Need of a robust content management service layer for financial institutions

Abstract:

Financial institutes need to manage multitude of documents or content as part of its business functional needs often times via systems based on many content management platforms. Having a robust content management service layer makes it easier to consume content management services in an optimal fashion while taking advantage of technological advances.

Introduction:

Financial institutes dealing with Banking and Insurance business domains deal with a multitude of documents as part of various business processes. These documents need to be electronically stored in secure location for providing better customer experience through easier access to them and to comply with compliance requirements. Financial institutes tend to have multiple enterprise content management product platforms providing respective content management services based on individual line of business application (such as policy administration, claims processing, customer service and underwriting etc.,) needs evolved over period. Financial institutes encounter several challenges in dealing with multiple enterprise content management product platforms.

Challenges:

Few of the challenges include the need to control content management costs for the enterprise. Multiple platforms add to the operational cost due to license, maintenance, management and support expenses of each of those platforms. Due to compliance requirements, documents need to be retained for a designated duration of time and it adds to complexity. Scalability is a major requirement for financial institutes in dealing with ever expanding content and its management.

Technological advances such as cloud, artificial intelligence and software as a service (SaaS) models enable better product platforms to offer document storage and management at a lower cost but may involve migration efforts.

Due to any of the above challenges, if the underlying product platform is replaced or consolidated, applications consuming the content management services will need to spend huge effort to change unless there is a robust service layer developed.

The framework needs to provide resiliency to deal with multiple document or content management platforms with minimal impact to consumer applications and need to enable faster migration paths.

Key considerations for robust service layer framework:

Developing a resilient service layer framework aligning to cloud native and microservices architecture principles would enable financial institutes to deal with above content management service consumption challenges in a better fashion.

The resilient service layer entails standardized interfaces for content management service consumption which can abstract product platform complexities away from content consumers. It needs to take care of audit and logging requirements of the enterprise content consumption.  It needs to deal with current location of content to deal with multiple content management product platforms and to enable smooth transition amongst them.

Aligning service interfaces to industry standards such as ACORD or BIAN based on financial institute business domain, would enable better handling of document metadata and thereby improves enterprise agility.

A service layer framework which addresses these key considerations would enable consumption of content management system services by the line of business applications in a robust manner.

Conclusion:

Forward looking financial institutes need to focus on building a robust service layer for consuming content management services of the enterprise to make better use of technological advances in an optimal and agile fashion.