Confab 2016: Content Teamwork Workshop

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Content teamwork: Aligning your people and process

Kathy Wagner and Melissa BrekerContent Strategy Inc.

ContentStrategyInc.com #CSITeamwork #ConfabMN @Team_CS_Inc

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We need to align people + process.

The truth is

In order to execute, its about aligning people and process.6

In a study of one hundred top management driven corporate transformation efforts, more than half did not survive the initial phase.Harvard Business Review, Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail by John P. Kotter; Mar/Apr 1995.

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Enterprises fail at execution because they neglect the most powerful drivers of effectiveness:

decision rights & information flow.Harvard Business Review, The Secrets to Successful Strategy Execution by Gary L. Neilson, Karla L. Martin, Elizabeth Powers; June 2008.

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We need to align people and process.

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Melissas BioToday I help change the way people think about content through teaching, mentoring, partnering with others, and running workshops.

Grew up body surfing in AustraliaMoved out of marketing into content strategyFell in love with supporting change@melissabreker on Twitter

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Kathys BioGrew up reading and daydreamingMoved through technical communications & customer experienceHave been doing content strategy my entire life@Kathy_CS_Inc on TwitterToday I help businesses reach more customers, more efficiently, by shining a light in dark corners and cleaning out content cobwebs.

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And what about you?

And what about you?

80% Work in a company15 % Work in an NGO | Government 5% Work as an independent consultant

And what about you?

65% are just getting started in content governance. 15% are already awesome at it and want to swap notes.20% dont know where they fit, but seem pretty worried about content governance.

Small Group Introductions

Personal introOne thing you loveWhats important to you about content governance and why

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Whats up for today?

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OverviewMorning

1. Content governance & maturity

2. People: team structures

3. People: roles & responsibility

Afternoon

4. Content process

5. Managing change

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OverviewMorning

1. Content governance & maturity

2. People: team structures

3. People: roles & responsibility

Afternoon

4. Content process

5. Managing change

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We need you.Be involvedBe respectfulBe responsible

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Content governance & maturity

12016 Content Strategy Inc ContentStrategyInc.com #CSITeamwork #ConfabMN @Team_CS_Inc

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What people want

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What people think

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What people need

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Get a detailed version of this model here: http://www.contentstrategyinc.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Content-Strategy-Inc-Content-Maturity-Model-2014.pdf


How mature are your content practices?5 min: Share

Where are you?Stand at the zone that best represents your organization.

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What are content practices?

Content strategy

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Content governance

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How mature are your content practices?3 min: Share

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This is the piece were talking about today

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Three questions. Three minutes.

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What could your organization do to mature its content practices?

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What could your organization do to move up a level?

What could be the positive business impact of maturing your content practices?

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What are the six content pillars? (Three front stage and three back stage)

Questions?Short stories?

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True story

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People: Team structures


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Organizational content governance models

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There are 4 different models:Informal CentralizedDecentralizedHybrid

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Advantages:

Easy to identify content championsLow cost

Disadvantages:

Too many to list

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Advantages:Harness the efforts of many authorsCosts and resources are spread throughout the organization Reduces content publishing bottleneckEasier to publish and update quickly

Disadvantages:Editorial and quality control checks are difficult to implement Global and strategic coordination is difficult Often, non-writers need to acquire content and CMS skills.

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Advantages:Strategic alignmentGlobal consistencyQuality contentContent reuse and repurposingSimplified project managementSkill buildingAccountabilityDisadvantages:Needs considerable staff and resources Relies on process for cross-functional communicationCan form a bottleneck if not efficient and responsive.

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Centralized and decentralized content models refer to the reporting structure, not physical distribution.

In a centralized model, writers can sit within different product teams or in different locations.

So that a centralizedcontent team

can actually sit within multiple other teams.

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Can be the best (or worst) of bothworlds.

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How do you decide?Business goalsMaturity model goalsOrganizational cultureScalabilityEase of execution (readiness for change).

As content specialists, we often prefer the idea of a centralized model. It allows for maximum control over content strategy, quality, and functionality.

BUT

Its usually hybrid.

Its about finding the right lines to draw between centralized and decentralized.

Lets hear from you.

Whats worked, and what hasnt?

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Content team structure

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Content teams can be effective with different structures:Self-managedCross-functionalMatrix

A SELF-MANAGED team structure is:

CentralizedAble to make decisionsAble to implementResponsible for the outcome

Team members need to be motivated and driven to create positive change.

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Self-managed content teams are good when your primary business purpose is to produce content.

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A CROSS-FUNCTIONAL team structure is:Any governance modelBuilt from different business functionsDesigned to achieve a common task A working (rather than reporting) structure

Team members need to trust each other, work together, and share a common vision.

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Cross-functional teams are good for planning content, developing larger projects, and determining success metrics.

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A MATRIXED team structure:Is centralized or hybridFormalizes cross-functional involvementMeans content team members have two (or more) bosses: a content manager and functional business managers

Effective in complex and interdependent environments.

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A matrixed content team enables content creators to develop deep expertise in specific business areas.

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A matrixed content team:

Factors for team success:Strong leadership and trustEnough resourcesAdequate incentivesTeam compositionConflict managementTeam processes

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Which governance model is your organization currently using? How do you know?

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Which content team structures are present in your organization?

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What changes could be made to improve team impact and efficiency?

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Table discussion:Discuss the various governance models and team structures you all have.How could changing the governance models or team structures, or offering more team support impact things?

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Share

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Lunch

Take a break

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People: Skills, roles, and responsibilities


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Building your content team

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Know your goals, audience, and strategy!

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What we know for sure...

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All teams need a strong leader.

ManagersStrategists

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All teams need skilled content creators.

WritersPhotographersVideographers

All teams need skilled content organizers.

Information architectsTaxonomists

All teams need easy access and interaction with other expertise.

ResearchersAnalystsDesignersSubject matter experts

All teams need someone to keep things on track.

Project managersProducers

This is just as true if you have a team of two, or twenty, or two hundred.

Titles are not roles!In practice, titles are often meaningless or confusing. Ideally, titles should provide information about that persons primary role.

True story

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Exercise: What are all of the different ways in which you impact content?

2 minutes: Silent brainstorming5 minutes: Share with table. As a group, how many different things do you do?

Share

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What happens if roles are not clear?Concern over who makes decisionsOut of balance workloadsNot sure, so take no action attitudeQuestions about who does what

Blaming othersA we-they attitudeA reactive work environmentPoor moraleDont know where to go to get answers.

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True story

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How do you assign roles?

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What does the job require?

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Consider skills, experience, interest.

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Just a few writing-specific skills

Web writingMarketingJournalismTechnical writingCreative writingBlog writingBusiness writingEditing

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Levels of experience.

Junior Intermediate Senior Management Director

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Interest

Passionate about what?

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Decide and communicate roles

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ResponsibleOne or more people need to be responsible.

Things to think about:If one person has many Rs, they may have more work than they can handle. If one deliverable or activity has many Rs, can tasks be more streamlined so team members have more autonomy?

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AccountableIdeally, only one person should be accountable.

Things to think about:If nobody is accountable, then there is a high risk of not meeting project or strategic goals.For complex situations, there may need to be more than one person accountable. This will simply take longer to move through approvals.

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ConsultedSeveral people may be consulted. Ensure two-way communication.

Things to think about:Too many Cs lead to swirl and slow down the process. Too few Cs can result in poor quality through lack of accuracy or strategic alignment.

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InformedSeveral people may be informed. Communication only goes one way.

Things to think about:If there are a lot of Is, find ways to inform people in batches, at logical intervals. Develop a system (preferably automated) to inform people.

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For example:Organizational content RACIChannel-specific content RACIProject-specific content RACI

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Example:Organizational content roles

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Example: Channel-specific content roles

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Example:Complex project content roles

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Example:Simple project content roles

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What do we hear from clients?Nobody wants to give up control.We dont know what anyone else does.Were all executers. There are no leaders.

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Who leads and provides content oversight for different areas in your organization?

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Does everyone know what theyre supposed to do?

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Does everyone have the skills and support to be successful?

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Learning Exercise

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Complete the RACI quiz Think about your work environment.

Share your answers and discuss with a partner.

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In different groups of 3 or 4:

As a group, brainstorm some content project scenarios you could use RACIs for. Choose one. Create a RACI for this project. Refer to the Sample RACI Template handout

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Share

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Questions? Short stories?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/mckaig/7172571482/in/photolist-bVPiBy-BzQjB-4QEtu-dfxMQ8-5P1vod-5ypm2z-6Ki2hr-6Ki2hV-8MWtjT-39qpca-byajPR-7dK8uh-6qPqmn-bAgfLR-6DDiKn-hDQNMY-6odnP4-bufXPE-gAEDBX-bmkskz-b7ZM5z-88wUyR-5MhyF-oAfZp-7jUC8M-8ivokQ-4HAQAY-htzggj-reTreb-9nat4H-fCmoz9-dPXUN-nLpGk6-86WbSs-7tT47z-pASGNo-7m8RQy-3bScpf-8GJA3G-7g51D5-37zxuC-7RFUKQ-5AgCxh-km3NPD-nwa7n-v11Pi-dGZS1o-9bTJVG-nVEdDF-4qxwGN119

Lunch then change tables



Content processes


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Welcome backPersonal introOne thing you learned this morningWhats your favorite kind of cake?

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In nature, we never see anything isolated, but everything in connection with something else.Johann Wolfgang Van Goethe

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How does it all work?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/allancrutchley/3280175474/in/photolist-5ZRKTy-gVRoq-cDzCxU-3jRsGy-3jRRQu-3jRkKj-3jLMc2-3jMmuD-3jMfbz-3jRGWq-3jR7uy-3jRW9s-3jMi24-3jLN4D-3jLR1P-3jMaPK-3jM6KX-3jLPGX-3jRQCo-3jLVqr-3jRpDN-3jLSaD-3jRHWL-3jLYEB-3jLJx2-3jMta8-3jM9nR-3jM2MV-3jLHCr-3jRPz3-3jLzCF-3jR3AY-6DBwFx-cDzDe9-cDzE41-dZUmdc-dZUmcv-dZUm9R-3jMc4x-3jM81T-3jRM5f-3jLW7c-3jRZuS-3jMd4t-3jMyJc-3jMjge-3jLDs2-3jLKS2-3jMqXn-3jMe6x

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What is a business process?

ProcessSub-process 1

triggerresultA process is a collection of interrelated activities, initiated by a triggering event, which achieves a specific, discrete result.Sub-process 2Sub-process 3Sub-process 4~ Alec Sharp, Workflow Modelling, 2008

Table races

TriggerProcessResult

Trigger ProcessResult

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Why formalize and standardize processes?

Align operations with business strategyImprove team and cross-team communicationsIncrease control and consistencyImprove operational efficienciesMake training faster and easier

Basically, so that people know what theyre supposed to do.

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Eg: Strategize & plan content process

This is A process, not THE process.

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Eg: Plan content process

Eg: Design & create content process

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Eg: Maintain content process

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Eg: Evaluate content process

Detailed processes

Lines of visibility: Who does what when they hold the work.

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Start high-level. Provide more detail as needed.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/dd-photography/4013415297/in/photolist-52tEPj-hFTAD8-bWo7J2-8Zw45G-4YUg2G-nSt9s4-cDeWQu-77DNxt-8Z8X93-8DuZ5c-be2Mf-kCaayB-dVvktJ-pT4xKV-dY2ECi-k9xYzL-5UrBxZ-psm8ah-3pibbg-jm2q41-kKvEa3-oJ5zgF-gNZNxy-m1vgZS-6bFVbW-5mWNaR-9XCgCP-7dsij1-e1sXoP-qJoYfj-575GVP-84gv2A-ckiZej-obDnLZ-dH8qYT-7C76s9-pVzYrA-bruqRt-dQTAq-6qPLNK-5dicGv-dqv1Fi-bpaKnU-fkBjVw-4LmzJH-dYBRPb-nns9T3-chw759-cSKKVU-5dbnnW

If theyre solid, move to more detail. 136

Start with common scenarios.

Define alternative or uncommon processes only as needed.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tomitheos/2889775189/in/photolist-PF2rx-axSJZB-nadYck-hwDSZ6-fUJeS3-oRXyjg-awdVdo-hzcYJP-aiDgKN-bzTbd2-bXSyP9-fBiPKH-aA48Qc-5pmRua-mJivnL-9VkNVE-ns4enR-5nbQq4-7BntLY-bfJfBt-kK3wWt-qnLZ5C-ieomG7-4HJq8J-oRqj5F-7ffwrq-9RGt7E-bNTgAz-ANGaA-fA1aB-a1VkMV-quBRV-7yxnqL-o9nJx4-bP71Qg-a5AyDE-5Yu8Fr-n1861T-7wtr4W-66V7oh-G95jr-7QaZC9-dQ5BhK-2d9UXC-fVzQz-9TffDp-51FPoR-8hFKeb-aAzoPi-eipNsJ137

What do we hear from clients?We dont really follow any organized process. (But they actually do!)Our team needs autonomy, so they dont want process.

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What business problems can be solved by better content processes?

Which content processes are most important in your work environment?

Which variations or sub-processes are part of these important processes?

Table-Top Workshop:Designing high-level content processes

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Table-Top Workshop:Choose a work scenarioChoose a content life-cycle stageChoose a facilitator Design a best-practice processRepeat steps 2 - 4

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Share

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True story

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Lunch

Take a break



Managing change


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What is your readiness for change?

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Change is a process, not an event.

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Build a business case

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Identify and neutralize project risks

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Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.

~HENRY FORD

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Find an internal champion

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/477874210436465062/

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How youll recognize one:

Has authority and passion.

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What theyll do:

Get you on the road.Get budget, break down silos, and support progress.

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Start small.

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Pilot projects and bite-sized chunks.

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Small wins.Big voice.

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Know your budget.

Grow your budget.

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Create a roadmap.

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Q1Q2Q3Q4Define & test-drive:New processes & rolesCMS workflowSuccess metrics & toolkitExpand & refineGoal:Select teams & pilot projectsStart authoring in CMSStart measuringRoll out throughout organizationEducate & advocate

Roadmap.

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Take people along for the ride!

Know your resources. Grow your resources.

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Implement strong content practicesDemonstrate positive resultsProvide tools and resourcesBecome expert content advisorsAdvocate and educateNo control or authority? Influence like crazy!

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Prepare for change

http://www.octopus-hr.co.uk/hrmoz/article/the-neuroscience-of-change.aspx#sthash.9luchxSt.dpuf

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pic.twitter.com/yI22oiF6Si

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Use stories to inspire, educate, and persuade

Harvard Business Review, Structure Your Presentation like a Story by Nancy Duarte; October 2012

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Tips for communicating changeCommunicate in personTalk about emotionsBe as honest as you canTalk in plain languageTalk from the heartUnderstand their perspectiveBe prepared for frustration

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What do we hear from clients?People dont want to give up control.Its hard to make time for change.Weve tried before, but we slip back to our old ways.

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Who will be your content champion?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jimcumming/11456450043/in/photolist-6r2bE4-nKXkBP-d83iiw-879GtJ-7Em5VF-qx2YSN-7GRKra-ap13QF-8jcPUg-isnisK-9A4TFK-e8DFji-jPyJeV-93ssWk-kjZdtP-boiw1L-bd7RUi-bd7QhB-7xjm74-akBDUk-9bMYRS-oA4fyK-5FJSZt-iVkjHq-dkuPrQ-ftRoaj-itEp1E-jJjDhB-9YupRg-efWtEH-6MHdB-eg3cqC-b3vaRP-9sUBzP-jWH75k-9YupCZ-b3vc92-9YxjQs-boxBbg-prjhW9-p6iL3w-p5d5EH-b3vbNv-dFvnAV-dSmVtP-6ZZfao-b2UDBc-rB8wTe-dFAJs3-bopAVS172

What budget and resources do you have to work with?

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How can you get people excited?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/40332892@N06/5227335292/in/photolist-8XVsEy-btE2So-83Pjce-c6eBh1-8NE9Sb-mr9mYT-6pCMmY-jDPaBR-35ybCQ-ew1Mq4-5LAhKe-9dKtbW-z56H-prCTuj-e4dwd9-4hHYcP-amu4wx-24zHoF-hLchQd-7RuhEn-6dipyM-34fku1-pm1anY-jwAHPH-aAbz1e-92BzqP-jf4yTh-k2XuM-k3Twnb-rNvkJM-6xjaPQ-6eUdSb-9C3EZB-a1RZ1w-pCFqg8-hNNaZu-rgzkpN-67cwNC-5v6x1V-8zqTa4-aTrcgt-9SQeqH-jP8kcH-66jcjt-qH2B7Z-8sbcP2-7Xnp9m-o3R3K8-Dqfxr-87ewos174

Learning Exercise

https://www.flickr.com/photos/ucumari/15433978031/in/photolist-8ZN65i-qLYvU9-eVsX4n-d9yT3W-NBmf5-4zcTUV-rPgWVk-xvKf6-6gYn1H-ed3zXg-mamcnZ-cwFoGf-4GgwHx-pvRaXv-cTEo85-8z31fd-jJNW13-7xTxtd-Afchp-5Zxdai-4DoJqo-HYvne-98THYY-fp9CJi-6UuKBg-egL3Ti-btKdEx-3CsLFx-4s3awq-cPzC8s-m5zGrA-ct8RFo-8bwR4X-da81Tx-95sxFD-8Lbf2c-6z5EAo-mLGYic-a6WqhR-mDby4-8UhZTs-cATV2E-beh61Z-aodye6-dCeYBg-8YWZH8-mTxRj7-fvweJJ-oaRaPt-6Y9rqS175

Individual exercise Determine your organizations readiness for change by completing the following questions

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Planning and preparationTheres planning with clear goals and metrics. Appropriate team training is provided at all levels. Teams have sufficient tools and techniques skills. People-building is emphasized.

Yes/NoYes/NoYes/NoYes/No

Adapted from 40 Tools for Cross Functional Teams by Walter J. Michalski;1998.

Roles and practicesExisting policies and procedures are clear for the team. Members roles and responsibilities have proper definition. Team members are not dominating or overbearing. There is a clearly defined reward system.



Vision, goals, and team objectivesGoals or expectations are realistic. There are clearly defined goals and objectives. Views, interests, and goals are similar. Missions, goals, and tasks are clear and shared by the team.



SupportManagement is active and visibly supportive. There is trust within the team. The team has timely support or resources.Team members are considered productive.The team is focused on one problem at a time.The team is the right size with minimal turnover.

Yes/NoYes/NoYes/NoYes/NoYes/NoYes/No


Share

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What are you going to do?Next weekNext monthIn the next 3 months

Think about:What is your goal or desired outcome?What challenges do you expect? How can you overcome the challenges? What can you control?What can you influence?How can you influence?

Post-workshop roadmap

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The most difficult thing is the decision to act. The rest is merely tenacity.

~ AMELIA EARHART

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Final activity

Take a sheet of paperWrite your name on the paper (for a special draw!)Write down your top 3 insightsStand up

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ShareThe insights you put into the circleThe insights you took from the circleOne thing youre committed to doing next week

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Things to do next week

Review these slides and your notes.Think about your commitment for next week. Take action! Send us a tweet to let us know what you did: @Team_CS_Inc #CSITeamwork

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On our blog: contentstrategyinc.com/articles/

Understanding the content maturity model How to use a RACI chart to define content rolesContent RACI templatesBest practices for archiving and deleting content

Other resources

Lets stay in touch!

Kathy Wagner and Melissa BrekerContentStrategyInc.com

@[email protected]/content-teamwork/

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Leadership & Management

Confab 2016: Content Teamwork Workshop