Citizen Engagement through IBM Jams

While the video dates back to July the concepts discussed in this video certainly still apply to all cities and towns across the world. I apologize for the IBM advertising aspects of this (I am not affiliated and make no money from it):

Gubernatorial Candidate Chafee promises open government reform

My friend Sid Burgess wrote this excellent guest post about gubernatorial Candidate Lincoln Chafee’s recent comments about open government.  Sid does work with the team at SeeClickFix, so please keep this in mind as you read his post.  Since I have a great deal of respect for the SeeClickFix team, and Sid, I do not mind highlighting them as part of this post (I receive nothing in the process, just FYI).   

Beyond what Sid shares below I also wanted to note that this is a very good sign for American politics.  It is one of the few times I have seen a political candidate speak about open government as part of their political platform.   Will other candidates pick this up and merge this message into their campaign?  Will this spark more meaningful citizen conversations and involvement?  Will this translate into measurable change leading to cost savings and other efficiency wins?  Only time will tell, of course, but at least the conversation is underway.

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Image from campaign website

Lincoln Chafee, independent candidate for Governor of Rhode Island, is all about the power of the community. In a recent press release outlining his plan for “open, accessible, accountable government,” Chafee made it clear that real change starts when citizens and their governments have connectivity and communication. He plans to bring Rhode Island in step with other forward-thinking administrations by improving the accessibility and usability of the state’s website, as well as initiating an open procurement process. Chafee also intends to utilize tools which enhance open government, such as GovLoop and . . . SeeClickFix!

“I want to include Rhode Islanders in the process of stewarding their neighborhoods by encouraging the use of SeeClickFix, a free mobile phone and web application that allows citizens to identify, report, and fix non-emergency issues in their neighborhoods,” stated Chafee on his campaign website. Wasting no time, the campaign has already organized a “SeeClickFix Storm” to take place this weekend across Rhode Island, during which supporters are asked to find and report issues in their neighborhoods with the goal of publicizing Chafee’s open-government initiative.

It’s not the first time we’ve seen groups of people get together, with friends or in support of a cause, to utilize SeeClickFix en masse. In some ways, it is the most fun and effective way of making a big difference with relatively little effort. Chafee’s campaign initiative will be off to an effective start with the help of SeeClickFix to bridge the communication gap between citizens and their local governments. “With this ‘SeeClickFix Storm,’ we can start using SeeClickFix statewide and getting community issues fixed,” Chafee says on the Facebook invite to the event. “And more broadly, Rhode Island citizens can participate in the work of government in a meaningful way.”

SocialMadeSimple, making social media easier for real estate professionals

While at a Tweetup last night in Cambridge I ran into the people behind SocialMadeSimple and had the opportunity to hear a bit about their solution.  This video, from their website, hits upon many of the key points.

Those of us that work extensively with social media often forget that most people know little about how to blog, tweet, etc…, and/or are fearful of getting started.  SocialMadeSimple is working to eliminate the pain by for a very large niche, real estate and mortgage professionals.  They are taking a big picture approach and helping these people by:

• Providing strategic plans to guide users at all levels of comfort.  Starting with a plan is critical to success.
• Creating the accounts, if not already in place, to support social media activity.
• Providing education on the tools.
• Providing a library of content.  Many people sit down in front of their computer and have no idea what to write. Fresh content is added to their library providing professionals with articles they can simply share or comment upon depending on their comfort level.
• Grading users.  Goals are only useful if you are measuring how you are doing against them.  This grading system keeps people, and entire organizations, on track.

SocialMadeSimple is a  new company but they are already gaining traction.  They recently signed a deal with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage of Southern California and Arizona, giving more than 6,500 agents in that area access to their solution.   I’ll keep an eye on how they progress, stay tuned.

John

Related Articles

• SocialMadeSimple Inks Deal with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage of Arizona and Southern California (prweb.com)

Vietnam seems to understand Government 2.0

Image via Wikipedia

Government 2.0 is a citizen-centric philosophy and strategy that believes the best results are usually driven by partnerships between citizens and government, at all levels.  It is focused entirely on achieving goals through increased efficiency, better management, information transparency, and citizen engagement and most often leverages newer technologies to achieve the desired outcomes. Government 2.0 is bringing business approaches, business technologies, to government. (as defined by me )

Vietnam is launching a program next year, investing $90 million dollars which, beginning in 2015 they expect to create annual returns of up to $1.5 billion.  Dr Phung Van On, Director, IT Center, Office of the Government, states that “To make it work, the government has proposed a comprehensive plan to ensure there is the appropriate legal framework, the right financing, human resources and implementation strategy.”    A top down goal-oriented approach that recognizes the following is key:

• You must invest money in training, technology, and people if you are to drive real change.
• Laws must be clarified for all those working to drive change.  In some cases laws may need to be modified, through proper channels of course, to support growth.
• Technology will often be a key enabler.  In fact, the majority of the savings Vietnam expects to see will come from a shift to the web for everything from citizens paying taxes to government acquisitions.

While we must wait a few  years before we know if the ROI being predicted is achieved it is clear that the country is already benefiting from the government 2.0 philosophy.  The Vietnamese tech sector, as noted in the article,”.. grew by 20 per cent (to US$6.26 billion) in 2009 despite the global economic downturn, and the government is targeting three times GDP growth through to 2020.”

Are outcomes guaranteed?  No, nothing in life is for sure.  However, a strategic approach with intelligent investment will deliver results. 

John

Related Articles

• It’s time for a new version of government (tech.fortune.cnn.com)
• Steve Ressler: New Snapshot of Gov 2.0′s Evolution (huffingtonpost.com)
• Transcript of an interview about Government 2.0 (clubtroppo.com.au)
• The Five Branches Of Government 2.0 (rohitbhargava.com)

Since the future begins with local engagement/involvement….

Image via Wikipedia

 

While large organizations are clearly delivering value to the public and private sector it is important that we do not lose site of the importance of small organizations, local governments, and their ability to drive positive changes.  According to census numbers and numbers published by SBA for the United States alone we know that:  

• There are more than 80,000 local governments in the United States.
• There are more than 27.5 million small businesses in the United States (http://www.sba.gov/advo/stats/sbfaq.pdf).

With these numbers in mind I have launched a brand new community, Our Town Talk.  This community will evolve as membership grows, meeting the needs of our members.   

The mission for this community is straightforward and summed up as providing a place for citizens, small business owners, local government employees and politicians to come together and share their thoughts on what is good and what is not so good in their communities.  Over time I would love to see this become a place where citizen 2.0 is standardized and becomes a reality.   

While these goals are worthwhile we will need to be patient and seek to grow this community to the point where a critical mass is achieved.  In the mean-time, note:  

• The community is absolutely FREE.  It is ad-supported and I want to keep it this way to make sure there are no barriers to entry.
• There are three members today.  As I noted, I literally just launched this.
• As new members join I will create areas for the towns they are from.  I expect this to be a very slow growth community and we should be able to keep up.
• If you have  ideas, share them.
• Invite friends and play to see how this can add value to your community.
• I am aggregating job listings  and daily deals from around the web and will continue to add to these to continue to give more value.

If you believe your town needs an easy to use platform stop by and give it a try.  

John  

Mobile site vs. Mobile App? (via Jon’s PR 1.5)

Image via Wikipedia

I came across this post today and it reminded me of past discussions.  I am a bit nostalgic today, perhaps, so I decided to dig back a few months.  I argued last April that you MUST develop for the mobile web first, applications second.  While mobile statistics have changed a great deal in the last 17 months the arguments still make sense.  Give that post a read, if you have time, and check out this one from today too.

 This post was fueled as many these days are by two things, a conversation with a client and our soon-to-be-announced new company. The client conversation was focused on her initial interest in creating a mobile app (iPhone, Droid, etc.) to help promote her organization, what it does, etc.  Using this app would also help her consumers navigate her business.  After doing a great deal of research in her industry, the client and her team decided not … Read More

via Jon’s PR 1.5

Success being demonstrated by going local with mobile

Image via CrunchBase

I came across two great articles today that give interesting statistics about the growth of mobile-delivered-value at the local level.  I would urge you to check them both out.

• Local Ad Revenues Showing 19.6% CAGR Through 2014
  • Traditional advertising continues to stagnate while online advertising continues to increase.  By 2014 the expectation is that 25% of ad spending at the local level will be digital.
  • 55% of all ad spending is with local media.
  • At the local level online spending has increased from 10% of the overall spend to 15% this year.
• 10% of consumers driven in-store by mobile coupons
  • According to this study people prefer (45% of respondents) to receive these coupons via text messages (SMS). 
  • However, when the study looked at just the male population that found that “51 percent said they would prefer to find coupons themselves via an application (28 percent of the general pop.) ”  Similar to driving men want to find it themselves as opposed to asking for directions.

Local businesses, chambers of commerce, and local governments need to stay on top of these trends and understand the need to shift from traditional to online means.  Services such as Google Places, GoWalla, and Foursquare will play a large role, helping businesses deliver mobile coupons to people in the area,or better yet, checked into their stores.

John

Innovation at Burlington High School

Patrick Larkin is the Principal of Burlington High School in Burlington, Massachusetts.  He is entering his fourth year and is focused on delivering a great education for his students. He is also passionate about innovation and social media, using Twitter to enhance learning and increase communication. I heard Patrick at the 140conf in Boston and knew I needed to ask him some questions.

View this document on Scribd

For Government 2.0, technology is the enabler, not the ultimate goal

As I write about The Social Ecosystem I regularly remind people that 80% of organizational challenges are common across industries, sectors, geographies.  In other words, while this article is focused on government it applies equally well to small and medium businesses, enterprises, etc…

View this document on Scribd

“Government 2.0 is a citizen-centric philosophy/strategy where results are often driven by partnerships between citizens and government.  It is focused entirely on achieving goals through increased efficiency, better management, information transparency, and citizen engagement and most often leverages newer technologies to achieve the desired outcomes.”

Learn more about Government 2.0 by reading any of these great books (affiliate links):

CityCamp Boston planning updates

Image via Wikipedia

I have been sharing some insights with you on various channels and do not want to miss updating those of you who join me on my blog.

What is CityCamp?
CityCamp is a FREE unconference focused on innovation for municipal governments and community organizations. As an unconference, content for CityCamp is not planned for a passive audience. Instead, content is created and organized by participants and coordinated by facilitators. Participants are expected to play active roles in sessions. This provides an excellent format for creative, open exchange geared toward action.  

CityCamp’s are meant to bring together citizens, local government officials, municipal employees, experts, programmers, designers and journalists to share perspectives and insights about the cities in which they live.  

When is CityCamp Boston?
The target for CityCamp Boston is March 5th, 2011. We have a couple of potential venue locations and will share with you all the information as it becomes available.  

How can I help?
Have ideas for topics? Whether it’s something you want to present on yourself or something you’d love to hear others talk about, submit your idea.  Have ideas for venue? For caterers? For Sponsors?  

CityCamp events are funded and supported by sponsoring businesses and non-profit organizations, grants, donations, and volunteers. We appreciate all you can do to help, every donation is appreciated.  

We need participants, organizers, fund raisers, and generally passionate people to make this a success. Interested in getting involved?  

• First, register for the conference (you can donate/sponsor on this form as well, if interested)..
• Stop by our idea gathering site and begin sharing your ideas for making CityCamp Boston what you need it to be.

The event will be here before we know it,  lets get ready to make a difference.  

Note that you can follow/participate with event updates on Twitter or you can join our mailing list (choose CityCamp Boston after entering your e-mail address).  

John