The 12th edition of the Digital News Report is based on data from six continents and 46 markets. For this purpose, an online survey was conducted at the end of January/beginning of February 2023 with approximately 2,000 respondents per market. The report consists of an overall overview, followed by chapters with additional analysis (e.g., attitudes toward algorithms and their impact on news) and contributions on individual countries and markets.

The results show that the structural shift towards a more digital, mobile and platform-dominated media environment has been accelerated by crises such as Covid-19 or the Ukraine war. At the same time, the influence of Google and Meta on access to news has changed. While at its peak nearly half of online traffic was through these platforms, new digital audio and video services like TikTok are now coming into play. For producers, this means an even more complex platform environment characterized by fragmented attention, low trust, and even less open and representative participation. Another finding: much of the public is skeptical of the algorithms used to select what they see via search engines, social media and other platforms. Nevertheless, users still slightly prefer news selected in this way to news selected by editors or journalists. If you want to learn more, you can download the full report for free.

Der Beitrag Reuters Institute: Digital News Report 2023 erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

The Global CommTech Report explores how PR & communications professionals around the world think about and use communications technology. For this, an online survey was conducted between December 2022 and March 2023 with 329 PR & communications professionals from Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, North America and Latin America.

One of the most striking findings: The discrepancy between respondents’ own assessment of how well they think they use technology and their actual use of it. 67% of respondents from agencies and 52% of respondents from companies consider themselves very competent in using communication technologies. At the same time, however, respondents often do not use the right tools or do not use them at all. For example, CRM software is used by only 46%, and 39% use spreadsheets to manage and track their contacts. Nevertheless, respondents also see many benefits to using communication technologies: Time savings (88%), cost savings (66%), authentication of the accuracy of information (55%), and predictions of possible outcomes (53%). The results show a general underutilization of digital technologies by communications teams and PR agencies. However, it is necessary to put them in proportion in view of the methodology. The full report is available free of charge.

Der Beitrag PRovokeMedia & Purposeful Relations: Global CommTech Report 2023 erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

The annual report from HubSpot and Mynewsdesk highlights the most important topics in the German PR and communications industry. To identify trends and opportunities for 2023 and the coming years, trend analyses, a quantitative survey of 150 PR and communications professionals, and six expert interviews were conducted. One thing is clear: trustworthy PR and communications are essential in times of pandemic, war and economic uncertainty. 60 percent of respondents say that corporate communications has become more important in their company as a result.

The findings of the report can be divided into two blocks: More togetherness and quality instead of quantity. Thus, more togetherness is a necessary basis for efficient and trustworthy PR and communication. For this purpose, for example, data transparency must be created and common data interests must be coordinated within a company. In addition, it is important to use the potential of AI to increase interaction and discussion with target groups and to optimize content production. The issue of quality rather than quantity is also about critically questioning the expansion of one’s own presence on various channels and communicating responsibly. Those who want to learn more can download the report free of charge.

Der Beitrag HubSpot & Mynewsdesk: PR & Communication in Germany erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

Currently, many organizations are undergoing a cultural shift toward new-work concepts. Features of these concepts include flexibility & self-determination through remote work, a better work-life balance, and a sense of purpose and self-realization at work. But also: leadership cultures characterized by democracy, agility & adaptivity. The Trend Monitor Hybrid IC 2023 looks at the role of internal communications in the age of New Work. In doing so, he examines the current progress of the digitization of IC, the attitude toward and previous establishment of new-work concepts, and their practicality.

The results make it clear that IC is at the forefront of work culture. 67% of respondents state that New Work as a change project must be adequately accompanied by IC. 20% see modern, digital and hybrid IC as a basic prerequisite for successful establishment. In terms of the current state of establishment, it shows that 13% of the organizations surveyed have fully implemented New Work and 55% are on their way there. For 11%, New Work plays no role. The reasons given include: No interest on the part of management (32%) and lack of fit with the corporate culture (23%). Also interesting: only 34% of organizations currently evaluate their digital channels. 39% have data but do not analyze it and 20% do not collect any data at all. The full study is available free of charge.

Der Beitrag RYZE Digital, VRM & SCM: Trend Monitor Hybrid IC 2023 erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

Capgemini’s study “Data-Driven Organizations” focuses on data-driven change management and the resulting added value for organizations. It will look at the current state of organizations in terms of data-driven action, its application in change management, and its impact on change success. It is based on a survey of more than 1,000 specialists and managers from Europe, the USA and the Asia-Pacific region.

The results show that comprehensive data analysis improves the level of informedness of employees (+19%), professional change communication (+20%) and trust in the organization (+18%). In addition, data-driven organizations are 23% to 27% more likely, on average, to achieve successful change. In this context, change success increases due to high data maturity (+27%), data-driven leadership (+23%), and a data-driven corporate culture (+26%). Other findings of the study include: Change leadership is the name of the game – executives must recognize, leverage and communicate the benefits of data use. In addition, data competence and transparency as well as data ownership are essential for smart change. For those who want to learn more and get more detailed information about the steps to Data Mastery, the full study can be found online.

Der Beitrag Capgemini: Data-driven organizations erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

Deloitte’s 14th Annual Tech Trends Report examines the impact of emerging technology opportunities across sectors and geographies. It also highlights new approaches and technologies that could become the norm in the next 18 to 24 months and forecasts where trends could go in the next few decades. For this purpose, the authors classify the trends into six categories – the macrotechnical forces of information technology.

Emerging trends are presented in the categories of technology business, trust, and modernization to reflect that businesses drive technology, not the other way around. It also shows that existing systems and investments must harmonize with the innovations to come so that companies can continue to operate seamlessly as they grow. Furthermore, it describes how the categories of interaction, information and data processing, which are the cornerstones of modern computer technology, will evolve in the future. The full report is available free of charge.

Der Beitrag Deloitte: Tech Trends 2023 erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

Since 2018, the research project “Communication in the Digital Transformation”, designed as a trend study, has been conducted every two years by a ZHAW research team at the IAM Institute of Applied Media Sciences. It examines the role of communications in the digital transformation, its state and its need for development. In 2022, 133 communications managers in German-speaking Switzerland were surveyed and twelve expert interviews were conducted.

The central component of the study is the framework, consisting of three levels and developed in 2018, which describes the role of corporate communications in the digital transformation. Here, the micro level deals with the digital transformation of the communications departments, the meso level with the entire organization, and the macro level with the market and society. The 2022 results show that drastic events (e.g. Covid-19, Ukraine war) change less the direction than the speed of digital transformation. In addition, the authors further develop the fields of action from the previous studies, resulting in twelve requirements for contemporary and future-oriented communication. These include, for example, agility, culture change, and technology understanding as key competencies for CCOs and AI-enabled applications and automations. The complete and detailed results can be accessed free of charge.

Der Beitrag Rosenberger et al.: Trend Study Switzerland 2022 erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

Thomas Mickeleit, Hamburg
‍CommTechis sweeping across the Atlantic as a concept and new model for communication. With all sympathy and a bit of admiration, the idea of optimally developing all stakeholders into “fans and advocates” goes beyond the mark. The commercialization of relationships can have a dangerous effect on reputation in the end. Here is my plea for a European interpretation of CommTech in strict alignment with stakeholder interests.

When the Arthur Page Society presented the termCommTech in its 2019 study “The CCO as the pacesetter,” communications executives in this country were busy building newsrooms, implementing social collaboration tools, and sometimes (too) timidly practicing employee advocacy programs. None of this is wrong and yet not enough.

CommTech AG creates platform for exchange of transformation experiences

That communications, like other corporate functions before it-and like the country as a whole-must accelerate its digital transformation has become accepted. According to the surveys of the latest European Communications Monitor (2021), 89 percent of communications managers consider this to be important or very important. Not least because there is a lack of implementation, the CommTech working group was formed in the summer of 2021 to give PR practitioners a platform to share their transformation experiences and learn from each other.

However, the fact that the Arthur Page Society talks about CommTech as a new profession has less to do with the digitization of the value chain in communications and much more to do with a different understanding that underlies CommTech. In derivation of the Customer Journey, which at the end of the day should turn loyal customers into fans or advocates, this applies equally to stakeholders in communications, who should be “convinced” of the organization’s performance. As in the funnel of the customer journey, individuals (not target groups) are optimally influenced from stage to stage in the ongoing dialog and mutated into followers.

First of all, there is nothing at all wrong with the mechanics as such, even though a slight shiver may run down the spine of ethically sensitive communication people. Those who are on the verge of gasping at the words “Beeinflussen” will probably only find a retarded access to the idea of CommTech. Initially, it is just a matter of communicating with stakeholders at each stage of the customer journey in such a way that the communication is as valuable as possible for them and is therefore effective. As those responsible for communications, we must ask ourselves why we have so far left it at that, limiting our sphere of influence to the “Interest” level. As a result, all communication is “one size fits all” and geared to the assumed interests of the target group, i.e. it is not “customized”. Of course, we know better. The more communication is aligned with the specific sensitivities and interests of the target groups, the better it works.

Do not design the stakeholder journey from a corporate perspective

If the Arthur Page Society’s findings are anything to go by, “digital engagement systems” are being built for this purpose, on which the stakeholder journey is mapped and a continuous dialog takes place. But what does that mean and what should such platforms be like?

The urgent recommendation must be: Ask, what is the ultimate interest of the respective stakeholder group in the dialogue with the organization? Hardly surprisingly, this interest presents itself very differently. A university graduate who is a talent from a corporate perspective ends this Journey as a “New Employee”, an NGO representative as an enlightened voice in the field of her expertise, a journalist is sensibly not even subjected to the attempt to appropriate him. The stakeholder journey must therefore not be designed from the corporate perspective and is therefore fundamentally different from the commercially determined customer journey and also from the commercially determined approach to the stakeholder journey as it comes to us from the USA.

European reading of the Stakeholder Journey

The European reading of the Stakeholder Journey adapts the channels, formats, and tonality to the benefits it unfolds for the respective stakeholders, and it may also deliberately not end at the “Confidence” level in every case. We must not forget that the ultimate goal of communication is the increase of reputation, the guarantee of the license to operate. This must also be the benchmark for us when designing the Stakeholder Journey. No more, no less.

About the author: Thomas Mickeleit , formerly Director of Communications Microsoft Germany, is now a communications consultant for Digital Transformation. He wrote the above article in his capacity as head of the CommTech working group, which was founded under the umbrella of the Institute for Management and Economic Research (IMWF), Hamburg, in the summer of 2021. The CommTech WG develops solutions for digital communication and presents them to the interested professional public.

1) The CCO as the Pacesetter, ArthurPage Society, 2019https://knowledge.page.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/CCO_as_Pacesetter_2019_Page_Research_Report_Interactive.pdf
2) Zerfass, A., Buhmann, A., Tench, R., Verčič,D., & Moreno, A. (2021). EuropeanCommunication Monitor 2021. CommTech and digital infrastructure,video-conferencing,and future roles for communication professionals. Resultsof a survey in 46 countries. Slide 16 ff.
3) WG1 of the CommTech working group follows this approach and formulates this idea of the “European reading of the stakeholder journey” developed from the stakeholder perspective.

Der Beitrag Debate: Thinking about the Stakeholder Journey in European terms! erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

The Business Continuity Institute has released the seventh edition of its “Emergency and Crisis Communications Report.” This is intended to help companies compare their tools, plans and processes, but also to stimulate discussion. It also provides best practices for designing and implementing crisis management plans.

This year’s report shows a significant shift in the way organizations manage their emergency and crisis communications. For example, new technologies are changing communication, collaboration and action. 70.5 percent of organizations use digital tools or software to manage emergency communications in times of crisis. In addition, SaaS solutions are continuously on the rise: SaaS is now used by 81 percent. Furthermore, the report shows that the smartphone is the most popular device and e-mail is still the most popular means of communication at 70.6 percent. However, the results also illustrate the following: Often, organizations are unable to initiate effective responses because employees are not regularly trained in tools and processes or contact information is stored in documents on different devices. For those interested in learning more, the full report can be found here.

Der Beitrag BCI: Emergency & Crisis Communications Report erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.

Based on a survey of 303 executives in 53 countries, the Digital News Project provides insight into trends and forecasts for journalism, media and technology in 2023. Here, it appears that 2023 will be the breakthrough year for AI and its application in journalism. For example, the executives surveyed are in favor of using AI technologies such as machine learning or natural language processing to make existing production processes more efficient. In addition, this is a better way to use existing resources to create something new.

However, the results also show that so far only 28% of respondents say that AI is an integral part of their content and experience personalization. Another 39% say they are experimenting in this area. The report also features AI-driven tools that are already in use, as well as a look ahead at what could happen in AI & journalism this year. If you want to learn more, you can download the full report for free.

Der Beitrag Reuters Institute & University of Oxford: Journalism, Media, and Technology Trends and Predictions 2023 erschien zuerst auf IMWF Institut.