Your article inspired me to take action. After reading it, I put together a proposal detailing why and how my organization should be governing our web content better than we are now. Long story short, I’m now the point person for the project in my organization. Sure, it’s more work on top of my already full plate, but in the end, if it brings value to my organization and makes our web content better for our users, it’s worth it. Less complaining, more doing. Thanks for the inspiration.
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Björn
I have long thought that we as professional web designers need to work together with other professions to achieve real change in how companies create and maintain their digital services and content.
Khoi Vinh’s article, http://www.subtraction.com/2011/07/20/the-end-of-client-services – about digital products and how companies cannot rely on client services to create them, describes a way to speed up the very necessary change within companies. As does Cennydd Bowles, suggesting that:
“… if we want to rise to positions of senior influence, we should be open to alternative routes — product management, marketing, even technology — in which we can use design as a lens to innovate, and spread the infectious message of user-centricity from department to department.” (http://www.cennydd.co.uk/2011/fall-and-rise-of-ux/)
As much as I agree that change has to be made and that we very possibly are the right people to do it, I’m not sure that we, as consultants, can hope to gain enough influence to actually persuade those-that-must-be-obeyed to push said change through.
I’m late to this article, but it’s among the most validating reads I’ve had since I took my first steps in HTML 3.2 back in 1999. I appreciate the attention to clear terminology, and the various qualifications that other commenters have had about that terminology (crucial, in my opinion). You’ve really laid out this cluster of ideas in pieces and chunks that are accessible – they may form the backbone of my own work manifesto from this point forward. Bravo, and thank you.
Jonathan, this indeed is a great read. To try and give people and organizations some kind of “measure” how they are doing in terms of web governance, I am currently working (really work in progress) on a “maturity matrix”. Couldn’t find one out there. Mine is based on experience with a number of organizations, but not (yet) validated to be called scientific. It is focused on various aspects of organizational development, just thought it may be a good thing for others to comment on and perhaps contribute to further development. It can be found here:
http://www.ophileon.com/en/WebsiteGovernanceMaturityMatrix.pdf
As others have already said, great article Jonathan. Couldn’t agree with your messages more, except on one point (although it could be another of those pesky terminology things).
I’m wondering why we would limit this governance focus to web? From my perspective, what’s lacking is governance across all customer/consumer/citizen touch-points. From the website to the mobile app to the call centre to the written documentation. All of these contact points suffer from lack of governance as you describe it, and increasingly I don’t think we can limit our focus to just the web.
Perhaps what I’m suggesting is that we absolutely need to push organisations towards web governance, but also towards governance for customer contact more broadly. What do you think?
18 Reader Comments
Back to the ArticleLaurna411
Jonathan,
Your article inspired me to take action. After reading it, I put together a proposal detailing why and how my organization should be governing our web content better than we are now. Long story short, I’m now the point person for the project in my organization. Sure, it’s more work on top of my already full plate, but in the end, if it brings value to my organization and makes our web content better for our users, it’s worth it. Less complaining, more doing. Thanks for the inspiration.
Best Regards,
Lauren L.
Jonathan Kahn
Hi Laura,
That’s fantastic! Nice work, and thank you for sharing.
Jonathan
Mtoag
what a great and thoughtful location I say Thanks for all about this post detail.
Björn
I have long thought that we as professional web designers need to work together with other professions to achieve real change in how companies create and maintain their digital services and content.
Khoi Vinh’s article, http://www.subtraction.com/2011/07/20/the-end-of-client-services – about digital products and how companies cannot rely on client services to create them, describes a way to speed up the very necessary change within companies. As does Cennydd Bowles, suggesting that:
“… if we want to rise to positions of senior influence, we should be open to alternative routes — product management, marketing, even technology — in which we can use design as a lens to innovate, and spread the infectious message of user-centricity from department to department.” (http://www.cennydd.co.uk/2011/fall-and-rise-of-ux/)
As much as I agree that change has to be made and that we very possibly are the right people to do it, I’m not sure that we, as consultants, can hope to gain enough influence to actually persuade those-that-must-be-obeyed to push said change through.
Chris Yakimov
I’m late to this article, but it’s among the most validating reads I’ve had since I took my first steps in HTML 3.2 back in 1999. I appreciate the attention to clear terminology, and the various qualifications that other commenters have had about that terminology (crucial, in my opinion). You’ve really laid out this cluster of ideas in pieces and chunks that are accessible – they may form the backbone of my own work manifesto from this point forward. Bravo, and thank you.
Jonathan Kahn
Chris,
Thanks for sharing, and you’re welcome!
Zeppenfeldt
Jonathan, this indeed is a great read. To try and give people and organizations some kind of “measure” how they are doing in terms of web governance, I am currently working (really work in progress) on a “maturity matrix”. Couldn’t find one out there. Mine is based on experience with a number of organizations, but not (yet) validated to be called scientific. It is focused on various aspects of organizational development, just thought it may be a good thing for others to comment on and perhaps contribute to further development. It can be found here:
http://www.ophileon.com/en/WebsiteGovernanceMaturityMatrix.pdf
Jessica Enders
As others have already said, great article Jonathan. Couldn’t agree with your messages more, except on one point (although it could be another of those pesky terminology things).
I’m wondering why we would limit this governance focus to web? From my perspective, what’s lacking is governance across all customer/consumer/citizen touch-points. From the website to the mobile app to the call centre to the written documentation. All of these contact points suffer from lack of governance as you describe it, and increasingly I don’t think we can limit our focus to just the web.
Perhaps what I’m suggesting is that we absolutely need to push organisations towards web governance, but also towards governance for customer contact more broadly. What do you think?
Cheers
Jessica