DAM for Government: Digital Asset Management for the Public Sector

IT Infrastructure

• Are you looking at cloud hosting or Software as a Service (SaaS) to speed your delivery without  internal IT and management costs?
• Are you concerned about privacy and data security and prefer an on-premise solution?
• Do you need to provide mobile access for services delivery?

Agencies need a DAM solution that is fit for purpose – in the cloud vs on-premise; lightweight or enterprise-scale – with the related risks and benefits clearly known. Without a structured approach to managing digital data, agencies are exposed to risks and staff performance is hampered. Implementing a sound digital asset management strategy enables agencies better able to take control, improve responsiveness, allow for effective delivery of services and provide better and more transparent record-keeping.

Integration with existing systems and applications

Digital asset management is not just about software. It’s more about developing a process and workflow that enables people to work from within existing applications – for example, InDesign and Microsoft Office for designers, marketers, publishers and web content managers.

It is also about the ability for agencies to leverage their existing investment in content management, collection management, records management systems and ERP / service applications. Then there is the ability to authorise and manage users via LDAP authentication and other protocols.

Digital asset life cycle management

Managing the life cycle of a digital asset is as important as managing that of a physical asset, or any other item of value in government.  Michael Moon, GISTICS CEO,  in his article Activity lifecycle of digital assets,  details all the many and often repeated steps required for asset creation, use, management, distribution, re-use and archiving.  “DAM means digital workflows” he writes, and asks: “What makes a digital file an asset? A simple question with a deceptively simple answer –  findability and re-usability.”

So how do we make it findable and reusable? The cataloging and indexing of a digital asset is a major component of the life cycle as it through this process that the asset becomes discoverable through the search and retrieve process. A good digital asset management system will retrieve as much information as possible embedded in the file itself when it is cataloged to minimise the manual adding of metadata.

Asset discovery via metadata – using controlled vocabularies versus keywording or tagging

Image and document classification can be undertaken in a number of ways according to workflow, usage and search requirements. Applying a controlled vocabulary or formal classification scheme help to achieve the standardisation of search terms and minimise errors in cataloging – but the ability for users to add their own keywords and tags can improve usage and identify unique aspects of an asset.

Some of the questions that need to be asked are:
• What metadata needs to be extracted for identification? eg thumbnail, filename, type, size etc
• What standards have been identified for legal compliance requirements and successful searching? eg IPTC, AGLS
• What additional metadata is required to be added eg captions, dates, etc
• Is a formal taxonomy or controlled vocabulary required to ensure correct grouping and classification?
• Is there a style guide for production of documents and images that includes preferred file types, size, quality etc.
• Is public keywording or informal tagging a viable option?

Ownership, intellectual property and copyright issues need to be identified at the outset when user permissions are set up. Consent forms need to be linked to the relevant media and clearly identified.