Understanding the Impact
of Change
Becoming a Master of your Craft
Again (and Again)

About Strategy A
Multi-disciplinary consulting group
Content Analysis, CM Strategies, Usability
Content Development & Migration strategies
Change and Performance Management
Project Management
Clients in the $15 - $250M revenue range

Why do companies want a wCMS?
Multiple sites – corporate, customer,
intranet
Inconsistent and/or outdated content
Bottlenecks getting content published
Localization and translation needs
eCommerce and personalization
Convergence and integration, etc …

Also:
Create dialog with customer
Measure success of marketing campaigns
Develop brand message
Sell more product …
…
Drive and accelerate business returns!

So why does IT call the shots?
Common misconceptions:
It’s a technology implementation
It’s an infrastructure project
It’s a piece of software …

The reality:
CM is a process – not a product
No silver bullet
New System + Old Processes = Failure
Upgrade of bad system = Failure

Why do wCMS projects fail?
Deciding on price
Buying tool first
Distracted by shiny
feature list
Not understanding
Not getting help
strategic decisions

Ownership of CMS matters:
Since CMS is a Strategic Business Initiative:
Marketing MUST take a lead role with
Content analysis
Site (information) architecture
Requirements (functionality)
Governance (who does what, when)
IT helps with technology analysis

B I G Changes
Marketing owns the project (not IT)
New rules for authoring/publishing
content
No more “blame game”
Need for cross-functional collaboration
Need for information-sharing

What’s the Big Deal?
New systems = new processes
New processes = new work habits
New governance = new power structure
Change Management is:
Getting from
“here” to
“there”

When you don’t get it right:
Broken processes
Dysfunctional behavior; territorialism
Wait-and-See attitude
Passive resistance; apathy
Cling to inefficient work methods
Jealously guard expertise; no sharing
Politicized environment
run hide fight

Impact on Marketing people
Need to:
Get their act together (have a plan!)
Stiffen their spines (stick to the plan!)
Work with – not for – Sales, IT, Engineering …
Learn new tricks using old concepts and
nifty new technology in a new context
(blogs etc.: Web 2.0 “stuff”)

Preparing for B I G Changes
Secure C-level sponsorship
Get knowledgeable
Bring independent experts in
Map the current governance model, and:
Fix it before CMS roll-out

Getting “there”
Communicate, communicate,
communicate … a 2-way street!
Provide forum for sharing experiences
Involve users in defining new roles

Transitional emotions
Discomfort (mild to extreme)
Loss of identity
Loss of status / power
Acknowledge, discuss, resolve
Use peer-mentoring
Focus on positive outcome

D-I-Y Brain Surgery? Uh, no…
Engage a change management specialist
(internal or external)
Secure buy-in from all depts involved
Make the new process easier than the old
Train everyone early – and evangelize

Pulling everyone through
Employee’s Choice:
be part of the solution, or
be part of the problem
Demonstrate individual benefits
Don’t have a hidden (down-sizing) agenda

The good news:
Humans are actually very adaptive
It’s all about trust – in the system and in
each other
Model desired behavior – do as I do – and
most will follow
Marketing ‘science’ is alive and well, and
more important than ever!

Questions?
info@StrategyA.ca
+1-604-696-1993