Kaplan and Typefi partnership: Using workflows for multichannel publication

In this “Insights from Experts” episode, Mike Wolff, Digital Production Manager at Kaplan, and Emily Johnston from Typefi Systems discuss how Kaplan uses Componize CCMS and Typefi to create and publish educational content. Kaplan, a global educational services company, offers a wide range of services, including higher and professional education, test preparation, and online learning.

Before Typefi, Kaplan’s production process was manual and time-consuming. They used a Word to InDesign workflow, which involved importing Word files into InDesign and styling the content.

With Componize and Typefi, Kaplan’s workflow has significantly improved. The content is authored in DITA within Componize, and once the authoring and editing process is complete, the project is exported as a zip file and uploaded into Typefi. Typefi transforms the files into InDesign files, which require minimal cleanup. Kaplan’s typesetting team performs final cleanup before sending the files to the printer.

The collaboration between Kaplan, Componize, and Typefi has provided several benefits

• Automation: Typefi has automated Kaplan’s production process, saving time and money.
• In-house production: Kaplan can keep the work in-house instead of outsourcing, further reducing costs.
• Efficient workflows: The integration of Componize and Typefi has streamlined the content creation to publication workflow, eliminating manual and time-consuming processes.
• Improved content quality: Typefi generates high-quality InDesign files, reducing the need for extensive post-processing and cleanup.
• Future optimization: Kaplan aims to establish a direct connection between Componize and Typefi, eliminating the need to export and upload content, further improving efficiency. Kaplan is also exploring workflows for HTML content to be transformed into InDesign.

This collaboration demonstrates how the combination of a CCMS  and a publishing automation solution can enhance content creation and publication processes in the educational industry.

Takeaways

Streamlined content creation and publishing process with Componize and Typefi

Kaplan, a global educational services company, has significantly improved its content creation and publishing process. The partnership has allowed Kaplan to efficiently publish content to multiple output formats, including print, PDF, and EPUB.

“Typefi does this by creating InDesign files directly from our DITA content, which has really streamlined our workflow and made our processes much more efficient.”

Mike Wolf

Prior to implementing these tools, Kaplan’s production process was more manual and time-consuming, involving lengthy Word to InDesign manual conversions.

With Componize and Typefi, Kaplan’s content creation to publication workflow is now more efficient as content is authored in DITA, managed within Componize CCMS, exported as a Zip file, and uploaded directly into Typefi. This has resulted in major time and cost savings for the company, allowing them to keep more of the work in-house.

Connecting content silos for improved collaboration

The use of Componize CCMS and Typefi Systems at Kaplan has not only streamlined their content creation and publishing process, but also helped connect various departments and content silos within the company.

“… pretty much everybody that’s working on the content is using this workflow.”

Mike Wolff

By unifying departmental silos and reducing the number of tools required, Kaplan has improved collaboration and efficiency among its different departments.

The flexibility of both the CCMS and publication platform in terms of input formats, such as Microsoft Word, XML, or HTML, offers a variety of options for different departments and divisions within Kaplan, further enhancing their content management and publishing capabilities.

Future optimization of content lifecycle

Kaplan is looking to further optimize aspects of their content lifecycle by exploring options such as establishing a direct connection between Componize and Typefi, which would eliminate the need to export and upload content as a Zip file.

“We’re already going to be connected. The Open APIs mean that as soon as that licensing issue is sorted out, we’re able to push content directly into Typefi.”

Dipo and Emily

Additionally, the release of a new review tool from Componize to assist in catching errors and making revisions during the review process, will further improve the review workflow, allowing more minor errors to be caught before the typesetting process.

By continuing to enhance their content creation and publication workflows, Kaplan aims to further improve efficiency, save time, and streamline their overall content management processes.

Webinar Co-Hosts