Key concepts for the transition from individual page creation to content management :

  1. Content is separated from design. Content = what you have to say. Design = how content is presented (layout, fonts, colors, university identity). Our current site templates do this now, but content is not retrievable as data.
  2. Web content becomes data. Individual pieces of content will be re-usable anywhere on the web site (documents, paragraphs, course descriptions, forms, photographs, individual numbers/letters and so on) .
  3. Units, departments and individuals have increased responsibility for quality(because technical expertise will no longer be required to update or create new content).
    1. Authors will need to collaborate and cooperate to make sure that their content is suitable for all of its uses, since content could be displayed in many contexts.
    2. The review and approval process within departments becomes more important as publishing becomes easier.
  4. Users will be able to set up their own interactive elements(forms, template variations, discussions, and other formerly technical elements) without web expertise.
  5. Publishing roles are formalized in the CMS. Web site content will be created and updated by people with assigned roles within the content management software; those roles will be determined by individual offices and departments. Examples of roles include author, editor, approver, publisher.