From liquid digital experiences to AI-powered knowledge: DWG’s 2026 Research Programme sets the agenda for the new era
In 2026, DWG’s research programme is all about helping members navigate the next wave of digital workplace transformation. This year, we’re diving deep into the realities of AI, adaptive experiences, and the skills and measures that matter most. Our new line-up of research topics is shaped by what members are telling us is urgent, what’s emerging in practice, and where we see the biggest opportunities for impact.
As ever, our aim is to deliver practical, actionable guidance – toolkits, frameworks, case studies and stories that members can use straight away, whether they’re leading a digital workplace team, shaping strategy, or rolling up their sleeves to make change happen. You can see all the details in the new 2026 fact sheet for the programme.
DWG’s CEO, Nancy Goebel, says: “Our 2026 programme reflects a stepchange in how digital workplaces are being led and built. From liquid, adaptive experiences to human–AI teaming, and from reimagined knowledge foundations to the skills and metrics that matter, this year’s research provides the clarity leaders need to connect ambition with action. As always, it is shaped by our members, grounded in evidence, and designed to help organizations navigate the AI era with confidence and purpose.”
Here’s what’s coming up in 2026:
The liquid digital workplace: Creating experiences that flow around people
This guidebook shows how organizations can move beyond integrated systems to create adaptive, flowing digital experiences shaped around people’s needs. It maps the journey from integrated to adaptive, orchestrated and intelligence-driven employee experience, offering principles and practical steps – including how the intranet fits into these fluid, human-centric experiences.
Human-AI teaming and governance: Patterns, practices and guardrails for an AI-enabled workplace
Human-AI teaming is becoming central to digital work as organizations adopt AI agents at scale. This report explores emerging patterns of collaboration, the rise of enterprise agents, and the governance, lifecycle and skills needed to manage agent sprawl safely while enabling innovation, productivity and responsible automation.
Digital IQ in action: A practical blueprint for building skills and confidence for the AI era
The Digital IQ report shows how to turn digital, data and AI literacy models into practical, organization-specific capability frameworks. Through a deep, real-world case study, it demonstrates how to build a tailored digital skills model, competency catalogue, role-competency matrix, task-competency maps and robust assessment tools rooted in your digital workplace environment.
Rethinking knowledge management: Evolving content and search for AI-enabled work
This briefing paper explores how knowledge management must evolve for AI-enabled work, shifting from traditional content-and-search models toward dynamic knowledge flow. It offers practical steps to prepare content and intranet architectures for AI, improve search and findability, strengthen governance, and ensure knowledge is accurate, trustworthy and ready for AI-driven retrieval.
Data-driven digital workplace leadership: Metrics that matter in 2026 and beyond
How can digital workplace leaders use data, insight and storytelling to steer strategy and demonstrate impact in 2026? This briefing paper introduces next-generation KPIs for AI-enabled work, offers guidance on building leader-ready scorecards, and provides practical templates – including a starter DW ‘Stats Book’ – to support insight-led decision making.
Real-world AI: A field guide to AI use cases that deliver value now
This briefing paper cuts through the hype to highlight real-world AI use cases delivering value in organizations today. With practical examples across tools and platforms, it shows where AI genuinely helps – from summarization and decision support to workflow automation – and offers simple criteria to assess maturity, risk and readiness.
Download the 2026 DWG Research Fact Sheet to learn more about our research programme and the new topics on the roster for the year ahead.
DWG’s Director of Research, Elizabeth Marsh, commented: “This year we’ve crafted a programme that gives members both the big-picture frameworks and the practical steps they can use straight away. Our six reports work together to show what adaptive, AI-enabled digital work really looks like – from orchestrated experiences and governed human–AI teaming, to modern knowledge foundations, Digital IQ in practice, real-world AI use cases and the metrics that matter. Every report is built to be useful, actionable and grounded in the realities of member organizations.”
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Categorised in: Research reports
