Perhaps it is not as much fun as naming all the seven deadly sins, but we’ve been having a great time deciding just how many systems are in play in publishing.  Of course, one of the difficulties of such a task is that there are many different types of publishers.

Here’s our take:

1.    planning
2.    editorial and production
3.    rights and royalties
4.    manufacturing
5.    promotion and marketing
6.    sales and licensing
7.    distribution and fulfillment

There’s a great deal of room for niggling on this breakout where planning and editorial, to some, for example, may be practiced as a tightly integrated process, or royalties and rights are actually handled by distinct departments.  The breakout could change as we continue our conversations with publishers, but our best guess is that there is no single unassailable breakout, and so we’re hoping this one will do for the purposes of exploring how CMS ties to various business processes common to publishing.

But, hey, we like a good argument, so feel free to make one!

For more information about our Publishing Practices consulting services and our multi-client-sponsored studies, contact Ralph Marto.