It’s an anachronism to manage web content within an IT department. Digital was born out of advances in technology, but the content it carries is not beholden to the delivery system. The printing press did not determine what an author wrote; the same holds true in the digital age.
Content managed from within an IT Dept is rarely effective because existing technical models are imposed onto editorial. The inevitable disconnect bleeds into public-facing writing and design. Creating content under the strict aegis of technical operations will cause “bad user experiences,” the technical term for miscommunication.
IT infrastructure should seamlessly host interpersonal exchange, not attempt to produce it. A good quarter into the digital century, however, some organizations continue to treat digital content as a technological function, instead of a creative craft. These institutions — be they corporate, nonprofit, or public — hold onto an antiquated tradition where everything that comes out a computer is considered technical. The problem persists across industries for many reasons: legacy, resource control, and to a certain degree, laziness.
Modern IT leaders build platforms specifically to support and embrace ever-changing content. The dinosaurs, on the other hand, try to control content production on their platform in a false attempt to remain relevant. Established institutions tend to allow IT to fossilize and not keep up with audience demands, further placing the organization behind the times. Yet the solution is simple. Digital content managers are skilled at presenting information to the public online and act as liaisons between technology and the viewer — if they are allowed to do their jobs.
The digital ecosphere has changed in the last 25 years, including how content is managed. Production of content is no longer the IT developer’s task nor an after thought farmed out to someone in Marketing. Communicating to the user is paramount, not the platform. Content flourishes when independently managed by content experts who maintain strong connections to IT. If micromanaged as a technical product, however, content will easily become discontented.