Content governance means exactly what the term implies: a system or a set of guidelines, processes, and roles that determine how content is governed — how it gets created, published, and maintained within an organization.
Choosing the content governance model is the first step in developing a global content strategy. For the full framework, see my previous article, Building a Scalable Content Strategy: A 5-Step Framework.
In this article, we’ll go through the most common governance models and look at the general setup and at the roles and responsibilities for the hybrid model, as this is the most common.
If you’re familiar with these models, you can skip the reading and get the template here:
Hybrid content governance model — template
Although there are variations in the models adopted by enterprises, we can distinguish three generic content governance models:
1. Centralized model
In this model, one authority manages all the content and one strategy is implemented across regions, regardless of local particularities.
In this scenario, one set of processes and standards is used, and most decisions need to be approved by one command-and-control center. Not the most democratic model, but it does have the benefit of keeping the systems and tools aligned and of presenting one brand face to the public, with a consistent look and feel across markets.
2. Hybrid model
Just like before, there’s once central authority for most top-level decisions, but there is also flexibility in the markets, with regions having the freedom to create and distribute local content. Processes and standards are mostly aligned, but local particularities are possible.
Infrastructure tends to be the same, although legacy systems and tools are also common in the beginning. In this scenario, the countries or regions involved may publish on different websites and platforms, but the look and feel stay the same across markets.
3. Decentralized model
Unlike the previous two scenarios, in this case, the regions have almost complete freedom to create, publish, and manage their content.
The look and feel can vary, the tools and systems used can be different, and there are several sets of procedures and standards. Central coordination, in this case, is tedious, if not impossible.
Below you can find a detailed description of the roles and responsibilities involved in content lifecycle processes. Feel free to adjust this model based on your team’s composition.
The CG board is responsible for strategic decisions regarding content processes. It includes representatives from all the teams involved in the creation, distribution, and maintenance of content.
A sample setup can include:
A content strategist — part of the central team
A corporate representative — part of the corporate team
Region representatives — part of the regional marketing teams
Product Owner
Content manager — part of the central team
Business Unit representatives
UX / Graphic designer
For content processes to run smoothly and to avoid misalignment and siloed work, the CGB should meet regularly. This meeting should be organized by the CS, or in their absence, by another board member.
The CS gathers the requirements before the meeting and makes sure all members provide input based on the agenda. The CS decides which topics proposed for the agenda should have priority, in alignment with stakeholders.
One CGB member takes notes and shares the summary at the end of the meeting. The CS follows up on action points and provides updates to the team between meetings.
In case of absence, CGB members delegate their responsibilities to the appropriate team member.
Defines, creates, and maintains the content strategy across internal and external channels
Defines content processes, workflows, and roles
Ensures the maintenance of documentation, including policies and guidelines
Gathers input from all CGB members regarding content initiatives, as well as training and tooling needs
Organizes and leads CGB meetings
Gathers and distributes CG documentation, including CGT composition, guidelines and policies, training materials, and reports
Organizes training sessions and workshops with CGT members
Proposes new initiatives based on technology advancements
Represents the company at CS events
Represents the corporate team in the CGB meetings
Gathers requirements and input from the corporate and branding teams regarding content initiatives, as well as training, guideline, process, and tooling needs
Ensures the compliance of all content assets to brand guidelines
Ensures the distribution of insights and knowledge within the corporate and branding teams
Inside the corporate team, the following roles might be present:
Defines, creates and maintains the brand guidelines regarding the style, tone of voice, and house rules per distribution channel
Reviews content before publishing, to ensure compliance with guidelines
If more independent brands are owned by the company, the BC coordinates the activity of the brand content across the entire lifecycle
Organizes and leads work groups for documentation and guidelines
Gathers requirements and ideas from owned brands regarding content initiatives, as well as training and tooling needs
Represents the BUs in CGB meetings
Gathers requirements and input from BUs regarding content initiatives, as well as training, guidelines, process, and tooling needs
Ensures the compliance of content assets to industry standards, as well as the technical accuracy of content produced
Ensures the distribution of insights and knowledge within the BU teams
Within this team, the following roles might be present:
Coordinates the content lifecycle for the BU
Organizes and leads work groups for documentation and guidelines
Gathers requirements and ideas for content initiatives, as well as training and tooling needs
Provides insights into the latest trends in the field of expertise, as well as into competitor initiatives
Ensures good relationships with suppliers and gathers content assets from them
Coordinates the content initiatives of the innovation/R&D departments
Organizes and leads work groups for documentation and guidelines
Gathers requirements and ideas for content initiatives, as well as training and tooling needs
Coordinates the activity of the product information management team across the content lifecycle
Acts as a gatekeeper for PIM content
Organizes and leads work groups for documentation and guidelines
Gathers requirements and ideas for content initiatives, as well as training and tooling needs
Represents the regional marketing team in the CGB meeting
Gathers requirements and input from the local team regarding content initiatives, as well as training and tooling needs
Ensures the compliance of content assets to local guidelines
Ensures the distribution of insights and knowledge within the regional team
Shares insights regarding content focus, goals, and targets
In the regional teams, the following roles might be present:
Coordinates the content marketing initiatives within the region
Acts as a gatekeeper for content created and distributed within the region
Provides input regarding content focus, goals, and targets
Ensures the compliance of published content to brand guidelines
Gathers requirements and ideas and provides input for the CGB meetings
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Owns the country SM channels and ensures compliance to brand guidelines
Gathers requirements and ideas and provides input for the CGB meetings
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Provides input regarding content focus, goals, and targets
Provides input regarding target audiences
Provides insights regarding customer performance and behavior for content initiatives
Gathers requirements and ideas and provides input for the CGB meetings
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Owns the email marketing channel
Ensures compliance of content to brand guidelines
Provides input regarding the channel performance, customer performance, and behavior patterns for content initiatives
Gathers requirements and ideas and provides input for the CGB meetings
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Shares insights into customer pain points and needs
Provides insights for content mapping
Gathers requirements and ideas and provides input for the CGB meetings
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Gathers requirements and ideas and provides input for the CGB meetings
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Gathers requirements and ideas and provides input for the CGB meetings
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Represents the central content team in the CGB meetings
Acts as a gatekeeper for all content that goes into the CMS
Develops and maintains the central content creation and distribution calendar
Ensures compliance of content to brand guidelines
Supports the other teams throughout the content lifecycle, from research and ideation to content creation and archiving
Gathers requirements and input regarding content initiatives, as well as training and tooling needs
Ensures the distribution of insights and knowledge within the central team
In the central team, the following roles might be present:
Provides input for SE optimization (on-/off-page)
Performs keyword research and topic research and provides input for content initiatives
Organizes training sessions and develops guidelines, as needed
Provides input regarding the performance of channels, for adjusting the CS
Supports the paid distribution of content
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Provides input for content optimization based on conversion rate optimization experiments
Ensures the development and implementation of CRO experiments
Provides input for/organizes training sessions and develops guidelines, as needed
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Develops and maintains automation flows
Develops guidelines and templates to ensure compliance with brand guidelines
Acts as a gatekeeper for the channel
Gathers input regarding targeted industries and audiences
Provides insights into channel performance and user behavior patterns
Ensures the availability of performance reports and provides input for experimentation
Organizes training sessions, as needed
Provides insights regarding the channel performance and audience behavior
Supports the distribution of content
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Ensures the localization of content
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Provides insights into user behavior and patterns for content initiatives
Ensures the availability of data in multiple formats
Organizes training sessions and supports the development of guidelines
Provides input regarding training and tooling needs
Identifies requirements for content initiatives and coordinates the development activity
Prioritizes content-related stories based on business value
Provides input for content architecture, as well as insights regarding the content performance
Ensures the proper communication between content and dev teams
Supports the development of documentation for content initiatives
Provides input regarding the user experience and acts as the gatekeeper for UX
Supports the development of graphic assets
Supports CRO initiatives
Provides input regarding content training and tooling needs
I hope this gives you an overview and guides you in setting up a content team as well as in creating and implementing a governance model.
If you need help in developing a digital governance model for your team, get in touch with our team.
We'll map the roles and responsibilities and define workflows and processes that work for you.