EDMS applications store unstructured content. However, what comes first – content or process?
In Part 1, I began my reflection on the problem of content versus process when defining the paradigm for information management projects.
Many processes, however, do not place unstructured content at the centre of the process. For example, building a bridge will involve many complex activities. Some of those activities will involve document control activities – such as the development and approval of the drawings required to build the bridge. However, most people involved in the bridge building will not contribute to the development or approval of the drawings. Many people might refer to some of the drawings from time to time, but the drawings themselves are not the centre of their work – they drive trucks, operate cranes, lay road surfaces etc. But each of them must reference information (sometimes unstructured, sometimes structured), participate in communications networks, and provide status updates on their progress.
Therefore, a more radical approach is to consider the implication of processes that involve unstructured content but are not document-centric. By following this approach, organisations might experience more effective update of the system.
In my next blog (Part 3), I will talk about an ‘information management matrix’ that enables us to break away from the content versus process conundrum for EDRMS implementations.