E-Handbook: Content collaboration tools streamline digital media workflows Article 1 of 4

Content collaboration is more than just storing, sharing files

Once upon a time, an office content collaboration system consisted of a file-share device locked in an office under someone's desk. When an employee had a question or comment about a document, they would turn to their desk neighbor and have a verbal conversation.

That method of collaboration has shifted dramatically over time, as companies turned to cloud content management systems to store, share and collaborate on documents, negating the need for face-to-face human interactions.

As more and more people now work from home, businesses need to add more content collaboration tools to their arsenals to ensure that employees are efficient, connected and productive. Content storage and file-sharing capabilities simply aren't enough. Businesses need a bigger plan.

Team collaboration platforms, such as Slack and Microsoft Teams, work in conjunction with content management systems so employees can stay in touch with one another and quickly share content links. In addition, companies need to create systems for naming and tagging files so employees can quickly find the documents necessary to do their jobs. And they need AI tools to assist in automatic content tagging, language detection, sentiment analysis and automated workflows. These tools are all necessary for business employees to collaborate across departments and, ultimately, to provide their customers with better, more personal service.

This handbook explores how collaboration tools are necessary not only for storing and managing content, but also for streamlining digital media workflows and promoting teamwork. We will also look at the features of content services platforms and the numerous content collaboration tools that are part of these platforms. And finally, we'll detail best practices for businesses to follow as they make use of enterprise content management systems across a distributed organization.