Why a pre-mortem? (and how to run one)
To give yourself a better chance of success, before you commit to your next digital project, first spend 30 minutes imagining its failure.
Read more →Beyond the Promise
Why digital projects fail and what we can do about it
Beyond the Promise is a report exploring why digital projects fail in the cultural sector. It combines real-world insights from people working in the sector alongside analysis of existing evidence and research.
Built to help leaders, funders, and digital practitioners rethink how digital work happens.
Feedback for Beyond the Promise:
“Full of actionable takeaways and practical tools you can use right away. It’s not something to sit on a shelf, it’s designed to support your roadmap and help navigate real organisational change.”
“The practical insights for navigating the messy human side of digital work should be read (and internalised) by everyone working in the field.”
Practical tools & actions
Beyond the Promise: organisational archetypes
Explore the seven organisational archetypes identified in the Beyond the Promise research. These patterns, drawn from real-world insights, can help you understand how digital work unfolds in your organisation and prompt meaningful reflection.
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Digital Readiness self-assessment
Get a quick, clear view of your organisation’s digital strengths and gaps so you can focus your efforts where they’ll make the most difference.
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The 3 Modes Model and Digital Work Canvas
The 3 Modes Model and Canvas helps organisations clarify, align, and map their digital work across three core modes: Enable, Engage, and Express.
Read more →What does this mean for you?
Making it work: reflections for digital practitioners from Beyond the Promise
A concise summary of sector-wide findings for those delivering digital work inside cultural organisations, often against the odds.
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Digital is everyone’s business: guidance for teams from Beyond the Promise
Why digital isn’t just a specialist concern and how non-digital roles contribute to stronger, more effective digital projects.
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Shaping better conditions: insights for funders from Beyond the Promise
Insights for funders on how expectations, structures, and support can enable or undermine meaningful digital progress.
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Building digital confidence: emerging lessons for leaders from Beyond the Promise
Clear, practical lessons for cultural leaders on how to create the conditions where digital work can take root and thrive.
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Delivering with care: perspectives for digital suppliers from Beyond the Promise
What digital suppliers need to understand about organisational dynamics in the cultural sector, and how to deliver with care.
Read more →Webinar Series
Rewatch Beyond the Promise webinar #3 - building a culture of reflection (with Tash Willcocks)
This final session brings the series to a close by focusing on how teams learn from failure.
View webinars →Rewatch Beyond the Promise webinar #2 - looking at digital readiness (with Chris Unitt)
In this session, we dig into what it really means to be digitally ready and why that readiness matters more than any single tool or tactic.
View webinars →Rewatch Beyond the Promise webinar #1 - exploring the report's key findings and recommendations
The first in a series of three webinars which aim to unpack the findings of the Beyond the Promise research into digital failure. In this session I explained the background
View webinars →Unlock the full report & webinars
Subscribe for free to access the full research report, webinar recordings, and future tools.
- 📘 Get the full 50+ page report, including case studies, quotes, research insights, and practical recommendations.
- 🎙️ 3 exclusive webinars
- 📥 First access to new tools and case studies