Data And Content Convergence

Like most enterprise applications, content management apps are created primarily for the purpose of solving department-level problems. A document imaging solution, for instance, may be deployed to help accounting and purchasing better manage purchase orders and invoices. While point-specific content management applications can provide value on their own, the payoff is more significant when they are integrated. Giving line of business workers, CSRs (customer service representatives), and customers access to varied content can result in increased employee productivity, a higher level of content security, and improved customer self-service initiatives. The key to making these disparate applications work for you and your customers is to match your business model with the appropriate kind of integration method.

Recommended: The Virtual Repository
One approach some companies take to access all their content is to migrate it into one physical repository. But, according to Bruce Milne, director of strategic and field marketing for content management vendor Vignette (Austin, TX), this is not the way to go. "The primary problem with the physical repository model is that it forces businesses into an inflexible mold. For instance, I've seen companies pull all warehouse data into a physical repository, which was updated every two days. A shop floor manager looked into the repository via the portal and saw sufficient raw materials available, when in fact the materials were used up the previous day."

Another approach involves creating a content repository that includes descriptive pointers (metatags) to the native applications. This method, known as a virtual repository, can be set up using the following steps: First, tables are established similar to the way one would set up a relational database. Each table includes pointers back to a specific application. Each table in the virtual repository is joined by establishing indices such as primary keys, one-to-many relationships, and cascade updates (i.e. if the value of one pointer is changed, other fields from joined tables will automatically be changed in a predefined manner). After the content relationships are established, visual tools can be employed to move the project out of the IT administrators' hands and into the line of business workers' hands. "Commands such as 'drag-and-drop' automatically update relationships established in the virtual repository without users having to understand the complex coding happening in the background," says Milne.

Because multiple applications may need to provide content before certain business processes can occur (e.g. payment transactions or business intelligence reporting), application integration is still needed to automate machine-to-machine interactions. Some of the primary integration methods include using an ERM (enterprise report management) solution, customizing via APIs (application program interfaces), or tying applications together via open standards and protocols using Web services.

For Fixed Content Use ERM
Enterprises that have a lot of fixed content should consider an ERM solution. ERM solutions are useful when enterprises use large, mainframe applications that produce a lot of fixed content. "Banks are a good candidate for ERM," says Doug Daniels, product marketing manager for content management vendor Quest Software Inc. (Irvine, CA). "Banks generate a lot of static content, such as customer statement histories and check imaging. ERM solutions capture fixed content, store it in a separate location, and parse the information into a different format that can be used by other applications." Unlike COLD (computer output to laser disk) solutions, which do not establish report relationships, ERM solutions can manage multiple generations (versions) of reports through a single index. "One of our banking customers captures and processes reports at its Kansas City location and then automatically reformats key parts of the documents and sends them to a repository in Boston that can use the data for other report-generating activities," says Daniels. "Using the ERM saved the bank hundreds of thousands of dollars by not trying to Internet-enable its mainframe system and directly integrate it with other systems."

Custom Integration: The Next Level Of Integration
Another common method of integration is to create a customized interface between two disparate applications. Some vendors make this step easier by partnering to establish prewritten APIs. By tying applications together using this method, more functionality can be shared among the applications because they are joined at the business objects level. This means the business rules established by one program are used by complementary fields in a second application. This avoids the problem of joining applications and discovering (after much backtracking) that a certain report won't work because, for instance, the name field in one application uses a comma to separate first and last name while the field in a second application uses a space.

"The downside to using APIs and other custom integrations is that they require constant upgrades," says Lubor Ptacek, director of product marketing for enterprise content management vendor Documentum (Pleasanton, CA). "Every time a new version of one of the applications is deployed, the integration will require recoding. In the worst case scenario, if one of the vendors goes out of business, a brand-new integration may need to be established." For companies that use products from established vendors, the latter threat isn't a concern. However, the expense of devoting IT resources to maintain custom-coded connections is a concern for many enterprises. "The solution is to standardize on an enterprise content management platform that provides common content services to all the applications using industry standards," adds Ptacek.

Web Services Promises Best Of Both Worlds
Another type of integration that has become popular within the last three years is Web services. Web services are built on open Internet standards which allow users to configure them for intranet-based applications as well as for application integration. Unlike close-ended integrations, Web services doesn't limit users to using single-vendor protocols such as EDI (electronic data interchange), for example. Web services uses a UDDI (universal description discovery and integration) service, which is like an online Yellow Pages directory that alerts other Web services users to the application and the type of service available. Using XML (extensible markup language) commands, application content is defined. And, the format of the Web service is defined by the WSDL (Web services description language) protocol. Using Web services as the foundation for application integration, enterprises can reduce the amount of programming. "When custom integrations are modified, it may take six weeks of recoding and testing before everything is up and running smoothly again," says Milne. "With Web services, users can refresh a Web services integration, which automatically uploads the new piece of code, and be back in business almost immediately."

While Web services promises to become a primary integration platform, it can be a complex and potentially expensive undertaking. Even though Web services are built on open standards, which enable one Web service to communicate with another, decisions must be made about interfacing techniques - including defining how to publish the content and how to find and access Web services. If these criteria aren't well thought out ahead of time, redundant recoding efforts could result.

Fix Missed Indices With Intelligent Search Engines
No matter which method enterprises use to integrate their applications, there will be some key indices (indexed pointers that define key relationships among content) that are missed. Because those relationships may change frequently, search engines are good tools to add to your integrated content management solution. A husband may call a healthcare provider to inquire about a bill that was sent to his wife, for example. The CSR may ask the husband for his wife's social security number as the primary field to access the wife's bill. If the husband doesn't have that information, the CSR needs to be able to search for the bill using other information. "This is an example of where search engine technology comes in," says Juan Navarro, VP of professional services for knowledge management vendor SER Solutions, Inc. (Dulles, VA). "Using such enabling technologies as neural networking, the search engine can go back into the repository and establish relationships among statements, forms, and database fields to help the CSR find all the information needed to help the customer." These search engines can also be used to help offset the costs of customized integrations by enabling applications to be integrated more loosely. "Intelligent search engines can be given multiple samples of various forms and can capture key words such as name, address, and phone number and match that information to other forms with entirely different formats," says Navarro.

By integrating content management applications, companies can improve efficiencies in the enterprise and in customer satisfaction. The integrated enterprise enables line of business managers as well as customers to look up information themselves as opposed to calling other departments or calling a customer support number. Says Navarro, "These search capabilities can be exposed to customers via a Web browser to allow them to search for such things as the status of a loan application, outstanding payments on a student loan, or an estimate from a recent auto accident."