This document discusses the obstacles and strategies in the digital workplace journey, derived from workshops in Copenhagen and Paris. Key approaches include emphasizing tangible ROI through success stories, fostering collaboration among diverse locations, and designing a user-centered digital workplace. The report highlights the importance of human factors over tools and advocates for clear sponsorship and community involvement in decision-making.

1. 1
Working out loud:
Obstacles on the “digital workplace journey” and
approaches for overcoming them.
This document is compiled from 2 workshops and will be filled out soon from more
workshops. We are “working out loud” on a global scale: Copenhagen, Paris (and
soon Berlin.)
Process guided by Jane McConnell @netjmc

2. 2
Obstacles on the “digital workplace journey” and
approaches for overcoming them.
Membership-based work group:
intranet/digital workplace practitioners
Paris, Mars 2014
(www.intranetwork.fr)
Workshop in Copenhagen at
IntrateamEvent, February 2014
www.intrateam.com, annual conference
From workshops

3. 3
• Make ROI tangible through success stories, interviews, benchmarks
• « Identify exisiting projects that are part of the digital
workplace even if that word is not used. Take advantage of
these other initiatives.
• “Do not fall into the ROI game.
• Focus on examples, external or internal, that illustrate
business value.”
• « High level champion to spread the DW throughout the group »
• “You often have to do a sales pitch to individual senior
managers. Find one person who ‘gets it’ who can then sell it
across the Board level through peer pressure. For this to
work, you need to have a toolkit to give to the senior
manager to use in their discussions with their peers.”
Top management wants to see ROI
From workshops

4. 4
• Global versus local conflicts
– “Accept the situation: this ‘conflict’ is normal and common in
most organizations. Understand that there are many different
ways of doing things, and be flexible.
Build on your current situation, do not try to “destroy” it . Find out
what can bring your different locations/offices together. Meet
people in person, and get involved with them. Focus on this
common ground, even if it is not ideal.”
• Create a « human infrastructure », a ‘digital workplace’ community
where members will participate in decision-making
• « Define 1 sponsor + 1 ambassador per country + facilitators/
leaders for communities »
Balance between common and specific
From workshops

5. 5
• Prioritize (content, processes)
– Build "persona" based on "how do you work" and not "what
do you need from the digital workplace”. See what the
persona need in common.
• Be alert to process dysfunctions.
• Use them as opportunities to rethink how people work.
• Start simple. Be concrete.
– “It is hard to get the organization to understand and focus
on the “digital workplace” so start instead with something
very concrete: create incentives for people to complete
their profiles. See if you can use technology to retrieve
profile information from other sources (LinkedIn?).”
Adoption
From workshops

6. ü Too much focus on the tool, not enough on people
and change
ü Hesitation to rethink processes and ways of working
ü Management needs proof of quantifiable ROI
ü Decisions based on consensus, slow and long
ü Stakeholder politics, power struggles impact
decision-making
Toughest Challenges (from 314 organizations that participated
in the digital workplace survey at the end of 2013)
Manageable, requires
special effort
Serious challenge,
holds us back
Approximately 50 % of the Majority Approximately 50 % of Early Adopters
From survey