Do you effectively manage change to your content management system?  Anyone who is implementing a SharePoint system has likely heard the horror stories about what happens when you implement without a well developed governance plan.  Even Microsoft is adamant that governance is needed and posts even plenty of free reference and template information to get you started (see below).  So what is this governance thing and why is everyone so focused on governance these days?  The answer is that change is inevitable and, in the past, companies have not done such a great job of managing that change.  Another key aspect of IT/data governance is the alignment of IT with the business to ensure that the organization’s goals, objectives and strategies are created, sustained and expanded upon.  I’ve seen far too many companies where the IT group is not so affectionately known as “those people.” 

Many companies, and specifically those whose stocks are publicly traded, have some form of governance in place related to compliance requirements such as Sarbanes-Oxley, but typically don’t cover the full scope of the ECM system.  What everyone should know is that when ECM systems are installed, the fun has just begun.  For example, information architectures change over time.  Taxonomies are added or modified.  Metadata fields and their associated values also change.  If companies have implemented any thesauri, those will likely change or expand.  Unfortunately, in most companies, the impact of change is often not known until after the change has been made and the impact ripples out through the organization with “those IT people” getting blamed when things break.  In addition to the impact on end-user satisfaction, the cost impact of correcting mistakes after they’ve been made is substantially greater than finding the mistake before it has been rolled out to the entire organization.  Planning for change greatly reduces the number and impact of those mistakes.

If you are just starting to develop a governance system, start small.  It may take a couple of trial runs to identify the right governance process or model for your organization.  Just as with the ECM system, change is a natural process.  When developing an effective governance program or process, these key elements will help you be successful:

1)      Get executive buy in:  Any effective governance body must have senior executive buy in.  Their role is ultimately to guarantee that the resources, including people and funding, are in place to ensure the ongoing viability of the system.  In some cases, requested or needed changes to the system will require funding that was not planned.  Hard decisions will need to be made, and senior leadership will need to be involved.  Failing to plan for change is planning for failure.

2)      Identify the components of your system that are likely to change and who owns each component:  Most companies have a pretty good idea of the system level changes such as performing upgrades, adding servers or patching the system.  Where most companies fall down with respect to the governance of their ECM systems is with the information architecture.  Most companies don’t have well documented information architectures, let alone the procedures to manage the ongoing changes.  When they are well thought out, changes to taxonomies, metadata elements, dropdown values and thesauri can greatly improve the effectiveness of the system.  When done haphazardly, changes to the information architecture can be very costly and render the system virtually useless.

For system level changes, IT often owns the process.  For example, when a patch needs to be applied to the system, it is typically IT involved in applying the patch and ensuring some level of testing takes place, even if the users are doing the testing.  That's not always the case when it comes to the information architecture.  For example, when a change is requested for a metadata element, the request will typically come from the business and not IT.  The business plays the key role in determining what the change is and how it is implemented.

3)      Involve the business:  IT may take care of the system, but at the end of the day, the users come from the business side of the house.  While the system resides in IT, the data belongs to the business and they must be an integral part of the change process.  Involving the business in the ECM governance process ultimately saves the company time and reduces the overall support costs of the system.

4)      Identify the key roles:  While it is important to identify who is responsible or accountable for an element of the system undergoing change, it is also critical to identify others who would be impacted and should be informed of any pending change.  Both in the IT organization and within the business, there are people who are considered subject matter experts who should be consulted.  As you may have guessed, I’m a strong believer in building RACI charts which identify, for each step in the change process, the following:

·         Who is Responsible for completing that step in the process

·         Who is Accountable for ensuring that step is completed

·         Who is Consulted prior to the completion of that step

·         Who is Informed of the results once that step is completed

The process of developing the RACI charts will force you to really look at your processes and identify the people, not only in IT, but also within the business to ensure a strong alignment.

5)  Determine who gets a vote:  The more people at the table, the harder it is to come to a decision.  Identifying a small team of individuals comprised IT and business leaders who are responsible for approving changes to the system.  This group of “voters” must represent the best interests of the company and rely on input from subject matter experts and key business users to determine the ultimate outcome of a change request.  The RACI process helps to identify the key business users and subject matter experts who will assist the voters with their decision process.

Governance is about managing change.  Effective governance requires a strong understanding of what can change, will change and who is impacted. 

Additional Information and Resources:

Microsoft SharePoint governance information

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/office/sharepointserver/bb507202.aspx

The IT Governance Institute

http://www.itgi.org

Information Management (formerly DM Review) is a great source for information

http://www.information-management.com/channels/data_governance.html