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Applying a Document Strategy Model
Five elements to guide you
By Kevin Craine, MBA, from the book
Designing a Document Strategy
Once
you decide to implement a document strategy, it is easy to become paralyzed by
the complexity of the decision. The evolving role of documents, the
complications of technology, and the politics of corporate culture and change
all conspire to make your task seem overwhelming. The vista of your document
strategy can seem boundless. Navigating with a balance of strategic vision and
tactical common sense is not easy without a clear map to provide direction. This
can result in Blank Page Syndrome – a crippling affliction for a strategy
architect – where the blank page looms gravely, ideas retreat to the farthest
corner of inspiration and the expectations of management become seemingly
unobtainable.
Faced
with the enormity of designing a document strategy, it is tempting to look to
hardware, software or the Internet for a shrink-wrapped solution. This approach
is bound to fall short, however. Technology is only part of the equation and its
purchase and deployment must be guided with an understanding of the role
documents play in your organization and the needs of the people who use them.
Even if
you recognize the importance of a document strategy, the question remains: How
do I go about developing one? The answer to this question is not universal
because different organizations will require different document strategies. What
is needed most is a process to guide the development of your strategy so that it
is meaningful, practical and ensures worthwhile and lasting results.
The
Document Strategy Model
With
these basic characteristics in mind, consider the Document Strategy Model as one
approach to the design of a document strategy. This model is a useful guide and
has five elements as a framework.
The
Document Strategy Model
The DS
Model is not intended to be linear. The overlapping circles of the model
demonstrate that the steps will often overlap. You might find that you don’t
need to follow every step in detail or there are times when you must retrace
your steps back to square one. The framework can and should be adapted to suit
your particular situation, organization or requirement. The DS Model helps to
provide focus, avoid pitfalls and save valuable time and energy.
Baseline Assessment
The
process starts with a Baseline Assessment that asks: Where are you, and where do
you need to go? The assessment helps you “get located” by establishing a
baseline about the purpose and direction of your organization, the needs,
pressures and constraints it must satisfy and manage, and the hard numbers that
measure its success. You will ask questions like:
-
What
needs must be satisfied? What pressures and constraints must be managed?
-
What
are the most important measures of your performance?
-
What
are your most important objectives?
-
What
are the initiatives underway to achieve those goals?
-
What is
your core business – your reason for being?
-
How
does your organization envision success?
Although these questions may seem simple, the answers are not always obvious. If
you have any doubt, try the following experiment with the next five co-workers
you meet. Ask each person to give a one-sentence answer to each of the questions
above. Once you have gathered all their answers you will likely find significant
disagreement in the responses.
A
Baseline Assessment also explores the most pressing problems that challenge your
company and the most advantageous opportunities for improvement.
Documents, Technology and People
One way
to keep your document strategy manageable is to view it through three basic
frames of reference: documents, technology and people. At the most fundamental
level, this is what a document strategy is all about. Documents are the subject
of your strategy, technology is how you produce them, and people are why they
exist.
-
Which
documents are most vital to the success of your organization?
-
What
technology is used to create them?
-
Who are
the people who use and care about these documents?
You
will chart a meaningful course for your strategy by compiling a list of target
documents, assessing how those documents are produced, and understanding the
needs of the people who use and care about them.
Problems and Solutions
In
order to be successful, your document strategy must provide solutions to the
problems in your current processes. It is impossible to determine appropriate
solutions until you understand and define the problems that exist. You will do
this by comparing how things are with the way they should be. You will examine
how your current processes perform and determine whether or not they perform in
ways that meet the needs of your organization. Once you have defined the
problems that exist and determined their root cause(s), you will identify and
select the best solutions to solve those problems and improve your processes.
-
How
does your document process really perform?
-
How
should the process perform in order to meet your needs and requirements?
-
What
problems prevent your document process from performing adequately, and why do
they exist?
-
How
will you solve the problems you discover and make improvements to your process?
-
What is
the best solution among the many that may be available?
Selling
Your Strategy and Managing Change
Next,
the DS Model explores the critical need to sell your strategy and manage change.
Your efforts are not likely to be successful if you do not enlist the support of
decision-makers and co-workers. Selling your strategy requires a solid business
case as well as the ability to “speak the language” of the people you aim to
convince. You will do this by constructing a financial analysis and a formal
proposal for your ideas and solutions. You will also examine ways to enlist the
support of co-workers and decision-makers.
Change
and corporate culture significantly influence your document strategy. To better
manage change you will explore the roles people play in a successful change
initiative. You will also consider the natural and emotional reactions that
people have during times of change. In addition, you will examine the cultural
characteristics of your organization and how they will influence your efforts.
-
How can
you “sell” your document strategy to those who must approve and sponsor it?
-
How
will you get the support of your co-workers?
-
How
will people react to change?
-
What is
the prevailing culture of your organization?
-
How
will certain cultural characteristics influence the success of your strategy?
Project
Planning and Implementation
Project
planning and implementation is where all of your assessment, analysis and
planning must come together. You must develop a project plan that will be
clearly understood by everyone involved and guide your efforts to a successful
implementation. You must challenge your assumptions, test your solutions and
demonstrate your success. Some of the questions you will answer are:
-
How
will you implement your strategy? Who must do what … how … and when?
-
What
are the objectives you seek? What must you “deliver” in order to be successful?
-
What
are the risks associated with your plans, and how will you mitigate those risks?
-
How
will you assess and demonstrate your success?
The
need to implement a document strategy is a topic that is often talked about. The
fact remains, however, that designing a document strategy is a complicated and
indistinct undertaking. The notion of creating a document strategy is made more
mysterious because until now there has been no clear road map to guide the
design of an effective plan. The inevitable lament is: “I know a document
strategy is important, but how do I actually develop one?” “Designing a Document
Strategy” is a book that provides a method and process to follow.
2006
One Time Rights Only
Kevin Craine, MBA, is the author of the popular book,
Designing a Document Strategy.
For more information, visit:
www.document-strategy.com.
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