The Best Solution Doesn’t Exist

Oftentimes we get asked questions that look something like this: “What’s the best solution for <blank>?”. That blank could be anything; cloud migration, personalization, multi-tenant/multi-site, omnichannel content, assets organization, etc. As humans, we gravitate toward the notion that there is a single truth, or solution, to every question. In technology, many of us even idolize our own solutions as universally being “the best.” The reality is there is no “THE best” solution – there is only “your best” solution.

Say you’re migrating to Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) Cloud Service. Your best solution is influenced by numerous factors, operational and technical, such as:

• How well was your implementation upgraded through the years?
• How many components, templates, and patterns are in your current system?
• What are your current business and marketing plans and priorities?
• Are there unrealized opportunities for feature and/or content reuse?
• Is your current information architecture best serving your current customers?
• How does funding work for shared services at your company?

Or perhaps you’re looking to organize your assets.  Your best solution will need to be formulated on such factors as:

• For what purposes are assets used (e.g. sites, print, syndication, legal records)?
• What are all the different asset stakeholder groups and their responsibilities?
• Do you have a robust asset tagging taxonomy, and is it reliably applied?
• What does your asset production workflow look like?
• Are assets sourced from external technical and/or human sources?
• Do assets require varying access control and/or digital rights management?

The list of influences goes on and finding neither a topical subject matter expert (SME) nor someone that can answer a questionnaire will guarantee your ability to develop “THE solution”. A SME may simply steer the solution to their comfort zone, and for each of the initial questions asked there will typically be multiple follow-up questions that are a function of the initial answers.

Finding your best solution requires subject matter experts that will maintain open minds and an inquisitive, iterative approach. As you embark on a digital transformation, be hyper-aware of the topics of conversation in the early days.  If you’re discussing solutions with “experts” who don’t intimately know you and your business, you may want to raise the caution flag before it’s too late. If those guiding the solution are spending significant time asking questions and seeking to understand, then you’re more likely on the right track.