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<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://cmscritic.com/critics/michael-spenceley">Michael Spenceley</a> is Leader, Learning &amp; Content Standards - Innovative Medicine at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.jnj.com/">Johnson &amp; Johnson</a> and a CMS Critic Contributor. <hr /> Most organizations understand <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/content-operations">content operations</a>, even if there are differences in how it's executed. Generally speaking, it's the foundation of people, processes, and technology that enables a brand to manage its content at scale across a multitude of channels. But it's also a living, breathing activity that requires continuous maintenance and consideration. Regardless of how you navigate the ebb and flow of creating, reviewing, publishing, and managing your content, there are fundamentals that almost every model shares – and areas where things can be optimized and improved.In my years of managing content across large enterprises with distributed teams in highly regulated industries, I've formulated an operating model for optimizing content operations. Not only has it proven very successful in content applications, but it also has the potential to improve collaboration, support strategic goals, and enhance other facets of your business operations.<h3 id="why-is-this-important?">Why is this important?</h3>You may already intuitively think about your operation in this way. However, this structure provides a clear path for continuing to optimize your operation over a longer period. It also gives your team and your broader organization a clear language to articulate where and how work gets done today and a roadmap to get it to where it should be in the future. While I’ve framed this concept in the context of content operations, most of it likely applies to any service delivery operation across a wide range of processes and industries.  <h3 id="what-is-it?">What is it?</h3>This model provides a clear set of options for how work gets done, where it gets done, and who does it – with a focus on ensuring that the how, where, and who is fit for purpose based on the nature of the work. Here is an example of a tiered operating model: <ul><li>Tier 1 – Stays with the business<ul><li>Mostly strategic work that requires a high level of business or product subject matter expertise</li><li>Highest cost tier </li></ul></li><li>Tier 2 – Centralized content services<ul><li>Mix of tactical and strategic, requires moderate level of business or product subject matter expertise, significant content strategy expertise, and proximity to business stakeholders in tier 1</li><li>Lower cost tier</li></ul></li><li>Tier 3 – Outsource/Offshore<ul><li>Mostly transactional, requires low level of business or product subject matter expertise but still requires human intervention</li><li>Low-cost tier</li></ul></li><li>Tier 4 – Automate<ul><li>Transactional, repeatable and requires minimal human intervention</li><li>Lowest cost tier </li></ul></li></ul><h3 id="how-do-you-do-it?">How do you do it?</h3>It’s worth mentioning at this point that all the steps below shouldn’t be done in isolation; they should all be done in partnership with business stakeholders who currently own and interact with these processes. <ol><li>Start by defining the tiers in your model. Determine which tiers already exist and then consider tiers you need in the future that you may not have today.</li><li>Document processes, activities, and tasks that are done in each tier today. It’s up to you how granular you get. If your processes are complex, you’re going to need more granularity. If you plan to split certain activities across tiers, you’re going to need more granularity to understand which parts of the process should sit in different tiers. </li><li>Estimate your cost for each tier. This can be as simple as an average hourly rate by tier.</li><li>Based on cost and complexity of the work in each tier today, consider where you have opportunities to centralize, optimize and move work down the tiers. Work can move down the tiers over time, or it can skip tiers depending on the nature of the work. </li></ol><h3 id="how-might-this-help-you?-">How might this help you? </h3>It provides a roadmap to take in new work in a structured way, and it shows your business partners that you’re willing to collaborate in a way that acknowledges what they value, their pain points, and their appetite for change. In the beginning, you may be focused on work that’s perceived as tactical or tedious that you don’t want to do, but that gives you an opportunity to centralize, standardize and optimize it. This opens the door to begin a conversation about taking on more strategic and impactful work. This doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a journey.  <h3 id="watchouts">Watchouts</h3>Here are some common pitfalls to be aware of as you consider implementing your version of this model:<ul><li>Don’t create unnecessary handoffs. Be thoughtful about splitting up related activities across different tiers. Sometimes it makes sense to keep certain activities together.</li><li>As you implement, you’re moving work between teams, between vendors, and maybe between countries. This is a delicate process that requires a focus on managing and leading through the change.</li><li>While there will be challenges and a learning curve, once a process moves from one tier to another and is stabilized, it should be better than it was before. This isn’t just about cost; it’s about optimization of both the process and the experience of everyone who interacts with that process.</li><li>Make sure your lower-cost tiers (especially automation) actually cost less. If it costs you millions of dollars to build an AI to do a task that a human can do for a few thousand dollars per year, it may not be worth it – at least not yet. As AI becomes more advanced and cheaper, that time will come.</li><li>If you come across activities that just don’t make sense, always question it. Don’t try to optimize something that shouldn’t be done at all.    </li></ul> <hr /><h3 id="upcoming-events">Upcoming Events</h3> <img style="width:31.83%" src="https://cmscritic.com/ms-content/uploads/2025/01/cms-connect-2025-logo.png" alt="" /><h4 id="cms-connect-25"><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmsconnect25">CMS Connect 25</a></h4>August 5-6, 2025 – Montreal, CanadaWe are delighted to present the second annual summer edition of our signature global conference dedicated to the content management community! CMS Connect will be held again in beautiful Montreal, Canada, and feature a unique blend of masterclasses, insightful talks, interactive discussions, impactful learning sessions, and authentic networking opportunities. Join vendors, agencies, and customers from across our industry as we engage and collaborate around the future of content management – and hear from the top thought leaders at the only vendor-neutral, in-person conference exclusively focused on CMS. Space is limited for this event, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://www.boye-co.com/conferences/cmsconnect25">so book your seats today.</a>

An Operating Model to Optimize Content Operations (and Probably Lots of Other Stuff)

michael-spenceley

<hr /> In most organizations, there is pressure to do more with less. As budgets tighten, scope expands and timelines become more aggressive, content teams are forced to get creative about how they deliver value. Here are 5 tips for content leaders and teams to help them not just survive, but thrive, when the pressure is on.  <h3 id="1.-get-back-to-basics">1. Get back to basics</h3>Getting back to basics is about making tough decisions around where to spend our time and energy. There is always more we can do, but when the team is stretched, maximizing the value they can deliver is key.To achieve that, it’s important to stay grounded in what matters most about your content. My team uses a concept called CAR Squared to define the basics. Is the content clear, concise, actionable, accurate, relevant and readable? If certain activities aren’t going to meaningfully improve those aspects of the content, we don’t do them. Focusing on the basics will help teams avoid unnecessary effort. For example, some teams may spend a lot of time on formatting and design. Ask if internal content needs as much branding as external content. Ask whether there are ways to leverage technology to reduce manual effort.It’s also important to question whether certain content is even necessary. Focus on progress over perfection. As content professionals, we always want to do more. That’s what makes us good at what we do, but when facing resource and budget constraints, we have to focus on the most critical work and let the nice-to-haves go.<h3 id="2.-leverage-ai-">2. Leverage AI </h3>It’s important to get teams thinking proactively about how they can leverage AI and to not be afraid of it.As Generative AI continues to accelerate it will, no doubt, have an impact on what we do as content professionals. While it will continue to evolve, there are some practical use cases that don’t require a lot of investment and can support productivity. For example, it’s surprisingly good at rewriting content in a different style or tone. It can also create summaries, FAQs, and identify keywords to aid in search optimization.  I encourage my team to think of Generative AI as a way to help us do what we do more efficiently. It’s like having an assistant we can delegate certain tasks to. The human-in-the-loop philosophy is critical for AI to work effectively for content creation, so you still need a level of review, but it helps save time and effort.<h3 id="3.-keep-the-team-engaged">3. Keep the team engaged</h3>When we’re busy, it’s easy to start canceling teaming events, training, all-hands meetings, and happy hours.  During times when the team is stretched to their limit, these activities can mean the difference between burnout and attrition, and having a motivated team that pushes through the challenges together. A sense of belonging and camaraderie is often what helps a team get through a challenging time.Make the time for team building and training, even when it’s difficult to schedule. If anything, it gives the team a much needed break from the daily grind. Most importantly, it reminds them that they’re valued and you’re continuing to invest in them.     Recognition also goes a long way during challenging times. Leaders should take the time to understand what motivates each person on their team and celebrate both team and individual accomplishments.Additionally, when capacity is limited and scope is expanding, it’s important for leaders to set clear expectations with the team. Leaders who foster an environment where the team feels comfortable discussing their struggles, sharing their ideas and pushing back when appropriate, will set the team up to have more genuine and effective relationships with leaders, stakeholders and each other.<h3 id="4.-get-creative-about-prioritization-and-funding-">4. Get creative about prioritization and funding </h3>One of the most challenging things for a team is knowing that they can make a bigger impact if they had more time and resources. It’s fundamentally important for leaders to acknowledge that we can’t do it all, and they need to help the team prioritize.It can be helpful to have a prioritization model to guide these decisions. For example, content for larger audiences, business critical campaigns and other strategic initiatives should be prioritized over other work.Funding can be challenging when budgets are tight, but when you think quality or delivery might suffer, consider asking for project-specific funding for a fixed period of time. For example, if you need two content specialists to work on a project for 6 months but don’t have capacity, consider asking the project sponsor for budget to cover offshore contract resources for 6 months. In my experience, critical campaigns and projects have some budget to work with, and the cost of offshore resources tends to be nominal in the grand scheme of things.<h3 id="5.-don’t-wait">5. Don’t wait</h3>Challenging times can either bring a team together or pull it apart. That’s why it’s important not to wait until times are tough.These tips are about creating a culture of inclusiveness, engagement, innovation, efficiency, and continuous improvement. These are things we should always be doing. So, applying these concepts during less challenging times will go a long way in preparing a team for whatever they may face in future.A high-performing content team will always weather the storm more effectively. For more on that, see my previous article, <a target="_blank" href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcmscritic.com%2Fwhat-it-takes-to-build-a-high-performing-content-team&amp;data=05%7C02%7Cmspencel%40its.jnj.com%7Ca393fe92aac749e2c46208dc1044feba%7C3ac94b33913548219502eafda6592a35%7C0%7C0%7C638403135714032847%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=RS1aV46W%2FoRENyORtEgpTyw61oqlEF34YWAg7zHGOWM%3D&amp;reserved=0">What it Takes to Build a High-Performing Content Team</a>.<h3 id="about-mike-spenceley">About Mike Spenceley</h3>I’ve been working in the content, knowledge management and communications space in some capacity for most of my career. While I don’t describe myself as a content professional, I am a problem seeker and solver who found a niche in the content space. I currently lead a content team at J&amp;J, where I’ve been for the past seven years. Before that I spent 10 years at PwC.<h3 id="about-johnson-&amp;-johnson">About Johnson &amp; Johnson</h3>At Johnson &amp; Johnson, we believe good health is the foundation of vibrant lives, thriving communities and forward progress. That’s why for more than 135 years, we have aimed to keep people well at every age and every stage of life. Today, as the world’s largest, most diversified healthcare products company, we are committed to using our reach and size for good. We strive to improve access and affordability, create healthier communities, and put a healthy mind, body and environment within reach of everyone, everywhere. We are blending our heart, science and ingenuity to profoundly change the trajectory of health for humanity.

The Pressure is on: Tips for Content Teams During Challenging Times

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