industry?
Tony Byrne debunks the myth of industry-specific CMS solutions. To quote: For web content management I don't believe your industry matters very much. If it did, there would not be 30+ individual Web CMS vendors and open source projects with installations in the U.S. federal government space, and nearly that ...
Who is choosing the new CMS?
Having been involved in many content management system (CMS) selection projects, we've seen a number of common causes of delays arise. Of these, the biggest stumbling block is a lack of structure around the selection project: who is doing what, when will it happen, and how are decisions going to be ...
CMS selection – death to the features matrix
Seth Gottlieb has written an article arguing against feature matrix in CMS selection. To quote: Nothing looks more convincing than a score where one option has more points than another. But, users don’t necessarily want to use a system just because it has the highest cumulative, weighted score. They want ...
Expert session: CMS selection strategies (Sydney, 14 May 2009)
Learn from the foremost experts to save money and mitigate technology risks. Choosing the right web content management system (CMS) is vital. Spend a day with James Robertson, one of the foremost experts on CMS, ...
Picking the right supplier in a recession
Alan Pelz-Sharpe writes about picking the right supplier in a recession. To quote: "Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM" -- so the saying goes. And in tough times there is without a shadow of a doubt, a tendency for procurement and IT buyers in general to lean heavily toward ...
Don’t expect CMS consolidation in 2009
Janus Boye argues that CMS consolidation won't happen in 2009. To quote: I don’t have enough insights into the North American web content management (WCM) marketplace to comment on local marketplace dynamics “over there”, but for the European marketplace, I don’t expect any significant consolidation among CMS vendors and CMS ...
Podcast: out of the box content management
On Monday I was interviewed by Phil Dobbie of BTalk Australia. The podcast on out of the box content management has now been published. To quote: (15min 54) There are a huge amount of content management systems (CMS) available, from free open source platforms through to advanced commercial solutions. That ...
