Enterprise Content Management solutions usually follow a standard lifecycle:
- A client identifies a need.
- They send out an RFP.
- A solution (more often than not, a software platform) is selected.
- The platform is installed, customized, and configured to solve the original problem.
For Information Lifecycle Governance (ILG) solutions, the “selection of solution” stage is not as regular. IBM packages groups of software together to solve specific problems. There are benefits and restrictions to this approach, but it has proven solid in all of my governance related projects. For instance, if a client complains they are unable to dispose of their client defensibly, they are actually asking for a set of services:
- Assistance finding its content and performing actions on it
- The ability to identify the retention model for a piece of content
- Records of all destroy transactions in the event of an audit or litigation
- Assistance compelling employees to create content in a way that allows for accurate lifecycle control
- A software solution that automates as much of a piece of content’s lifecycle as possible
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No product currently exists that is capable of solving these problems and can guarantee 100% compliance and accuracy. IBM handles this problem by bundling its products.
With IBM ILG, the responsibility of the sales cycle is to determine which bundle of services will solve the problem, and then to choose the final cocktail of software based on their governance maturity level. Every vendor uses a different model to evaluate a client’s ILG preparedness, (ability to demonstrate disposal, discover content on demand, classify its content, identify content across multiple platforms and environments, etc.) but an accurate read and analysis are absolute requirements before embarking on any ILG enablement, regardless of scope. In this way, BDEs and presales teams are able to choose only the modules within a solution set that are pertinent to solving a specific set of problems.
For more information on IBM’s Information Lifecycle Solutions, please reference the product page, found here:
http://www-03.ibm.com/software/products/en/category/information-lifecycle-governance
