If you agree with the adage that enterprises need a new Web CMS every three years, then it's easy to assume that in the year 2011, most organizations would be working on their third or fourth Web CMS implementation. The real story is that some of the largest enterprises -- including some of the biggest names in healthcare, retail, and banking -- are still trying to move to their first real CMS.

Recently, I’ve seen numerous organizations churning out massive amounts of content using faux-CMS methods such as:

Content entry: Word-based forms
Workflow: E-mail and phone calls
Content reuse: server-side include files tracked via spreadsheets
Collaboration: shared network drives
Versioning: multiple versions stored on shared network drives
Archiving: PDFs in shared network drives
Deployment: Simple FTP

To their credit, these organizations have done an impressive job of cobbling together a variety of tools and processes to mimic the functionality that comes with most content management systems. In most cases, these homegrown solutions have served these organizations well -- thusfar.

However, the changing demands of content consumers are putting stress on these methods. With increased content demands, more and more production departments are hitting their breaking points and becoming bottlenecks for publishing important content.

Is your organization one of these?  The good news is that in 2011 there are more options than ever for a Web CMS buyer – we cover 44 of the most significant. All 44 of these commercial products and open-source projects have been around for years and have matured to the point where their base functionality could provide operational wins for you. Your challenge will be to find the right partner to support your visions for the next three years and beyond.