McIlroy--Print Production Managers Must Become Content Managers

The most important challenge for content managers is gaining control of their organizations' digital assets—electronic files containing text, images and more, developed for communication campaigns and publishing projects.

We've been hearing a lot about asset management. Everyone seems to agree that controlling digital media assets is a good thing, at the same time that they're challenged to explain exactly why. On the one hand, there's the direct cost and replacement cost of these assets. Too often customers order new designs and photo shoots when existing images would have done the job. Then there's the often-fruitless time spent searching on SyQuests, ZIPs and opticals for images. Add to that the countless times they fail to use effective or appropriate graphics because it was too hard to find them, and there wasn't enough time or budget available to create new ones.