Digital culture projects derailed by unclear goals and lack of leadership

Misaligned goals, patchy leadership and little time to reflect and learn are key reasons digital projects fail in the culture sector, according to findings of a new report.

The Beyond the Promise report says that although funders, policymakers and institutions invest heavily in digital projects across the sector, these projects often struggle to deliver the lasting change and impact they set out to achieve.

In an anonymous survey of people working across the culture sector globally, unclear goals and unrealistic expectations were the most commonly-reported reasons as to why digital culture projects fail.

Respondents also cited a lack of leadership buy-in, poor technology choices and implementation issues as frequent reasons digital projects fail, followed by an internal resistance to change, challenges with external partners, suppliers or vendors and a lack of resources.

Half of all the survey’s responses came from people who worked at ‘very large’ organisations, with an annual turnover above £5 million / more than 200 employees, and most organisations rated their digital maturity as 3 out of 5 – ‘structured but siloed’.

“What is clear is that, on the whole, the issues that are causing digital failure are mostly not financial, or technical, but instead are wrapped up in messy human considerations of strategy, relationships, confidence, ways of working, understanding, and alignment,” the report, by cultural digital strategist Ash Mann, says.

Nature of failure

The most commonly reported reasons respondents cited for the failure of their digital projects were significant delays or missing key goals, followed by exceeding budgets, poor usability or technical issues, or being abandoned entirely.

In the report, Mann writes that these recurring patterns “suggest systemic weaknesses in project conception, planning and execution,” with consequences of failure extending “well beyond individual projects”.

Respondents reported that the most frequent impact of project failure was damage to internal relationships. In other cases, digital failures led to reduced confidence in such initiatives, wasted resources, and, in a few cases, job losses. 

“There was a fundamental lack of understanding between digital teams and other departments,” one survey participant said. “This led to constant misalignment and was a frustrating and demoralising experience for everyone involved.”

When asked to share lessons learned from their digital culture projects that failed, respondents emphasised the importance of getting the setup right, conducting user research, starting with a strategy, and supporting people to avoid burnout.

“Digital audiences need to be built just like in-person ones. Don’t assume success will carry over,” one respondent said.

“Small could be just as impactful as the big-budget ideas… find what fits your organisation and audience,” another respondent suggested.

‘No quick fix’

The report notes that there is no single quick fix to undo the pattern of digital culture projects failing; instead, it calls for a more reflective, strategic, and collaborative approach to help break the cycle.

It offers six headline recommendations that it says can help bring a shift towards a more confident and sustainable approach to digital projects.

Among the recommendations are acknowledging the role of failure in progress, being clear about goals and rationale, and integrating digital into everyday operations and strategic thinking.

Understanding and investing in the sustainable resourcing of digital work, cultivating a culture of reflection and learning, and fostering collaborative leadership and empowered teams round out the key recommendations.

In the report’s conclusion, Mann writes that “failure is not the enemy, avoidance and denial is.”

“When we ignore the lessons of failed projects, we don’t just lose money or time, we lose momentum, motivation, and confidence,” Mann added. “But when we pause to ask what went wrong and why, we can create the conditions for better decisions and more resilient teams.” 

“More open, peer-to-peer sharing…could help normalise reflection and reduce isolation across the sector.”