What is a Content Management System (CMS)? Is it just for websites?
A Content Management System (CMS) is software that enables users to create, edit, organize, store, and publish digital content, usually through a user interface, without needing to manually code everything. This includes things like writing or updating text, uploading and organizing media (images, videos), setting layout via templates or themes, managing user roles/permissions, versioning, search, etc.
Erie Institute of Technology
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Kinsta®
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Wikipedia
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While CMSs are most commonly associated with websites — especially those with changing content (blogs, corporate sites, e-commerce) — they are not limited strictly to “web pages.”
Comparing and contrasting:
How CMSs Impact the Web Design Industry & Job Market: Are They Taking Away Developer Jobs?
This is more nuanced. There is concern sometimes that CMSs reduce barriers to entry (non-developers can build simple sites), which could reduce demand for some types of website building work. But in practice:
Many websites still require custom design, custom features, integrations, performance, security, etc., which require developers. A CMS may handle the basics, but to make a site stand out, or scale well, or meet non-standard needs, developers and designers are still needed.
The rise of CMSs has shifted the kinds of skills in demand. Instead of “just HTML/CSS by hand,” many developers work with CMSs (plugins/themes), or build for headless CMSs, do custom integrations, performance optimizations, infrastructure, etc. Designers might need to understand working with CMS templates/themes.
CMSs have also created new roles: theme/plugin development, CMS customization, migrations, maintenance, security auditing. So although some simple “static brochure‐site building” work might decline or be automated, there is still plenty of developer work, often more complex.
Data supports this: The job market for web development/digital design is growing faster than average.
Robert Half
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So to sum up: CMSs change what work is done, often reducing demand for very simple coding tasks or static sites, but increasing demand for higher skill in customization, performance, user experience, integrations, security, etc. They don’t eliminate developer jobs; they shift them.
How CMSs Impact the Web Design Industry & Job Market: Are They Taking Away Developer Jobs?
This is more nuanced. There is concern sometimes that CMSs reduce barriers to entry (non-developers can build simple sites), which could reduce demand for some types of website building work. But in practice:
Many websites still require custom design, custom features, integrations, performance, security, etc., which require developers. A CMS may handle the basics, but to make a site stand out, or scale well, or meet non-standard needs, developers and designers are still needed.
The rise of CMSs has shifted the kinds of skills in demand. Instead of “just HTML/CSS by hand,” many developers work with CMSs (plugins/themes), or build for headless CMSs, do custom integrations, performance optimizations, infrastructure, etc. Designers might need to understand working with CMS templates/themes.
CMSs have also created new roles: theme/plugin development, CMS customization, migrations, maintenance, security auditing. So although some simple “static brochure‐site building” work might decline or be automated, there is still plenty of developer work, often more complex.
Data supports this: The job market for web development/digital design is growing faster than average.
Robert Half
+1
So to sum up: CMSs change what work is done, often reducing demand for very simple coding tasks or static sites, but increasing demand for higher skill in customization, performance, user experience, integrations, security, etc. They don’t eliminate developer jobs; they shift them.