A Study of the Usefulness of Deploying a Questionnaire to Identify Cultural Dynamics Potentially Affecting a Content-Management Project

• Published in: IEEE transactions on professional communication 2015-09, Vol.58 (3), p.289-308
• Main Authors: Gollner, Joe, Andersen, Rebekka, Gollner, Kathleen, Webster, Tenny
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Assessments; Change management; Construction; Content management; content-management system; Cultural differences; cultural dynamics; Dynamic tests; Dynamical systems; Dynamics; Methodology; needs assessment; Organizational aspects; organizational change; organizational culture; Perception; Project management; Surveys; System implementation; technological change; technology diffusion; technology implementation
• ISSN: 0361-1434; 1558-1500
• DOI: 10.1109/TPC.2016.2516638

Background: A content-management project that proceeds with an incomplete understanding of the views, reservations, agendas, and attitudes held by stakeholders could likely encounter problems in implementation. The vast majority of content-management implementation projects proceed with very little visibility into the cultural dynamics that will eventually play such a central role in determining the success or failure of the projects. This case study examines the usefulness of deploying a needs assessment questionnaire to gather qualitative data that could help content-management project leaders understand participant needs, attitudes, and perceptions, and that could potentially improve the implementation of content-management projects. Research questions: How might previously published research questions for assessing cultural dynamics be adapted for a questionnaire intended to gather input from participants in the early stages of the implementation of two separate content-management projects? What kinds of issues does the questionnaire elicit from participants? To what extent is the questionnaire useful in assessing content-management project participant needs and how might it be revised and adapted for other organizational contexts? Situating the case: Implementing a content-management project results in a change to organizational processes; careful attention to managing this change is essential to the success of the project. Specific change-management issues emphasized in literature that addresses organizational and technological change include organizational readiness, stakeholder input, communication of project goals and plans with stakeholders, and training and time to learn and practice new approaches to operations. Organizational culture-a set of beliefs and values that members of an company share in common-plays a role in implementations of technology. Assessing organizational climate and stakeholder values and attitudes-characteristics of organizational culture-as part of a change-management plan can ensure that the culture is addressed when implementing a content-management project. Methodology: This project consisted of three parts: designing a pilot questionnaire based on a previous published methodology for assessing cultural dynamics, conducting the questionnaire within two organizations implementing content-management systems, and assessing the extent to which the questionnaire was useful in the context of the content-management projects.