Lessons learned during CMS implementation

In an earlier post, I gave 10 lessons learned in getting an organization to embrace a content management system (CMS). These focused on getting our staff ready for CMS (i.e. the organizational culture).

Below are 10 lessons we learned when implementing the system.

1) Keep your priorities and goals clear. Complete tasks associated with your first priority before moving on.
2) Expect changes - As we learned more, we constantly needed to revise our thinking.
3) Address gray areas with policies - i.e. file naming conventions, metadata changes, etc.
4) Balance honoring the team process vs. making it work.
5) Manage your consultants. Questions should you should ask:
- When should you use design consultants and when do you use support?
- Do you have what your consultants will need before they come on site?
- Watch out for non-standard design items.
6) Err on the simple side, you can always add the complexity later.
7) Paper migration - It's all about process.
8) Different levels of users have different training needs.
9) Don't try to implement all tools at once.
10) Don't forget implementation is as much about people as it is about technology.