LocalGovChat

This has post has been written before. But it can’t be written enough. I was having a discussion about how to structure a good communications staff. What level/grade should staff be? Does staff doing online engagement report to public affairs? How does IT fit into the picture? Those sorts of questions were being tossed around.

And while planning, strategy, setting performance measures are necessities and in government hierarchies are mandated, in my experience it all really boils down to having the right people and the right person leading.

On paper, things tend to always look great. In implementation is where the failures begin and when lessons must be learned, adjustments made and plans reconfigured, and momentum must be maintained.

Unlike the private sector, government doesn’t always get to – at least very easily – get to pick who does what? But what if you could?

So tonight, I’d like to discuss how you would assemble your #gov20 dream team.  If you could assemble your team like a NFL GM does? Who is your quarterback? Do you go for the Hail Mary or grind it out yard by yard?

Join us tonight at 9 EST. Should be fun and I promise the whole thing won’t be wrapped in the football analogy – at least not the whole time.

Thank you again to Sid Burgess for joining us last week to discuss 311 systems and more importantly social or open 311 systems and how local governments big and small and implementing these systems. A key point made was that whatever our motive – for good public relations or for data management – the systems are working, they are less expensive, easy to customize, and ultimately give you the tools that allow customers to provide feedback and report issues easily whenever and wherever they are. If you missed last week’s chat, you can comb through it here.

We are nailing down another awesome guest for tomorrow and hope to announce very soon. Join us at 9 EDT at #localgovchat every Wednesday.

One of the biggest obstacles to change in government at any size is getting started. Making that leap. Starting down the trail. [Insert your own here]. So tonight we thought it would interesting to invite Sid Burgess, of SeeClickFix, who has been talking with government agencies of all sizes across the country about how best to handle customer service, how to track and monitor, and how to make talking with your government easier. It’s not going to be a commercial, but hope to hear what Sid has seen and how different localities are handling their modernization. Should be a great chat. Join us tonight at 9 EDT by following #localgovchat.

After an awesome, link-filled chat last week with Luke Fretwell of GovFresh, we’re going to leave this week open to discuss whatever you’d like. I have some questions ready, but feel free to send ideas to @localgovchat all day without the hashtag and we’ll get to as many as possible. See everyone tonight!

Tonight, Luke Fretwell of GovFresh will be moderating the chat to discuss instant web content creation and how some of the tools available to local government can really change how and when you communicate with your residents. His recent post, “The dark secret behind the De Leon, TX, website makeover,” shows how some simple but effective changes can really impact – in a positive way – how you look to your residents. Definitely check it out. Also follow the hashtag #localgovchat tonight at 9 pm EDT to discuss how some of these tools and techniques can help you. Hope to see everyone there!

I am always careful at my day job trying to decide what to RT and how to phrase thing that keeps me and my agency out of legal troubles. In many cases, this can be a very fine line. Tonight I’d like to further identify that line with all of you.

Join us tonight at 9 EDT at #localgovchat.

Both Adriel Hampton, in his post recent post “Gov 2.0 is Not Cool Tech,” and John Moore in his follow-up post “For Government 2.0, technology is the enabler, not the ultimate goal,” emphasize that real culture change is required to ensure your agency/jurisdiction’s goals are met.

Stimulate, Participate, Collaborate, Repeat

Tonight we are excited to have Kevin Curry, creator of City Camp, which in recent weeks has gone all mature and organized on us and the format is now sprouting up all over the world. So please join us tonight at 9 pm EST on #localgovchat where we’ll be discussing the new website and why Kevin – and so many others – believe so strongly in this format and how it could help your city, town, village, etc.

I love this quote from a recent post regarding the four goals (Stimulate, Participate, Collaborate, Repeat) of :

In thinking about what describes the essence of CityCamp, including the 4 Goals, I’ve realized that most important to me, personally, is the 4th Goal: Create outcomes that participants will act upon after the event is over. I want to witness conversations converted into actions.  That seems like a tremendous task given a relative lack of awareness and understanding of Gov 2.0 at the local level among anyone but early adopters in big, urban markets.

Too often you send a few stars to a conference and they come back with a few ideas that end up getting lost in the day-to-day grind. The focus on outcomes and getting things done at the local, resource-strapped level is the reason we started #localgovchat in the first place. So please come join us and @kmcurry tonight at 9 EST.

I’ve been traveling through the Midwest over the past few weeks and have seen some excellent examples of communities using the power of social media to do everything from fight a proposed downtown arena, save an antiques dealer, push for anti-smoking laws and many many more great examples.  Tonight, I’d like to discuss how government – small, medium and large – can use their social media community to push for legislation, fight litter, encourage lawn maintenance and every other thing governments do. What are some cool ideas? What are some basics you MUST do? Let’s share examples, stories and ideas tonight. See you all tonight at 9 EDT on #localgovchat.