I launched the digital maturity framework and test back in 2015 to respond to the need of digital leads to provide their organisations with a clearer idea what a more digital organisation looks like.
Thus far the test has been used by over 130 individuals which has provided some insight into trends in the UK non-profit sector.
Year on year comparisons show that in some areas people feel their organisations are more competent than last year but in others less. This is not surprising… We don’t know what we don’t know as the saying goes.
For example Parkinson’s UK have been using digital maturity framework to drive change and show progress. This year their overall digital maturity score showed good progress in a year. But looking at results in more detail showed that rating for Data has dropped from 3 last year to 2.2 this year.
So what happened?
Following the digital maturity workshop in 2017 when data management and use was discussed in detail amongst stakeholders, they felt they needed to go deeper and investigate/do more. Their groundbreaking data maturity project was kicked off. A year later they know what they didn’t know about their data use/management, where they want to be and what they need to do.
What are the main takeaways?
These results chime with what I see/hear in the sector.
Attitude to digital is positive - there is an understanding that organisations need to respond to this change in the market. But there doesn’t seem to be much understanding of how transformational this can be for an organisation - that it goes beyond changing processes, technology and skills. That it goes all the way to the core of the organisation.
For example, in the age of gig economy unions could not be more needed. But statistics released by the government in 2017 show that Union membership total is 6.2m — under half its level in the 1970s. Most of the members are baby boomers who are soon to retire. While the purpose of unions is still relevant, how they deliver it needs an update, suitable for the digital savvy, cash poor young generation.
Since the reality of GDPR data protection legislation has started featuring in senior management meetings, the investment in technology has been prioritised. However, the scope of change goes beyond technology, it requires new skills, product management and user centered planning. This is not fully understood and support and investment are lacking.
Overall digital maturity of an organisation is between levels 1 (low) and 5 (high) and calculated based on ratings of each of 15 competencies.
The test takes about 20 minutes and works best when it’s filled in by a few stakeholders in the organisation as it will capture different experiences of digital maturity competencies people have.
