DWG’s 2015 research programme will balance intranet and digital workplace topics

January 27, 2015 by

This post details the topics for DWG’s 2015 research programme for members, providing a balance of intranet good practice guidance and digital workplace thought leadership.

Digital Workplace Group - expert researchThe Digital Workplace Group is delighted to announce the topics for its upcoming member-only research programme for 2015.

This will be the tenth year that DWG’s expert research programme has been trusted by DWG members to deliver focused insights into intranet good practice. In the past three years the programme has also been providing essential guidance on the digital workplace, a rapidly evolving landscape involving a steep learning curve for many organizations­.

The 2015 programme continues the tradition of providing focused advice for intranet teams, but also sees a more significant proportion of digital workplace themes. This is in direct response to the needs of DWG members who vote each year on the research topics they would like to see covered.

Overall, six topics will be covered:

DWG intranet benchmarking insights

DWG led the way in intranet benchmarking over a decade ago, and has amassed an incredible collection of data. This research will identify the key trends, themes and correlations across years of DWG’s intranet benchmarking evaluations, delivering data-driven insights into intranet management practice and the state of intranets as a whole.

Intranet template toolkit

Drawing on the insights of DWG research and consulting, as well as the DWG team’s experience of leading intranets for major organizations around the world, this research will create a set of core templates for common practices involved in managing the intranet. The toolkit will provide outline templates that members can adapt and reuse, such as: content strategy, governance framework and search strategy.

Defining the digital workplace roadmap

Continuing DWG’s series of research reports into the still emerging digital workplace, this research will look at the key components of a successful digital workplace roadmap. This was identified among the top priorities for members in DWG’s annual member survey, yet few have a formal strategy in place. This practice-driven research will provide guidance on how to formulate a roadmap towards an integrated employee experience across digital tools and channels.

Approaches to mobile intranets

Mobility continues to be a current trending topic for intranet and digital workplace teams. This very practical research report will look at the approaches, considerations and choices teams face as they mobilize the enterprise. Mobile intranet or app store? Designing and writing for smaller screens? This research will detail the options and provide guidance.

The new role of internal communications

As work increasingly happens in more fluid ways across both physical and digital workplaces, the role of communicators within organizations is changing and shifting. Employees are also consuming and creating content in different ways. This report will explore what these changes mean for communicators and what they need to do to adapt their roles and practices to remain relevant and deliver added impact.

Governance across the digital workplace

The digital workplace is an inherently complex collection of different tools and devices. Digital teams are grappling with defining and implementing governance across this landscape, leading to issues such as content quality, branding, risk management and the missing of opportunities. This research will provide guidance and examples on how to define and maintain an appropriate governance model across the digital workplace, aligning the multiple stakeholders involved.

Reflecting on this year’s research programme, Elizabeth Marsh, DWG Director of Research and co-author of the book The Digital Renaissance: Delivering digital workplaces fit for the future says:

“It’s always an exciting moment when I announce DWG’s annual research programme. Our members tell us that DWG research is a trusted source that helps them drive their intranet and digital workplace agenda, and with 60+ reports in the library that means guidance and thought leadership across a whole range of topics.

Continued Marsh, “I’m looking forward to continuing to build our digital workplace and thought leadership series while also retaining a strong focus on good practice for intranets and advice that helps practitioners on a day-to-day basis.”

Full DWG research reports are available to DWG members only, but executive summaries can be downloaded for free by visitors to the DWG website.

For more information about DWG’s 2015 research programme please contact Elizabeth Marsh.

Categorised in: Research reports

Steve Bynghall

Steve Bynghall is a freelance consultant, researcher and writer specializing in the digital workplace, intranets, knowledge management, collaboration and other digital themes. He is DWG’s Research and Knowledge Lead, a benchmark evaluator and research analyst for DWG.

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