Digital Governance Fundamentals

The last decade was “interesting.” We became increasingly aware that the internet and the web can be dangerous places. I’m not going to trash the technologies that have led to so much information-sharing and innovation, but I will be one of the first in line to say that we need to do a better job of governing both the internet and web. Today’s web conflagration is only the accumulation of what individuals and organizations put… Continue Reading Digital Governance 2020

There is a digital governance maturity curve that most organizations move through when they launch a digital channel (Web, mobile, or social). The process of maturity begins with the decision to launch a new channel, and it culminates with the organization having fully integrated that channel into the company to the extent that governing dynamics and operational processes are automatic, leaving the organization fully responsive to digital trends. The dynamics of each phase are fairly… Continue Reading Understanding Digital Governance Maturity

Rest assured—every organization has digital governance problems. Just because an organization might look good online doesn’t mean that it is getting a good return on its investment or operating in an effective, low-risk environment. I’ve seen plenty of “lipstick-on-pig” digital environments where a nice-looking website design was only thinly veiling an ineffective digital presence supported by no real digital strategy and an uncoordinated digital team—governance gone wild! I’ve also seen some “looks like it was… Continue Reading Your Digital Governance: How Bad Is It?

Digital governance frameworks would be easy to design if they existed in a vacuum. But they don’t. There are many pre-existing organizational factors in every business that influence which aspects of an organization ought to be accountable and responsible for making decisions about what’s happening online. Sometimes the dynamics of these factors are so hard-wired into an organization’s operational processes that they can be difficult to change. Staff and management feel that these dynamics are… Continue Reading Five Digital Governance Design Factors

I like marketing teams. I work with them about 80% of the time when engaged in a digital governance project. That’s because very often it is the marketing team that is responsible for driving an organization’s online footprint (with some support from IT). Unlike some other parts of the business, marketers are good at messaging. They are good at talking up their own importance in the organization. And, they love to talk about digital disruption… Continue Reading Digital Transformation: More than Marketing Well Online

Digital governance is a framework for establishing accountability, roles, and decision-making authority for an organization’s digital presence—which means its websites, mobile sites, social channels, and any other Internet and Web-enabled products and services. Having a well-designed digital governance framework minimizes the number of tactical debates regarding the nature and management of an organization’s digital presence by making clear who on your digital team has decision-making authority for these areas: Digital strategy: Who determines the direction… Continue Reading What Is Digital Governance?

When working with clients or teaching a master class, I am usually asked about the format that should be used for creating digital policies. Many organizations have an existing and prescribed format for corporate policies, since human resources, accounting or information technology have already introduced non-digital policies into the organization. Before creating a new format for digital policies, consider what is already in place within your organization and repurpose existing artifacts and processes to support… Continue Reading Contents of a Good Digital Policy