How to Create an Agile Content Factory

@arockley • #intelcontent

How to Create an Agile Content Factory

Ann Rockley

CEO, The Rockley Group Inc.

@arockley

@arockley • #intelcontent

@arockley • #intelcontent

What is Agile?

• The methodology associated with Agile was developed for the software industry to speed up the development of software

• Prior to Agile, the most common software development process was the Waterfall process (sequential through the lifecycle)

• Rather than waiting until everything is finished Agile creates iterative interim deliverables that are assessed and rapidly updated

@arockley • #intelcontent

Benefits of Agile

• Speed-to-market• Flexibility/Agility• Business engagement/Customer satisfaction• Quality and consistency• Reduced costs/increased resource availability

@arockley • #intelcontent

Situation

• Manage and publish our content in new ways• Rushing to make deadlines so get content ‘in’• Look to technology to solve problems• Multiple silos all over the organization

@arockley • #intelcontent

Current processes• Authors continue to put together content based on their

perceived way for how the content should be written/created• Rush to address the ‘now’ and forget about the ‘future’• Content is duplicated over and over again• Silos limit awareness of what content already exists• Customer needs are fragmented across silos• Translation/localization is “not my responsibility” or “not

really sure what happens to it for translation”

@arockley • #intelcontent

Manufacture content don’t handcraft it!

@arockley • #intelcontent

@arockley • #intelcontent@arockley • #intelcontent

@arockley • #intelcontent

"Ford assembly line - 1913" by Unknown - http://www.gpschools.org/ci/depts/eng/k5/third/fordpic.htmhttp://toolkit.archives.gov/exhibits/twww/ image. Licensed under Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ford_assembly_line_-_1913.jpg#/media/File:Ford_assembly_line_-_1913.jpg

@arockley • #intelcontent

@arockley • #intelcontent

@arockley • #intelcontent

WE CAN MANUFACTURE CONTENT TOO!

@arockley • #intelcontent

How to manufacture content

• Modularize content• Create guidelines/best practices for content chunk/topic size• Pre-define content structure and uses of those structures• Design for your future use of content, not just current• Develop structured writing guidelines and incorporate

terminology management

@arockley • #intelcontent

Define content structures

• What are your content structures?• What are you content assemblies?• When do you use each of the structures?• What is mandatory in the structure and what is not?

@arockley • #intelcontent

Content model

@arockley • #intelcontent

Tweet, promo, facebook

@arockley • #intelcontent

Tweet, promo, facebook

@arockley • #intelcontent

Brochure, Facebook

@arockley • #intelcontent

Desktop web

@arockley • #intelcontent

Structured writing guidelines

@arockley • #intelcontent

Beyond reuse/multichannel

• Personalized content/dynamic delivery based on• Industry vertical• Preferences• Etc.

• Content in apps• Content as product• And more

@arockley • #intelcontent

Control content

• Develop reuse governance• Develop a taxonomy and define metadata best practices• Develop workflow now, not later• Automate workflow• Automate publishing

@arockley • #intelcontent

Reuse governance

• What content can be reused?• How it can be reused (identically or with change)?• Who is allowed to change reusable content?• Where/when it can be reused?

@arockley • #intelcontent

Localization• Content is chunked into components rather than documents• Modules that are unchanged that have previously been

translated are not translated again• New/changed modules are translated when they are approved,

no need to wait for the entire “document” to be complete• A PDF of the section or document is provided to ensure that

sufficient context is available for effective translation• When something changes, only the changed module needs to be

retranslated

@arockley • #intelcontent

Terminology management

• What are your style guidelines?• What terms are acceptable?• What are your grammar rules (comma/no comma,

capitalization, abbreviations)?• Can these rules be automated?

@arockley • #intelcontent

Metadata

• Metadata is critical for the effective selection and delivery of content

• Metadata can identify:• Audience• Region• Product• ‘Situation’

@arockley • #intelcontent

Workflow• Workflow allows us to control our content throughout its lifecycle

• Roles• Tasks• Interactions• Dependencies• Wait states• Approvals• Exceptions• Tracking metadata (attributes)

@arockley • #intelcontent

Workflow

@arockley • #intelcontent

Automate publishing

• Hand-off publishing• Templates/stylesheets• ‘Pour’ content into stylesheets• Refine stylesheets for optimum display, but never with

content in it• Content should only be changed in source

@arockley • #intelcontent

An Agile Content Factory is:

• Based on the manufacturing paradigm• Modular• Consistently structured for infinite use and reuse• Adaptable• Managed

@arockley • #intelcontent

Ann RockleyCEOThe Rockley [email protected]

@arockley • #intelcontent