We all face challenges (both planned an unplanned) on our projects. In a recent post, I discussed 5 Things Project Managers Can Learn From Their First WCM Project. This post is the first in a 5-part series where we will discuss those in more detail.
The first one is working with Creative Types.
On most Web Content Management (WCM) projects, there is no shortage of “creative types”. These are the people responsible for the digital assets, style sheets, and creative framework for the organization. Companies serious about implementing WCM are often serious about their brand identity, so it follows that – as the Project Manager – you will be responsible for working with the creative people, creative processes, and the tools used by the creative department.
Your project will face many decisions along the way. If you don’t keep the “creative types” engaged throughout the project, you can expect to run into roadblocks, re-work, and regret.
Let’s talk about ways to keep your WCM project from blowing up… Here are some examples of situations and decisions which you may encounter with your creative team, and some potential tactics to keep your team engaged.
- Requirements can be boring. Granted, project managers and business analysts can face this challenge with just about all audiences. Not all stakeholders will enjoy the process of cranking out pages of well-written requirements, or grooming a growing backlog of stories which need more details.
Who doesn’t love pouring over
89 pages of requirements documents?
The risk: If the creative team does not fully engage, there will likely be requirements which are missed and do not become obvious until final creative assets are produced and handed off later in the project. You’ll hear someone say, “Wait a minute – that set of images is generated dynamically? We thought it would be authored!”
The solution: Use an approach which is easy for the creative team to contribute requirements. Instead of printing out or projecting 89 pages of requirements for how the Home Page will work, run a series of smartly facilitated sessions. Ask very detailed questions about what the Author and the end-user will see and do. This way, your team doesn’t get mired in beautifying requirements documents, but remains focused on the things they care about the most (which, incidentally, should be the features which matter most to your authors and the customers).
- Workflow seems too abstract. With many WCM solutions, workflow design can range from simple, straightforward processes, to workflows with built-in contingencies, exceptions, concurrent and/or nested steps, all of which can vary by user groups. Workflow design options and decisions can be difficult to make up front, at the “concept” stage in a project.
The risk: No matter if the creative department manages the creative process with hard copy assets and approval meetings with the creative director, or if it’s a fully digital process, the workflow ultimately designed for your WCM implementation must balance several factors. It’s critical for the new workflow to meet any stated productivity or speed-to-publication goals, which are often part of the business case for WCM solutions. Also, make sure you manage to an appropriate (that is, feasible and realistic) amount of change from the current process.
The solution: This is a great topic for potential brainstorming sessions with your team. Here’s a list of potential ideas to get you started, however… A) Complete a SWOT analysis on the current creative process; use it for guiding principles for the new WCM workflow. B) Once you settle on a potential process, run a simulation on a simple process (like launching a new product or service promotion), and a more complex process (like re-branding the home page). C) If the creative department is quite large, consider setting up a team of beta testers or early adopters. You will need some “change agents” when you go live, and this is a great way to get buy-in earlier in the project.
- Architecture seems irrelevant. It’s not immediately apparent why someone in creative would care about how many environments exist, how content between environments will be maintained/managed, and how production artists will load assets into the WCM. However, architecture decisions made throughout the project may dramatically affect all of these areas.
The risk: Lack of non-functional requirements (such as storage limits, online processes) may lead to cumbersome business processes and user disappointment.
The solution: Take care to solicit non-functional requirements. For example, how easy is it to correct errors? How will the system support the care and feeding of the asset collection – for example, expired assets? How is the creative team’s use of the WCM solution expected to grow or change over time?
The next post will discuss the potential issues you may face regarding “Mobile First” and responsive design on your WCM project.
In the meantime, I hope you will add your thoughts on how to best engage the creative team on a WCM solution. What topics would you add to the ones above? If you have experience working on the creative side, how well did your project manager keep you engaged, or what would you have done differently?
