Online Authority Blog

Digital Maturity: the Human Resources Dimension

by Kelly Kubrick on November 20, 2012

Originally published on the Digital Strategy Conference blog; republished with permission from dStrategy Media.

Introduced in the dStrategy Digital Maturity Model™, the first dimension of digital maturity is Human Resources.

In the model, a business planning tool to help organizations improve their digital processes against an established standard, we proposed six process areas – “The Six Dimensions of Digital Maturity™” – each of which is crucial for organizations to address in order to achieve success in digital.

Human Resources icon from the dStrategy Digital Maturity ModelThe first is your people – the human resources – working on your organization’s digital initiatives. Think about your organization’s approach to them:

Who works on digital initiatives?

Think of three different groups of people:

  1. People currently working with digital technology and processes: publishing, sales / ecommerce, marketing / communications, or collecting / analyzing data;
  2. Senior management / C-suite looking at threats and opportunities resulting from digital, and the impact of digital on your organization’s business model; and
  3. People who are not using digital technologies, processes or media, but who could be, ideally finding increased efficiencies.

Who are those individuals in your organization? How many are there in each group?

Where do those people “live” in your organization?

  • Who are they and what level are they at?
  • Is digital their primary responsibility or is it an ‘off the corner of their desk’ prioritization?
  • Do they work alone or as part of a larger team?

What kind of organizational support is provided to them?

  • Do they report to management who have digital training and or expertise?
  • If part of a team, is the team predominantly working on digital or non-digital initiatives?
  • What kind of training – in digital – is provided to your people?

Answering these questions is the first step in understanding whether your organization is in the best position to resource, and ultimately implement your digital initiatives. What do you think? Have you got the right people involved to ensure your organization’s digital success?

Next: Technology Resources

Next, let’s take a look at the second dimension, your organization’s technology resources.

Participate in the dStrategy Digital Maturity Benchmark Survey

For specific questions that measure the human resources dimension of digital maturity, take the dStrategy Digital Maturity Benchmark Survey. We will share our collective results at the next Digital Strategy Conference.

Learn how to measure your organization’s digital maturity

Or, to measure your organization’s digital maturity across all six dimensions, register for our upcoming Mapping Digital Maturity Workshop, a practical, hands-on learning session to help your organization create a road map for digital success.

Kelly Kubrick

Digital Analyst and President of Online Authority; COO of MyLiberty.Life; co-author Six Dimentions of Digital Maturity Model; co-founder Digital Strategy Conference; co-owner 3rd generation family business. Downhill Skier. Foodie. Fan of all things digital.

Kelly KubrickDigital Maturity: the Human Resources Dimension

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