Assets and Sites, judged by what authors can actually do.

01

Content architecture before configuration

The folder structure, taxonomy and metadata schema determine whether AEM stays navigable at a million assets. Decide them from how people search and reuse content, not from how the org is structured today.

• A hierarchy based on stable concepts: brand, market, product, campaign.
• One canonical location per asset; derivatives generated, not duplicated.
• A metadata schema with a small number of genuinely required fields.
• Rights, usage and expiration captured so reuse is safe.

02

Metadata that gets applied correctly

A large taxonomy applied inconsistently is worse than a small one applied well. Constrain values, validate at upload, and let metadata flow in from the system that requested the work.

• Controlled vocabularies instead of free-text where it matters.
• Inheritance from folders and from the originating Workfront request.
• Validation at upload rather than periodic cleanup projects.
• AI-assisted tagging suggestions with a human confirming.

03

Components authors can compose

Every bespoke component is a maintenance commitment. A well-designed core set with clear authoring options covers most needs and keeps pages consistent, accessible and fast.

• Extend core components before building custom ones.
• Editable templates and policies to control the options authors see.
• Authoring dialogs written in the author's language, not the developer's.
• Accessibility and performance built into the component, not reviewed later.

04

Workflows sized to the risk

Approval workflows should match what is being published. A legal review for a homepage change makes sense; the same gate on a routine asset upload teaches people to route around AEM.

• Different paths for high-risk and routine publishing.
• Notifications people actually act on, not a flood.
• Scheduled activation and clear expiry handling.
• Publishing responsibility assigned to a role, not an individual.

05

Migrations succeed by leaving things behind

The largest risk in an AEM migration is moving everything. Decide what is worth migrating, what gets archived and what gets rebuilt — then sequence in waves with a measurable definition of done for each.

• An inventory with a keep, archive or rebuild decision per item.
• Waves by business area so each has an owner and a real test.
• URL and redirect planning to protect existing search visibility.
• Authoring enablement scheduled with each wave, not after all of them.

06

Integration is where the value compounds

AEM is most valuable connected: Workfront for the work that produces content, Target for what gets personalized, Marketo for campaign execution, and your own systems for product and inventory data.

• Workfront to AEM so briefs, approvals and assets share context.
• Assets feeding Target activities and Marketo campaigns without manual copies.
• App Builder for Adobe-native custom extensions and interfaces.
• A documented integration map so nobody has to guess.