The Utility of Maturity Models – The ECM Maturity Model within a South African context

Maturity models have existed as a concept for almost two decades. While they were initially made prominent through computer software engineering, they have since spread to several disciplines including: business analytics, e-government, energy management, financial management, human resources management, the health sector, information technology management, and project management. Within the records and information profession, several models have been developed that follow the principles of maturity models. These include the Information Management Capacity Check (IMCC), the Records Management Capacity Assessment System (RMCAS) and Generally Accepted Recordkeeping Principles (GARP). A more recent development is the Enterprise Content Management Maturity Model (ECM3) that was developed as an open source framework. This paper looks at the development of ECM3 within the context of the implementation of Enterprise Content Management (ECM) applications and provides an example of the model’s utility for organizations in South Africa. At the time of publication, this author is not aware of any other study that has examined the utility of ECM3.