7 Building Blocks to Succeed in Digital Publishing – Part 2: The Organization

In order to effectively compete in the digital market, you need to put an adequate organizational structure in place.

Executive Level

The successful transformation of your business towards a digital player starts at the executive level. Every member of your executive team should be trained and informed about the latest digital evolutions. This is not an easy task, nor is it sufficient to lead and manage the scale of transformation required. Hence, many companies choose to appoint a Chief Digital Officer (CDO) as a member of the executive team. The CDO oversees the full range of digital strategies and drives change across the organization.

The CDO needs to be someone who not only has digital acumen, but also is a seasoned general manager who can operate within a large-scale business and influence effectively across the organization. This is a relatively new type of leader and one who is hard to find, attract and retain.

Business Level

At the operational and business level, new organizational structures and roles are required. Largely speaking, 2 distinct organizational models arise:
• A separate unit which is in charge of digital activities
• Integrated approach, whereby new roles and competences are added within the existing organization

In the short term it can be adequate to setup a central competence center, in order to build up critical mass in digital activities. Such unit should include digital product managers, marketers, project managers, designers and developers.

In the longer term, a more integrated approach will result in more effectiveness. The transfer of competence from the central competence center into the operational business units needs careful execution and preparation.

Join the conversation on our LinkedIn community and share your story.

Digital Publishing Framework: 7 Building Blocks to Succeed is a full series of 7 articles that present a new, comprehensive framework with 7 key building blocks for newspaper companies to achieve success in digital publishing.