To think "Head of Digital" is a nonsense job title

[wiggn]

Surely it needs a noun on the end, e.g. "Head of Digital Services" or "Head of Digital Communications" or "Head of Digital Media"! Otherwise it is pretty ambiguous. Just me?

I don't know how common it is, but in the organisation where I work, it seems to be the title of the relatively non-technical person who liaises with the third-party contractor that maintains the website.🙄 They reside in the Communications team, rather than in the IT Services department (which looks after many complex systems with digital content). So their job title seems to be a bit incongruous to me. Aibu?

Presumably a Head of Digital is a head of digital communications/services/media. What you’ve listed as alternatives are much narrower titles. I would expect a Head of Digital Services to be in charges of digital media. YABU. What’s “ambiguous” about it? They’re head of digital, it’s no more ambiguous than Head of Finance or Head of Marketing as opposed to Head of Financial Services or Head of Marketing Research.

They’re commonly in charge of all of the nouns you listed in an organisation.

Yes they work with external providers (ie me).

I meant I wouldn’t expect a Head of…

I should proofread.

You don't understand what they do so who are you to comment on the job title. It's not uncommon and makes perfect sense to me as I guess I have a better understanding.

I’ve been re watching W1A and it is entirely consistent with some of their titles 😄

Who cares. The job description is the important bit. They may be head of IT in old money. Or Head of Comms.

We have a Head of Digital - It encompasses a lot of things including Digital Strategy, Digital Media Planning and Buying, Analytics, Automation and technical solution build. Over 5000 people report into her ultimately. And she's got nothing to do with IT, or the company website. So it depends on the org.

I can beat that... we have a director of people

So the director of HR then?

Isn't "Head of Digital" just the person who's in charge of all those things you listed, and anything else digital-related in the company?

You think that's bad, you should see some of the utterly bonkers NHS non clinical titles HR are currently coming up with, at least at our Trus. Apparently we have a staff experience officer, a staff engagement officer and loads more along those lines plus lots of other roles are now HR partner and the like (depending on which of their mates are currently between corporate jobs....) Don't know if you're old enough to remember the Guardian non job title of the week but we're pretty much back in those days again it seems....my favourite ever was Information Alchemist. Because you're really going to search for that on indeed.....

Ecxept that they're not, at least in my organisation. That's my point. Didn't you read my post? Their job title implies wide responsibility, but their job scope is very narrow.

It's very common. They look after all digital channels eg website, social, ad spend etc

🤷‍♀️

What’s weird about that?!

Ecxept that they're not, at least in my organisation. That's my point. Didn't you read my post? Their job title implies wide responsibility, but their job scope is very narrow.

But that seems specific to your company. I know lots of Head of Digital or Digital directors who have a large scope. It's a very common job title in my industry (tech)

@Belladonna208 I was to be an information alchemist!

This! Maybe I’m just a grammar nerd 😂 but even the government says it, there is a Secretary for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. Digital what!!!

My council has a Director of Place.

I worked with a man once who had the longest job title known to man because they couldn't think how to condense it. After that, I think the fewer words in a title, the better.

Head of digital can be a huge job, including brand and everything that touches e-commerce. A very hard job in some organisations! Not just a go-between to manage 1 website.

I find it weird that someone would be head of an adjective. Like Head of Helpful. It does need a noun.

There is so much bollocks language around in the world of work now, Head of Digital is a pretty mild one.

The real problem really is that these grandiose and unclear job titles are applied to a range of people with a wide range of responsibility from managing a whole organisation's digital brand down to being nothing more than a gloried social media manager making a few tweets and Facebook posts.

Job title inflation is just a hideous race to the bottom as far as I am concerned. We have "Executives" who aren't executives, "Directors" who don't actually direct and "Managers" who don't actually manage. It's all part of what George Carlin called "soft language".

If your head of Digital is only a Head Of, your company clearly doesn’t take Digital very seriously.

Or doesn't do bullshit job titles. Our "Heads of" at work are very senior. Different organisations have different job titles.

It is very W1A. Where's your Head of Better?