Some key points of interest that I gleaned from Charity Comms” Digital transformation: How to get it right in your organisation”
The division of work between digital and IT is often unclear
In most organisations, the division of responsibility between IT and digital is:
– IT support internal infrastructure.
– Digital support externally-facing initiatives. eg social media, web and CMS, SEO and PPC, online giving.
But often the scope of digital has not been clearly defined.
As digital has grown beyond marketing and communications and started to manage emerging projects (eg hosting, mobile, other digital services (eg Elefriends), database systems, and (for some) service transformation and data-driven initiatives), this can cause confusion of roles.
Digital teams should remember that IT teams are useful to them
IT teams often hold useful resources – eg developers and expertise with procurement (and processes? – eg agile).
How to make the case for digital in your organisation: think operationally
You need to make the case for change, and you need to explain what digital can do for the organisation.
Take up the discussion at senior level.
Focus on user needs.
(Don’t focus on faults with underlying legacy systems or structures, and don’t just take up the discussion with IT)
If a lack of formal structure or governance is an obstacle to change, set up that structure.
Digital is often thought of as just concerned with fundraising and campaigns. But by thinking operationally you can go beyond income generation and move into efficiency gains and potentially cost savings. eg use of data can refine service delivery; digital can join up disconnected or outdated processes and services.
So identify what issues are stopping your organisation from operating effectively, and identify where digital can play a role in joining up processes and reducing reliance on manual activities.
Look beyond your organisation for inspiration, and articulate your results in the operational language of the rest of the organisation. Think about proving your claims, and about how you will provide evidence of success.