government 2.0
Being Empowered in Government 2.0
Saturday, December 19th, 2009 | government 2.0 | No Comments
The other week I had the honor of chairing the Advanced Learning Institute’s “Social Media and Government” December conference. There were some great presentations, even better discussions and what I was impressed with most–many more sophisticated questions. In government communications, it’s no longer good enough to be the first or to be using social media. More and more, you have to show a return on investment. You have to tie what you are doing to why you are doing it–and focus on what you are trying to accomplish.
When it comes to social media and government, some do not know where to start. Thus, as my keynote at the conference, I presented: Being Empowered–Faces and Places You Need to Know. To me, being empowered is closely related to leadership. We can’t lead our organizations or our colleagues if we aren’t first leading ourselves. Hence, why we must become empowered. Being empowered means two things: being encouraged and being equipped. So, I share my presentation with you here to help you achieve both of those items. The faces will help encourage you and the places will work to better equip you.
If you have added “faces and places,” please leave them in the comments as we are all always learning.
Behavior and Why It Deserves A Seat at the Goverment 2.0 Table
Friday, September 11th, 2009 | General Events and Happenings, government 2.0 | 8 Comments
As I participated in the Government 2.0 events this past week, I couldn’t help but think about one word–behavior. Over and over again, I observed that often we weren’t talking about a tool, a Web site, some new blog, or a newer IT database. We were talking about influencing and changing behavior.
Almost every topic and issue discussed had behavior in common. Whether working to increase understanding across ethnicity, wanting people to be aware and address the peanut recall situation, take better care of the environment, to adopt new work processes, or to empower local citizens to help fix up their community–behavior plays a key role. Whether it’s the behavior of the American public or the behavior of those within an organization, work is being done not to be cool, not to be different, but to influence and change behavior.
The idea of Government 2.0 and government as a platform is not about tools and technology. It’s about cultivating an environment and culture that enables citizens to influence and direct its government and each other.
Now the big question: Why? Why does government as a platform matter? Why are so many smart, talented, and skilled people devoting time, energy and resources to “Government 2.0?” The Answer: Government 2.0 is a metaphor. It’s a field jazzed about influencing behavior for the better (whether they realize it or not–many of them are social marketeers). It’s a group of people who say no to the status quo, and instead says, “We can do more. We can do better.”
Herein comes the next big question: How? This is a longer answer, but I know a good place to turn to-studying and knowing about behavior. The great thing–this is nothing new. Sure, technology is new, cultures evolve, but we as humans have been and will continue to be fascinated with behavior. So if behavior plays such a huge role in the programs we authorize, products we produce and services we fulfill–here is my recommendation–more social marketing:
What do you think? Many of us participants finish this week motivated to take our lessons learned and move the needle on some of the biggest issues facing our country. What are your recommendations to implement and help realize “Government 2.0?”
flickr credit: Leo Reynolds
What Creates a Revolution?
Thursday, March 12th, 2009 | Changeblogging: NP, activism, social change +, Social Marketing, Social Media, government 2.0 | 3 Comments
“A revolution doesn’t happen when a society adopts new tools, it happens when a society adopts new behaviors.”
–Us Now Movie Trailer Preview
Today, I was skimming through my RSS feeds and one of my favorites had an update: Mike Kujawski’s Public Sector 2.0 blog. Mike gets social marketing (the real kind), and he is also a savvy social media professional. On his site, he posted the Us Gov movie trailer, which I had seen before on Maxine Teller’s blog, but today, the last quote (located above) really stood out to me the most.
It stood out because in it I saw a profound statement being made on behavior change. It may be due to me coming away from my talk with a class of smart Yale students, where their *good* questions focused a lot on the why of social media (measurement, literacy, behavior change, clutter vs. content, society’s relationship to technology, etc.). But, I feel like this quote gest to the heart of the relationship between social media and social marketing, and why the relationship is important.
- It’s not about the tools (i.e. being cool or shiny)
- Change (i.e. revolution, small or big) is a result of adopting/influencing new behavior (whether it be that of a society, an organization or an individual).
Currently, at an increasing rate, society is experimenting and applying social media tools, both for the good and the bad. Thus, we as practitioners need to be aware of this and how it is affecting one’s behavior. For example, I tease that in 10 years, we will be doing public health campaigns for internet addiction…but how far away is that really? We already have them for TV addiction. Take a quick look here at the Us Now documentary preview, as it’ll provide some more juices to step back and do some introspection and reflection.
If you find this interesting and what to dig beyond the tools and really get to “what does this all mean?” Then, I also highly recommend visiting the Digital Ethnography blog and getting introduced to Professor Michael Wesch, who was named Professor of the Year for 2008. He and his students have some interesting and compelling videos on what “more than the tools” have to mean and why it’s important to know.
If you want to continue discussion on “what government may/can look like,” then I also recommend following both the Government 2.0 Club and the Government 2.0 Camp conversations (if you can’t physically attend the gathering coming up soon at the end of MArch) on Twitter too.
…because after all, what creates a revolution? and what does a revolution look like?
flickr photo credit: Wesley Fryer
Federal Web Council Reveals New Study: Putting Citizens First, Transforming Online Government
Wednesday, January 7th, 2009 | government 2.0 | 6 Comments
“There are about 24,000 U.S. Government Web sites now online.”
“Only a minority of government agencies have developed strong Web policies and management controls. Some have hundreds of “legacy” Web sites with outdated or irrelevant content.”
“We have too much content to categorize, search, and manage effectively, and there is no comprehensive system for removing or archiving old or underused content.”
“Agencies should be required and funded to regular content reviews, to ensure their online content is accurate. relevant, mission-related, and written in plain language. They should have a process for archiving content that is no longer in frequent use and no longer required on the Web site.”
According to my twitter search RSS feed, the term “Government 2.0″ is increasing in frequency and popularity. More bloggers and more blog posts continue to emerge on what and how government should improve its online Web presence, leveraging social media. Thus, I was enthused to read last week’s report from the experts themselves: government, to accomplish just this.
Last week, the Federal Web Managers Council, comprised of Cabinet agency Web Directors released its study titled, “Putting Citizens First: Transforming Online Government.” Its purpose is to “recommend specific strategies for revolutionizing how the U.S. Government delivers online services to the American people.
One of the most exciting pieces of the report (in my opinion) is what I understand as the government’s endorsement for more social media:
“The Government should use social media, not just to create transparency, but also to help people accomplish core tasks…To do this, the government must ensure that federal employees who need access to social media tools have them, and that these new ways of delivering content are available to all, including people with disabilities.”
Within this document, the Federal Web Managers Council also reveal their shared vision for the government’s presence online. This vision is for the public to:
- Easily find relevant, accurate, and up-to-date information
- Understand information the first time they read it
- Complete common tasks efficiently
- Get the same answer whether they use the Web, phone, email, live chat, read a brochure, or visit in-person.
- Provide feedback and ideas and hear what the government will do with them
- Access critical information if they have a disability or aren’t proficient in English.
The list of recommendations is not limited to but includes:
- Establish Web Communications as a core government business function
- Help the public complete common government tasks efficiently
- Clean up clutter so people can find what they need online
- Engage the public in a dialogue to improve our customer service
- Ensure under-served populations can access critical information online.
For more information or to read the report in its entirety, the full report is available here.
Your Turn: What do think of the recommendations, how would you prioritize and what else might you include?
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and/or connect with me on Twitter - @socialbttrfly.
NIDA and AIDS.gov Join Together in Blogger Outreach Effort for World AIDS Day 2008
Sunday, November 30th, 2008 | Blogging and the Blogosphere, Changeblogging: NP, activism, social change +, Social Media, government 2.0 | 6 Comments
“HIV/AIDS has now become a pandemic that has literally put the world at risk, affecting diverse populations in different ways”. –Dr. Nora Volkow, NIDA Director
HIV/AIDS has been a global epidemic for more than 27 years. Most of today’s youth have never known a world without it. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently published national HIV incidence (new infections) that showed much higher numbers that previous estimates.
On December 1st, individuals and organizations will recognize World AIDS Day. This year’s theme is leadership – from all sectors, including government, but also leaders among individuals and families, communities, non-profits and other organizations.
Today, on December 1, many of us are joining together through our online activity in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Joining us are two government agencies: the National Institute on Drug Abuse and AIDS.gov.
Together, they both offer numerous free resources for the public that address the HIV/AIDS issue. This is why they are joining together, along with Bloggers Unite, to harness the power of the blogosphere for good and join in community.
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Personally, I find this effort important beyond the issue of HIV/AIDS, though I definitely do not want to undermine the issue by my saying that. World AIDS Day 2008 is also important because this (to the best of my knowledge) is the first official blogger outreach activity conducted by not just one government agency, but two. Working together.
Both the National Institute on Drug Abuse and AIDS.gov are joining together with Bloggers Unite to recognize World AIDS Day 2008 through a blogger outreach call to action to raise awareness not only of the issue, but also of the great, free, public resources both agencies offer. The online Webisode below, provided by NIDA, is just one of these many resources. For more information, please visit the Bloggers Unite Participation pa
Other resources include:
NIDA’s Learn the Link Campaign
Drug abuse by any route can put a person at risk for getting HIV. This is because drug and alcohol intoxication affect judgment and can lead to unsafe sexual practices, which put people at risk for getting HIV or transmitting it to someone else. NIDA has developed the following resources to help educate, share and increase awareness of the AIDS issue.
- Learn the Link: drugs + HIV Web site and Resource
- DROGAS + VIDA = Educate Web site and Resources in Español
- d’cisions Online Webisode Series
- Other Campaign Materials
- Drugs and HIV Resource Page
AIDS.gov
The Federal government has developed a wealth of HIV/AIDS testing, prevention, treatment and research information. In addition, the following are some of the many resources you can use to help response to HIV/AIDS.
- AIDS.gov blog about Using New Media Tools in Response to HIV/AIDS
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – HIV/AIDS
- Finding an HIV Testing Center Near You
- KNOWIT HIV Testing Text Messaging Campaign
- National HIV/AIDS Awareness Days
- Podcasts from AIDS.gov
- Updates from AIDS.gov from Twitter
What are your thoughts about the increasing rise of government agencies in the social media playground? Thoughts, concerns or comments. I know you’re not shy. 
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Full disclosure: I am leading this effort at IQ Solutions for our client The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), along with AIDS.gov and Bloggers Unite.
Obama Online - More than Social Media
Saturday, November 8th, 2008 | Blog Talk, Changeblogging: NP, activism, social change +, Social Media, government 2.0 | 2 Comments
With the launch of Change.gov, commentary on Obama’s social media strategy and success have been made here, here and here. Yup, here too. Some are even calling Obama and the government integration of new media tools through Change.gov the Digital New Deal while others wonder about the extension of the Obama brand and community - post election.
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Social media is awesome. Grand. Influential. Amazing. In my professional role working with government agencies, I must admit that my first reaction to Change.gov was, “Sweet, I can’t wait for this priority on social media to trickle down among other government agencies. Man, that would make our job so much easier.” Or, would it?
Because now, instead of talking about why to do it, the opportunity to implement may [hopefully] increase, meaning we must show results. And, Obama set the bar high.
Granted, Obama’s campaign is an amazing case study that aided in achieving an important end objective - getting Obama elected. However, Obama’s online success is due to more than social media.
- Obama’s campaign was newsworthy as according to a study conducted by the Pew Research Center Project for Excellence in Journalism. This encourage the public to be interested and engaged. The study found that:
“Overall, the presidential campaign filled 54% of the newshole as measured by PEJ’s News Coverage Index from Oct. 27-Nov. 2. That represents a slight uptick from the previous two weeks when the election was at 52% (Oct. 20-26) and 51% (Oct. 13-19). The race for the White House was the dominant story in all five media sectors, most notably in cable, where it accounted for 84% of the airtime studied, and on the radio airwaves, at 65%.”
- Obama created the Obama-brand. If you work in government, you may understand some of the government’s sensitivity to the word brand. And from the outside, how the public might react to the government branding or marketing itself. (Hence, the whole debate back when to transition from health communications to health marketing.) However, the Obama-brand has become widely accepted and adapted while maintaining a consistent message to diverse audiences across a range of platforms.
- The number of resources available. Obama’s fundraising numbers were out of the roof. Not every project is as fortunate. This is why highlighting and emphasizing ROI is important and critical.
- Obama was the first, and it was sexy. Being the first is always advantageous. In the government 2.0 sector, Obama led the way in showing how to leverage a comprehensive social media plan to create an online presence that connected with the overall program’s mission. Not only did he do it, but he made it sexy by implementing creative elements that encouraged not only online users, but also online ambassadors.
- Obama and his team understood the essence of social media online and off line. This is the biggest one I think. Obama’s message tapped into the cornerstone of social media - help me, help you, help me, empower America. Did you get lost in that? Web 2.0 is about the conversation and Obama is encouraging conversation with him and among each other. The Change.gov Web site communicates it best:
“Share your vision for what America can be, where President-Elect Obama should lead this country. Where should we start together?”
He took the essence of social media tools and made it his mantra. He is change, but he needs you to help create that change. You want change, but you need him to lead that change. Brilliant.
In your opinion, what other factors outside of social media helped mold Obama’s online success?
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The Government’s A-Twitter Take 2: It’s Official
Wednesday, October 8th, 2008 | Blogging and the Blogosphere, Social Media, Twitterverse, government 2.0 | 10 Comments
For those that have been following the “Let Our Congress Tweet Campaign,” the news is in. Congress can now Tweet (as well as YouTube, Flickr and other 3rd-party sites) when communicating with constituents.
This campaign was the 1st official policy issue brought forth through Twitter. Individuals supporting the campaign were asked to tweet:
“Congress, change the rules. Talk to us on our social networks. http://letourcongresstweet.org/ Let Our Congress Tweet! #LOCT08.”
The campaign with links to media coverage can be found here. In response, the Sunlight Foundation has created @CAPITOLTWEETS has been created for those who want to receive tweets sent out by members of Congress. This allows interested individuals can get a @CAPITOLTWEETS widget to include on their blog or Web site if desired that updates every 10 minutes with tweets from Congress members.
The rulings official wording is and can be found on Speaker Pelosi’s blog:
In addition to their official (house.gov) Web site, a Member may maintain another Web site(s), channel(s) or otherwise post material on third-party Web sites. (more…)
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Related, in June, I compiled a list of ALL government Twitter accounts available. This post has been very popular, and many more have since been a) suggested and b) created. Thus, here is the update, beginning with none other than….Congress members who Twitter. Colleague @ariherzog also maintains the Government page on the Twitter fan wiki for future updates. Enjoy!
U.S. Senate
- Votes from the Senate floor
- @NRSC - National Republican Senatorial Committee
- Joe Biden (D-Del.)
- Sen. John McCain (R-Az.)
- Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.)
- Jim DeMint (R-S.C.)
- Chris Dodd (D-Conn.)
- Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa)
- Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.)
- Barack Obama (D-Ill.)
U.S. House of Representatives
- Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii)
- Gresham Barrett (R-S.C.)
- Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)
- John Boehner (R-Ohio)
- John Boozman (R-Ark.)
- Michael Burgess (R-Texas)
- Dan Burton (R-Ind.)
- Eric Cantor (R-Va.)
- John Culberson (R-Texas)
- Keith Ellison (D-Minn.)
- Randy Forbes (R-Va.)
- Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.)
- Randy Kuhl (R-N.Y.)
- Tom Latham (R-Iowa)
- Bob Latta (R-Ohio)
- Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.)
- Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.)
- Candice Miller (R-Mich.)
- George Miller (D-Calif.)
- Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)
- Tom Price (R-Ga.)
- Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.)
- Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (D-Fla.)
- Tim Ryan (D-Ohio)
- Christopher Shays (R-Conn.)
- John Shimkus (R-Ill.)
- Mark Udall (D-Colo.)
- Tom Udall (D-N.M.)
- Joe Wilson (R-S.C.)
- Rob Wittman (R-Va.)
- John Yarmuth (D-Ky.)
- Ron Paul (R-Texas) (FAKE PROFILE)
Executive Branch (including Cabinet, departments, and agencies)
- The White House: Communications Office
- The White House: Office of National Drug Control Policy
- Department of Agriculture: Food Safety Information Center
- Department of Commerce: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: National Marine Sanctuary
- Department of Defense: DipNote Blog, @dipnote
- Department of Defense: Maxine Teller, Public Affairs
- Department of Defense: Mark Drapeau, Research Fellow, National Defense University
- Department of Defense: US Joint Forces Command
- Department of Defense: Department of Army: US Army
- Department of Defense: Department of Navy: Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division: HJ Armstrong, public affairs
- Department of Energy: Argonne National Laboratory
- Department of Health & Human Services: AIDS.gov (AIDS Conference)
- Department of Health & Human Services: AIDS.gov (Main)
- Department of Health & Human Services: National Institutes of Health: NIH Communications Office
- Department of Health & Human Services: National Institutes of Health: Jim Angus
- Department of Health & Human Services: Office on Women’s Health
- Department of Homeland Security: Emergency Preparedness
- Department of Homeland Security: Leadership Journal
- Department of Homeland Security: Transportation Security Administration blog team
- Department of Homeland Security: US Citizenship and Immigration Services
- Department of Interior: National Park Service: Brooks Camp at Katmai National Park
- Department of Interior: National Park Service: National Center for Preservation Technology & Training
- Department of State: Country-specific Information, travel department
- Department of State: Dipnote, official blog feed
- Department of State: US Embassy, London
- Environmental Protection Agency: EPA
- Environmental Protection Agency: EPA News Releases
- Environmental Protection Agency: Greenversations blog
- General Services Administration: Federal Citizen Information Center
- GSA: Office of Citizen Services and Communications: GovGab
- GSA: Office of Citizen Services and Communications: GobiernoUSA.gov
- GSA: Office of Citizen Services and Communications: USA.gov
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration: Astrobiology Institute
- NASA: CoLab, advising and consulting on NASA collaboration
- NASA: Desert RATS
- NASA: Earth Observatory, echoed at Natural Hazard
- NASA: GLAST
- NASA: Hubble Space Telescope
- NASA: Jason-1 project
- NASA: Kepler
- NASA: Lunar Atmosphere & Dust Environment Explorer
- NASA: Lunar Crater Observation & Sensing Satellite
- NASA: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
- NASA: NanoSail-D mission, first solar sail created for nanosatellites
- NASA: NASA EDGE
- NASA: PharmaSat
- NASA: PreSat
- NASA: Public Affairs
- NASA: Solar Dynamics Observatory
- NASA: Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite
- NASA: Emma Antunes, web manager
- NASA: Ames Research Center: Public Affairs Office
- NASA: Ames Research Center: Kimberly Ennico, payload scientist
- NASA: Goddard Space Flight Center: Linda Cureton, chief information officer
- NASA: Goddard Space Flight Center: Ravi Sharma, engineer
- NASA: Innovative Partnerships Program: Doug Comstock, director
- NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory: Cassini, flying around Saturn
- NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory: Earth Vital Signs
- NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory: Mars Exploration Rover
- NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory: News, unofficial feed, not endorsed by JPL
- NASA: Jet Propulsion Laboratory: Phoenix Mars Lander
- NASA: Langley Research Center: Bil Kleb, computational aerothermodynamist
- NASA: Marshall Space Flight Center: Daniel Kanigan, public affairs
- National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency: Chris Rasmussen, social software knowledge manager/trainer
- Office of Personnel Management: OPM
- Securities and Exchange Commission: SEC Investor Education
- Social Security Administration: Lee Alviar, public affairs specialist in Dallas
- U.S. Geological Survey: USGS
- U.S. Geological Survey: Earthquake & Tsunami Warning
- U.S. Geological Survey: Dave Govoni, paleontologist
- U.S. Intelligence Community: Andrea Baker
- U.S. Intelligence Community: Heather Cox
- U.S. Intelligence Community: John Hale
- U.S. Peace Corps
- U.S. Small Business Administration: Business.Gov
Additional
- Bob Barr (L), former U.S. Representative from Georgia, presidential candidate in 2008
- John Edwards (D), former U.S. Senator from North Carolina, presidential candidate in 2004 and 2008
- @secgen - The U.N. Secretary General
- @peacecorps - The Peace Corps
- L.A. California Fire Department
- Mike Huckabee - Former Arkansas Governor and Presidential Candidate
U.S. State Government Leaders
- @schwarzenegger - California Gov. Arnold Schwarsenegger
- @GovernorGibbons - Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons (No longer actice and beware the fake account @FakeGibbons)
- @govgranholm - Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm
- @johncherry - Michigan Lieutenant Gov. John Cherry
- @PeterKinder - Missouri Lieutenant Gov. Peter Kinder
- Mark Boughton, Mayor of Danbury, Connecticut
- R.T. Rybak, Mayor of Minneapolis, Minnesota
U.S. State Government
- @coloradogov - Colorado Government
- @kygov - Kentucky Government
- @vermontgov - Vermont Government
- @UtahGov - Utah Government
- @SCGOV - South Carolina Government
- @www_maine_gov - Maine Government
- @rigov - Rhode Island Government
- @wsdot - Washington State Department of Transportation
- @NevDCNR - Nevada Dept. of Conservation and Natural Resources
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To 2.0 or not 2.0? That is the Government’s Question
Monday, September 15th, 2008 | Interesting Articles, government 2.0 | 3 Comments
**This article I wrote was originally published at ReadWriteWeb on September 10, 2008. And P.S., I still don’t have the internet, but the install is scheduled for Wednesday…hence the blogging delay. Thank you for your understanding!
And we’ve got the answer. Three of them actually: Listen, learn, and let go.
Let’s face it, Web 2.0 is a buzzword. And when it comes to government, change, and innovation, we have to reach beyond buzzwords. Surprising to some, the government isn’t too far beyond.
The other week Mark Drapeau, Government 2.0 columnist for Mashable, suggested that the government is currently in a state of 1.4, at least when it comes to Twitter.* I would agree, however, as my lovely professors back in grad school taught me to say, “it depends.”
Government is doing some amazing social media initiatives to better serve their constituents, and why not – social media is all about increasing the democratization of communications. The government serves its people, and thus, it’s a perfect match.
We government-familiar types know of the greatness that is CDC – from their virtual world explorations in Whyville and SecondLife, to their numerous podcasts, e-cards, MySpace page and blog, and their CDC-TV channel, they are leading the way. But there’s more.
The EPA has its own cause on Facebook for its EnergySTAR program to stop global warming. The U.S. Intelligence Agency has it’s own data-sharing and social network-esque called Intellipedia. TSA uses its blog Evolution of Security as instrumental to its customer service abilities. Not to mention, there are currently 7 head directors and decision makers with their own blog. But, I will admit that some areas in government just need some more coaching.
If you are within government or outside of government, here are three helpful strategies to be the social media maven for your agency: Listen. Learn. And Let go.
These three strategies are listed in no particular order as they all circle one another. Think back when you learned how to ride a bike. You did not let go of the training wheels, until you have learned how to ride the bike. But, you couldn’t learn how to ride the bike, until you listened to the instructions. Same deal.
Listening
The more you learn about the space, the more comfortable you will become. This will involving listening to webinars and speakers on the topic. For starters, the CDC is having a live web dialogue on September 18th with an expert panel to talk about how government health agencies can integrate social media practices into their initiatives. There are currently 217 people signed up!
Listening also involves learning how to search, and how to search effectively. Largely, learning how to navigate the RSS feeder. I know it looks intimidating. I was at first too. But, it’s called Real Simple Syndication for a reason, because it really can be simple. Check out Google Reader or Bloglines or email me, and we can work together.
Learning
While listening, you will learn. It’s inevitable. I have best found that learning is maximized when you live with what Geoff Livingston said best in one of Buzz Bin blog posts, “You cannot underestimate the value of remaining teachable.” Attending speakers, applying your knowledge and participating in the space as an individual all help facilitate learning.
For example, Sec. Mike Leavitt and a group of world leaders came together in 2007 to create the Pandemic Flu Leadership Blog. Through this short-term blog, conversations and discussions were shared leading up to an offline Leadership Forum. Taking the lessons learned from this experience, Sec. Leavitt launched his own blog on behalf of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in August 2007.
Letting Go
As your listening and learning combines, eventually, you will feel more comfortable in letting go. And letting go can include baby steps. Like, the case of Sec. Leavitt, you can build upon past activities. Do gather the statistics. Do highlight other case studies.
• Perhaps, instead of creating your own social network, it begins with placing a web badge or banner about your initiative on a social network.
• Perhaps, instead of creating a Twitter account feed, you conduct Twitter searches for your government agency’s name and important keywords.
• Perhaps, instead of creating your own blog, first do a guest entry on an already established blog.
• Perhaps, when pitching new information or publications to traditional news outlets, see if that media organization has a relevant blog column or social media reporter and share your information with him or her.
The ideas are endless, which is why being relevant is core. Let’s not be doing things for the sake of doing them. Let’s connect in meaningful ways. The tools may be new, but the importance of relationship-building and support remain constant. I’m excited to have the opportunity to highlight in this Government 2.0 column ways our government is being innovative as we all listen, learn and let go together.
*Context and attribution corrected.
Alexandra Bornkessel
Email: socialbutterfly4change@gmail.com
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