My 20 GovCamp 2012 thoughts

I had an exhausting time at GovCamp this weekend. We had lots of people. There were lots of discussions. There was much tweeting. Many photos were taken. Lots of blogging has happened.

Dan Slee had the fab idea of just posting 20 quick thoughts and take-aways. So let’s have a (somewhat delayed) go.

  1. I don’t think the two day format worked, overall. I’m pleased we tried it, but it’s just too long and the second day didn’t feel sufficiently different to the first. Also, everyone who attended both days were totally exhausted by about lunchtime on the Saturday.
  2. Steph Gray is not just brilliant at government webby stuff, I think he’s also one of the best human beings currently on the planet.
  3. Some people have written of the need to further the range of people that attend. I’m a firm believer that the best people to attend are the people who want to, and don’t need to be convinced. It is, I assure you, entirely coincidental that this is also the path of least effort.
  4. Another excellent post looked at the differences between the event this weekend and the original, in 2008. I agree: they’re very different. Some might prefer the way it was before, others prefer the way it is now. I think the event just reflects the environment in which we are all operating.
  5. Maybe there’s space for a new event that’s more specifically geeky. I dunno.
  6. The Government Digital Service has changed the nature of discussions and the whole government geek ecosystem, as others have mentioned. The responses to that from folks in central and local government are interesting, including in the way they differ.
  7. Lloyd Davis is a legend, a master facilitator and the most calming influence ever.
  8. Looking through all the photos from the event afterwards made me feel like there were about 6 different GovCamps happening, none of which I attended.
  9. ‘Keynotes’ at Govcamps make me feel funny. I personally don’t see why Friday’s closing session couldn’t have happened as a normal pitched session during the day which would have felt more a part of the community spirit of the event. It could have been sorted pretty easily. But still, I hope people found it useful.
  10. Hadley Beeman is excellent at organising drinking sessions, amongst other things
  11. The fantastic reading material following the event is a sign of just how vibrant and useful a medium blogging is for telling stories, sharing knowledge and learning
  12. Someone on Twitter derided the event as a ‘talking shop’. I don’t see why that’s a bad thing. Where talking reinforces learning and allows for reflection and the teasing out of effective ways of doing things, it’s got to be good. I’m pleased GovCamp provides a framework for that to happen.
  13. Even better, let’s run an event that’s even more informal than an unconference. Ditch the agenda entirely. Just have rooms in which people go in and talk about stuff. Use things like Twitter to let people share what’s being discussed in the rooms, so people can move around to the conversations that interest them. Chatcamp?
  14. Thinking about all this, my interest in organisational learning and knowledge management is piqued once again. Can’t help but feel that very few organisations in the public (or indeed any) sector have this right. Too little learning from previous experience, too much hoarding of knowledge. The answer is only kind of digital, of course.
  15. I do look back at 2008, with the smaller community, sitting around showing each other how to use Twitter, with quite a bit of nostalgia. Knowing where one fits in these days is tougher.
  16. A few people have said what a good thing it is that GovCamp isn’t organised by government itself, which is interesting and perhaps indicative of something or other
  17. They may not see it this way, but many of those I saw and chatted with last weekend weren’t colleagues, or customers, or whatever, but friends.
  18. I suspect that if actual organisations were run like GovCamps, nothing would get done. But all those who attend could bring some of the spirit of the weekend to their work, encourage others to be thoughtful, and open. The result would be that small changes would happen around the edges, which might then lead to bigger and better things in the future.
  19. The challenges government faces these days are much bigger and more difficult than in previous years. Digital is part of the solution but only a small part. The innovations that matter will be in the realm of policy and service design. Technology will play a vital role in making that happen but perhaps more as an enabler than a driver in itself.
  20. As always seems to happen after GovCamp, I’m faced with the realisation that I have absolutely no idea what I’m doing.

Remember – if you want to run a public service related ‘camp style event, you can. It’s dead easy. If you need money, Steph and I can help out with the fund contributed to by the lovely GovCamp sponsors. Just ask.

Introduction to Public Sector Digital Engagement LONDON & SE

Tuesday 25th October 2011

Feedback from previous Digital Engagement workshop

The workshop provided me with a better understanding of the advantages & pitfalls of social media – Tourism Development Officer, Ceredigion County Council
The workshop was informative and lent itself well to interaction with well thought out activities – PR Officer, Coleg Morgannwg
Useful insights and experiences shared. Very knowledgable and practical. – Information Systems Consultant, Newport City Council
Dave is very engaging and informative – E-Communications Officer, Mid & West Wales Fire & Rescue Service
Very engaging and knowledgable – Head of Consumer Strategy, Remploy
Interesting. Good use of examples. Relaxed interactive discussions. Good mix of activities & discussions –  PR Officer, Coleg Morgannwg

We are delighted to announce this workshop introducing Public Sector organisations to the opportunity offered by the web and social media to enable effective engagement with citizens and communities.

Facilitated by Kind of Digital’s Director, Dave Briggs, who has a wealth of experience advising government on digital engagement at all levels; from small local authorities to 10 Downing Street – attendees will come away with a full grasp of the background and potential of this work as well as a practical toolkit to get underway.

The agenda, a blended mixture of engaging talks, group discussion and practical exercises, will include the following sessions:

  • How local authorities can use the web and social networks to engage citizens and communities
  • Case studies of good practice use of emerging technology to engage by those involved in local government
  • How to develop a digital engagement strategy for your work
  • Choosing the right tools and approach to meet your objectives
  • Getting around organisational barriers to implementing your plan
  • Further support

As well as the training on the day, attendees will benefit from post-event support and learning. This includes exclusive access to a follow-up web conference and an online support forum.

Click here to book your place.

AGENDA

9.30am: Registration

10.00am: Introductions and housekeeping

10.15am What is digital engagement, and why is it important?

* The background to digital engagemen
* The opportunities it offers for local government

10.45am: Introducing the digital engagement toolkit

* What are the key tools?
* How have they been used across the public sector

11:15am: The importance of a strategic approach

* Why having a strategic approach to social media activity matters
* The best way to balance strategy and experimentation

11.30am: Coffee break

11.45pm: Strategy development workshop – writing your own digital engagement strategy

* Objectives
* Implementation
* Evaluation
* Risk management

1.00pm: Lunch break

1.45pm: Overcoming barriers

* What are the blockers in many organisations for getting social media activity going?
* How to manage them

2.15pm: Planning a social media campaign exercise

* Group exercise to design effective social media projects, using the right tools and involving the right people

3.45pm: Coffee break

3.55pm: Social media question time

* An opportunity to ask questions of the group and facilitator to work out issues in more depth

4.25pm: Close and next steps

* Further online support: webinars and forum

4.30pm: Workshop ends

Delegate Costs : If you book your place before 19th August, you receive the benefit of an early bird discount, so don’t delay!

Early bird price – £200 + VAT
Standard price – £250 + VAT

Address:
CCT Venues Smithfield
2 East Poultry Avenue
London
EC1A 4PT
Map and Directions

Start Time: 9:30 am
End Time: 4:30 pm

Click here to book your place.

Social Media for Emergency Planning & Resilience

A quick plug of this great workshop being delivered through the Public Sector Web Network (about which I will shortly have some very exciting news!).

Social Media for Emergency Planning & Resilience

Thursday 22nd September 2011, Park Plaza Hotel, Leeds

This workshop is aimed at all Category 1 Responders as identified in the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 which includes the usual “blue-light” emergency services as well as others:

  • Police forces, including the British Transport Police
  • Fire services
  • Emergency medical services in the United Kingdom
  • HM Coastguard
  • Local authorities
  • Port Health Authorities
  • Primary Care Trusts, Acute Trusts, Foundation Trusts (and Welsh equivalents), Health Protection Agency
  • Environment Agency and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency

A category one responder or other organisation planning for major incidents should:

  • have the capacity to process between 3,000-20,000 items of social media traffic per day during the response phase of an emergency *routinely monitor social media for operational data and potentially for triggers for emergency response
  • understand the potential of the global online community in emergency response
  • understand the implications of online culture in managing an emergency.

This workshop will help attendees to not only maximise the benefit of situational intelligence but also manage social media flows robustly and warn and inform the public effectively.

Please contact Nick Hill at nick@publicsectorforums.co.uk to reserve a delegate place!

Workshop Facilitator: Ben Proctor 

Ben has a background in Public Relations, Information Technology and Emergency Planning. In 2008 he saw that emergency response and crisis communications were going to be strongly affected by developments in mobile and online technology so he set up Likeaword to become a centre of expertise in digital skills for emergencies. Ben is based in Shropshire, UK but works across the country with category one responders and other organisations looking to manage their response to emergencies. He works with emergency planning and business continuity professionals as well as with corporate communication specialists.

Agenda

1 Welcome and introduction

2 Check we’re all on the same page

  • quick summary of civil contingency arrangements, the roles and responsibilities of responders and individuals within responders
  • quick round up of social media, related online technology, and relevant mobile technology
  • introduce an emergency scenarios to be explored during the day as a desktop exercise

3 Use of social media for warning and informing the public

Social media offers responders a simple, low cost broadcast medium and many responders have begun to use it in this way

  • case studies of effective uses of the technology
  • discussion on strengths and weaknesses of the technology and the risks inherent in its use including discussion of the implications of power and telecoms failure
  • discussion on how social media for warning and informing can be integrated into emergency plans
  • run desktop exercise to examine how social media for warning and informing could be introduced into management

Lunch

4 Managing feedback in the social media space

Social media allows all individuals and organisations access to the same simple, low-cost broadcast medium. Individuals may ask for clarification, they may challenge or may spread rumours or contrary information.

  • case studies of effective uses of the technology
  • discussion on strengths, weaknesses and risks of various approaches (passive, reactive, proactive)
  • discussion on integration into emergency plans
  • discussion on the training and exercising implications of effective management of feedback
  • re-run desktop exercise with new injects to model social media feedback

5 Working with the online community

Social media and online technology gives responders potential access to a worldwide community of relevant skills. This section will introduce the topic.

  • case studies and examples of interesting and effective community engagement in emergencies (and independet community response)
  • discussion on the implications for responders

6 Wrap up

  • re-cap over the day’s learning
  • opportunity to cover points that may have been missed
  • some suggestions for further reading and discussion

Address:
Park Plaza Hotel
Boar Lane, City Square
Leeds
LS1 5NS
Map and Directions

Start Time: 9:30 am
End Time: 4:30 pm

Price: £200.00 + £40.00 Surcharge

Please contact Nick Hill at nick@publicsectorforums.co.uk to reserve a delegate place!

The Learning Pool Community Day – 14 September

I’ll be joining my good friends at Learning Pool on the 14th September in celebrating their Community Day – where the UK’s biggest public sector online learning community will be coming to life.

The packed agenda features plenty of reasons to sign up for a place, if you haven’t already.

Keynote presentations from Dr Andrew Learner of iESE and Dean Shoesmith, President of the PPMA are followed by interactive seminars on topics as diverse as engaging people with e-learning, measuring return on investment and making the best use of emerging technology (I’m helping out with that one).

The day will be rounded off with the Learning Pool Customer of the Year Awards, which are always good fun – and I’m sure the party will carry on afterwards too.

Five more reasons to attend:

  1. Cement relationships
  2. Get ideas for your own practical initiatives
  3. Hear about best practice and benchmark with your peers
  4. Receive free expert guidance and useful tips
  5. Take away strategies you can implement immediately

So, with just a handful of places left, sign up now!