Content control gains breadth

ECM (enterprise content management) continues to expand its role in the enterprise, bringing under its wing once separate functions such as collaboration, BPM (business process management), and records management. Interwoven, Documentum, Vignette, Stellent, and Epitome Systems are leading the way.

ECM is evolving to meet a variety of corporate needs, expanding from its early role as a communications and publishing tool to more of an interaction platform, said Michael Maziarka, director at InfoTrends/CAP Ventures.

“It is about making the information actionable. Everything from advancing into the next step of a business process to customers responding with information we are giving them, to following policies and regulations,” Maziarka said.

This week Interwoven will unwrap its WorkSite MP 4.0 collaborative document management software. The first fruit of the company’s merger last year with collaboration technology vendor iManage, Version 4.0 of WorkSite MP adds records management, offline synchronization, virtual folders, and simplified configuration. The offering also integrates with BEA Systems’ portlets and includes a Microsoft .Net SDK to streamline .Net application development.

ECM is rising to meet the challenges facing distributed organizations, a growing number of which must comply with government regulations. These challenges include managing processes and content across different technologies, time zones, and departments, according to Jim Petty, director of products at Interwoven.

“This work includes multiple asset types, [such as] e-mail, documents, and applications. And the work is often regulated,” Petty said. “The records management piece is absolutely a requirement today.”

The records retention feature in WorkSite MP 4.0 allows users to browse the whole content hierarchy — including documents, folders, and workspaces — and to apply retention rules to specific items, officials said.

EMC’s Documentum division is expanding ECM to include BPM capabilities. Later this month, Documentum will add two BPM offerings to its ECM lineup. The products are designed to automate content-centric business processes and to tie those into applications such as ERP and CRM, according to Documentum. The BPM offerings will target processes such as accounts payable, claims processing, and product rollouts.

Vignette and Stellent last week announced separate efforts to address the intersection of ECM and compliance. Vignette launched a series of compliance solutions based on its recent acquisition of Tower Technology. The offerings include e-mail capture and retention, records management, a dashboard for managing compliance processes, and collaborative workspaces, according to Vignette.

A new face on the scene, Epitome Systems unveiled  last week a set of platforms for content acquisition, integrated processes, and business visibility.