It all looks bright and shiny when you take the first steps into deploying your new ECM platform. Everyone is enthusiastic, and the sky is the limit when it comes to features. Of course, you will get better search, simplified navigation, better teamwork, and above all: the new system will be delivered before the summer! Business and IT are having a baby!
After the first steps have been made, the first cracks will inevitably begin to show. Expectations are managed, and the project team gets back down to earth. The deadlines start to shift, some functionality will not be realized, and you are about to find out that the content in your old system will not magically walk itself to the new system. A migration is needed.
As I have had two children in recent years, I noticed the similarities between "home" and "work" are plentiful. As any new parent can confirm, at home we had many discussions on how to deal with all the features of our new "products". Me, being a conservative dad, tried to stay in control of operations and my day-to-day rhythm. My wife, on the other hand, had fully embraced our new "products" and would not part with any of their features.
Here at Xillio, we have a long history of nursing the babies of our clients. We know that the new parents have conflicting interests. A successful ECM implementation involves understanding the interests of all involved. For example, minimize impact on day-to-day IT operations and deliver a reliable process for business.
Over the years, the focus of Xillio has shifted from delivering 'just' a content migration (which met the expectations of IT), to improving the quality of the content in the delivered systems (to meet the expectations of Business). As projects became more and more complex, we started to develop our own tools, and before we knew it, Xillio had a full-blown R&D department next to its professional services track. We are still exploring what our new Xillio identity involves, but we feel that in this new form, we are much better equipped to help our clients and partners get the show on the road.
Business and IT have had a baby, and we call it Xillio!