FCG: ECM with FirstPoint

Jennifer Wemstrom of FCG introduced the FirstPoint Life Sciences ECM solution at the Trends 2007 conference held on November 8, 2007 in Princeton, New Jersey.

Note: This is one of many posts related to the Trends 2007 conference. Each post about this conference uses the same illustration shown to the left.

FCG, already well known for its FirstDoc solution suite, has been working closely with Microsoft to plan, design and implement this new Sharepoint (SP) based solution.

Jennifer was quick to point out that FCG will continue to support the FirstDoc platform and that the FirstPoint solution was not simply an attempt to create an FirstDoc-equivalent solution on SP.

Indeed, FCG will provide a new window into the FirstDoc environment by surfacing the Documentum-based repository via an SP-based user interface. This approach will give existing FirstDoc customers a way to further extend the functions of their content management application using Microsoft tools. Since this alternative was not the main focus of Jennifer's presentation, anyone interested in the future of FirstDoc is encouraged to contact FCG directly.

Full disclosure: Please note that FCG is in the process of merging with Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) and that the writer is a former employee with continuing interest and connection to CSC. In addition, the writer has had business relationships with FCG in the past.

With FirstPoint being a brand new product, FCG set out to take full advantage of the SP platform and of other Microsoft and partner tools. At the same time, FCG has made use of its extensive experience working with Life Sciences clients, especially those working in a regulated environment.

As you would expect, this experience was translated into the delivery of a content management and electronic publishing environment that can be validated. By using a Microsoft-centric software stack, FirstPoint is also able to fully leverage and seamlessly deliver an extensive set of features/functions needed for content management, collaboration, authoring, review/approval, publishing, query and reporting.

The product demonstrations that were interspersed within Jennifer's talk illustrated the tight integration between expected content management features (e.g. check-in/check-out, version control, review/approval cycles) and MS-Office functions (e.g. authoring, commenting, template re-use).

While the solution includes a myriad of capabilities, the following were examples that stood out for this reviewer:

• Sharing controlled and uncontrolled document repositories via a single interface;
• Facilitating both internal-external collaboration;
• Parallel workflows with ability to perform simultaneous edits on a document/file;
• Document/file lifecycle based modification of access rights/privileges;
• Out-of-the-box metrics reporting plus ability to create custom reports;
• Key functions available directly within the MS-Office (e.g. Word, Excel, PowerPoint) ribbon bar;
• User interface personalized (i.e. role based) via login ID;
• Metadata can be added/edited directly within the MS-Office application;
• Changes to checked-out documents/files are automatically saved to repository

From the above, you can correctly conclude that FirstPoint has two user interfaces; menus and dialogs that are available within each MS-Office tool and via a separate application from which the MS-Office applications can be launched.

Although not discussed within Jennifer's talk, FCG is positioning the FirstPoint product as a viable solution for small to mid-sized companies that can't financially justify going with a Documentum-based approach. As added benefits, these customers will also get a full-blown collaboration environment and eliminate the need to have separate applications for regulated and un-regulated repositories.

From my own perspective, however, solutions like FirstPoint can be just as viable for large biopharma companies and represent a serious and potentially irreversible threat to EMC Documentum.