The problem in everyday life
“We run a project, then it’s done.”
Yep – until the consultants leave, someone quits, and the platform releases three new features. The digital workplace doesn’t behave like a one-off build. It lives.
When implementation is treated as an end date and management is lacking, everything falls back on heroes, gross lists and “we’ll solve it later”. Everything looked good in the project: experts on site, a lively champion program, quick victories. But without a team to take over, documentation and knowledge transfer everything becomes person-dependent. If the bearer of the knowledge goes home, we have effectively thrown the money down the drain.
Why is it difficult?
It's part of the logic we're used to. Projects have a start and an end. But a digital workplace isn't a house – it's more like a city that needs to be maintained, updated and developed continuously.
- Project logic on a live service. Budget, time and focus are running out – but the work continues in reality.
- Dependent on the person. Experts deliver – but no one has time to train anyone internally. Knowledge sticks to individuals.
- The foundation is postponed. Classification, archives/records, ownership and decision trails are “not needed now” and will be much more expensive to implement later.
- Automation without a map. We want rules and AI – but don’t know our actual groups, roles and processes well enough. The result is that we automate chaos.
The way forward – governance as management (not a project)
- Implementation can be a project – and creating management must be part of the project. Requirements: staffed management/DevOps function before go-live, with responsibility, budget and handover.
- The governance group owns the whole thing. IT (platform), HR (roles/onboarding), Communication (channels/plain language), Legal (framework/risk) and information owners from the business. The decisions are made in the room.
- Steady roadmap, not campaign. A living roadmap from now until the end of the platform – prioritized on benefit, risk and health. Small steps often instead of “big bang”.
- Build the team first. Put the internal chain before glitter: role descriptions, time in the calendar, backup solution, decision and change log.
- Consciously raise internal competence. Pair consultants with internals, shadow, document, do “train-the-trainer.” Consultants get us to a good place – the internal team makes it sustainable.
- Map before automation. Ensure that routines work in reality (roles, units, locations, processes) before we automate. Automating chaos is like driving over the edge in a Ferrari at 350 km/h instead of jumping over the edge.
Project Logic vs. Management Logic in the Digital Workplace
Perspective | Project logic | Management logic |
|---|---|---|
Time | Has a start and end date | Is continuous and long-term |
Focus | Delivery of features and quick wins | Improvement, operation and benefit over time |
Competence | Expert-driven, consultants in focus | Team-driven, internal roles with knowledge |
Knowledge | Dependent on the person, transfer postponed | Documented, shared and anchored |
Decision | Taken in the project group, sometimes on the sidelines | Included in the governance group, with operations + IT |
Results | A “finished” introduction | A living roadmap and sustainable development |
Risk | Relapse when the project is over | Stability, continuity and predictability |
When the foundation is laid
Then the transition from implementation to management will be smooth. The internal chain is in place. The roadmap swallows both the business's needs and the supplier's news - without everything having to be run as campaigns. And when someone stops? Then the machine continues anyway.
This post is part of the series Common mistakes in the digital workplace.
