What Skills does your Web Team Need?

This question is the flip side of the question – “What is the role of the Web Team in your company.”  We’ve found that most organizations struggle to answer both questions. Consider the framework below as a starting point.

The multidisciplinary nature of online activities demands expertise in many areas – technology, strategy, direct marketing, copy writing, etc.- which makes determining the role and responsibilities of the web team challenging.  At a high level, the following diagram captures the breadth of skills any organization requires to succeed online.

Not every organization will have all of these needs (your site may not directly generate revenue, for example). Nor does the web team need to maintain all of these capabilities in house.

At non-linear creations, we help our clients to divide these competencies can be divided into four categories:

• Core competencies – these should be maintained by the core team responsible for online activities, often deemed “the web team”
• Critical support competencies – these should be maintained by the organization, but need not necessarily reside with the web team
• Periodically required competencies – these can be maintained in house, but are often outsourced as they are not required on an ongoing basis
• Unique domain expertise – while it is possible to develop experts in these areas in house, it is challenging. Many organizations chose to draw on external consultants to meet these needs.

With this table in hand, our clients are able to evaluate their current capability level and identify approaches to building or acquiring missing skill sets.

What’s the mandate of your web team? What skills do you have in house and which do you outsource?  How does your web team relate to your in house IT/IM group?  Let us know.