Open Text's 'Repository of Record' For Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 Fills Growing Need

Growth in Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 Drives Need to Capture and Manage Company Content Across SharePoint Sites, Analyst Firm Finds

CHICAGO - Open Text(TM) Corporation, a global leader in enterprise content management (ECM), yesterday announced the release of a sponsored IDC white paper that reveals how the ever-growing adoption of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 for creating, managing and sharing documents is fueling increased demand for software that provides a repository of record for companies' vast amounts of content and data. As detailed in the white paper, Open Text offers a complete set of ECM offerings that "augment and extend the Office SharePoint Server 2007 environment so that content from Office SharePoint Server 2007 sites can be centrally structured and managed, connected to other organizational content resources, and incorporated into industry or process-based content applications."

Organizations across a broad spectrum of industries are deploying Office SharePoint Server 2007, which gives users throughout the organization the ability to see and use documents uploaded to the collaborative system. But this success is driving the need for solutions that build upon that platform, according to the recently released IDC white paper, sponsored by Open Text, Open Text and Microsoft Office SharePoint Server: The Road to Greater Productivity (IDCWP06Q, March 2008).

"At the most basic level, people need the ability to store, share and find their business documents. Organizations are struggling with information management issues, and with how to manage content throughout its lifecycle," the leading market research firm reported.

IDC found that the number one concern for organizations seeking to purchase content management solutions was the need for a repository of record "so nothing is lost." More than 70 percent of IDC's 436-member Enterprise Panel cited the need for a repository of record as their top motivator for adopting ECM. Securing intellectual property ranked second at 64 percent, followed closely with "making it easy to reuse and/or repurpose content" (62 percent). Respondents also cited the need to adhere to retention policies for compliance as well as improve collaboration around creating content and making content available through multiple channels.

Companies that make technology investments understandably want their employees-regardless of their skills-sets or ways of using the technology-to get the maximum benefits. This is driving the demand for "invisible content management" that makes content management systems a seamless part of users' systems. "This brings more employees into the content management fold by incorporating their locally stored content into the more structured overarching systems and processes for managing content," IDC said. Additionally it improves employees' access to their company's content repositories, so they don't spend as much time searching for relevant information.

Through its strategic alliance with Microsoft, Open Text offers optimized ECM solutions for the Microsoft platform, including records management and archiving that enable the implementation of a repository of record. A Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and Global ISV Partner of the Year, Open Text has built on its extensive expertise in content management to take advantage of SharePoint's resident core content services to create vertical solutions and enable enterprise-wide connections across multiple SharePoint Server 2007 sites.

"We recognize the tremendous growth of Office SharePoint Server to enhance knowledge worker productivity and collaboration, and through our close alignment with Microsoft and long-history in ECM we are well positioned to share in this growth," said Jens Rabe, Vice President, Microsoft Applications and Solutions Line of Business for Open Text. "As this IDC white paper explains, due to our rich history in ECM software, we are the natural next step for enterprises seeking maximum value from their investment in ECM technologies."

Open Text is a leader in delivering solutions that extend the Microsoft platform. Last year, Open Text opened a new office in Microsoft's Partner Solution Center in Redmond, WA., to further its relationship with Microsoft, and to better align product strategy and direction.