Content Management System (CMS) Evaluation and Analysis

Abstract

Content management systems (CMS) provide an optimal solution by organizing information and, mostly, creating and managing an enterprises knowledge. Nevertheless there is a big confusion about the functionalities that characterize CMS and about the differences with less performing products such as web content management systems, document and records management systems and enterprise content management systems. This paper aims to show the mismatches between companies needs and those information management products, which are often called CMS even if they are not. For this reason I first made a theoretical comparison between the functionalities of CMS and those of the systems that are often confused with. Then I showed the results of an empirical research on 22 products offered by international vendors. By using an original scheme, enterprises needs in terms of information collection, management and publication of knowledge management are compared with the functionalities of the aforementioned systems. The result consists of performing definitions for CMS and the other systems for managing information. Content Management products are analyzed, compared and evaluated by using a special table created to point out the actual functionalities of the products offered on the market, despite vendors declarations. The paper conclusions show how, on the demand side, companies needs are growing in a confused framework; at the same time the supply side keeps on feeding this confusion, reducing company satisfaction in regard to knowledge and information management.