2008 - The Year of How?

At the back end of last year, I noticed how conversations with my clients about networked media had turned from Why? to How?  As many of you will know (all too well!) corporations and large organisations move at a glacial place - and for good reason.  They are legal entities with sophisticated stakeholder groups, often tightly regulated and executives whose decisions can result in major investment.  So the move from Why? to How? is a major step forward.  Not least because it can mean internal reorganisation, investment in new services, training, and often going out into the marketplace to look for specific new skills.  The speed of change within networked media means we have moved way past the one-size-fits-all solutions (CEO Blog anyone?).  There are now a huge range of tools and possibilities, which means its important for each organisation to work out what it can bring to the party, choose the right set of tools to do so, and then reconfigure to meet the softer - but vital - cultural and social issues that the modern web demands.  Is it challenging?  Yep.  Is it exciting?  Yep.  Is it essential?  Maybe - that's your choice.