In 2010 I will be hosting workshops for organizations that are re-tooling or aligning their online communication strategy to enhance responsiveness, trust and relevance to their stakeholders.
My goal is to initiate a bottoms up, learning and discovery process that will help organizations identify their best starting points for establishing their online communication strategy.
I believe that non profit organizations can increase their resilience, capacity and sustainability in the face of rapid change and ever decreasing resources by utilizing well thought out online strategies.
It’s a simple fact that consumers and supporters expect more from organizations via online tools and online access to resources. Non profits need to go where their constituents are and that is increasingly online.
My starting point is that caring relationships, opportunities for meaningful participation and genuine communication with supporters, consumers and donors fuels an organization’s resilience. These dimensions need to be examined internally by key staff and then the findings can be organized into an online strategy that is delivered through the organization’s web site.
In the workshop, staff will be engaged in a discussion and a shared learning process in which an online strategy can begin to take shape. This bottoms up approach taps into the organizations creativity and wisdom. Once the online strategy is in place and the most appropriate social media tools are implemented the organization begins a process of listening, learning and adapting to the new culture and environment they are inhabiting.
Non profits and businesses can now discover the profile of their audience and stakeholders (consumers, supporters, funders, volunteers etc.). With this information, non profits organizations can begin creating online strategies that engage their constituents and build stronger relationships with people that matter to them.
James Watson, Peer Research Assistant and Dr. Sean Rourke gave a wonderful presentation on their research project at the World Aids Day event sponsored by the Aids Committee of York Region.
I recorded Jame’s presentation as I was very interested in hearing from a person with lived experience speak about their participation in a community based research project. A few years ago, I co-managed a community based research project. We had 46 youth take on the role of youth researchers, examining youth poverty in York Region from a young persons perspective. Since then I continue to seek out learning opportunities related to community based research. If you are interested in learning more about community based research, the Wellesley Institute in Toronto offers in-depth training and workshops.
Jame’s talk was outstanding. He spoke so genuinely, honestly and expertly about his work and the special talents that he brought to the research project. I especially appreciated, as did other in attendance, his account of how taking on the role of Peer Research Assistant transformed his life, his sense of purpose and career direction.
Dr. Sean Rourke spoke very succinctly about community based research from his perspective. There is no doubt this report is a benchmark example of the potency of Community Based Research.
The full report can be accessed through the Positive Spaces, Healthy Places web site. This report is a great example of the benefits of community based research as a means to bring about change on the policy, service, practitioner and consumer levels.
The World Aids Day in York Region was organized by the Aids Committee of York Region. Radha Bhardwaj, Executive Director of the Aids Committee of York Region gave an opening address that was both inspiring and alarming.
She spoke eloquently about the dire circumstances and stigma faced by people living with HIV/Aids. The alarming part of her message was the lack of supports and resources in York Region for individuals and families coping with this disease.
There is much work to be done in York Region. We need to catch up to other municipalities that provide far more support to those experiencing the hardships brought about by HIV/Aids.
My colleague Mark living in Edmonton Alberta (Mark Holmgren Consulting) forwarded me this press release from the Calgary Chamber of Volunteer Organizations (CCVOV). My sense is that the findings are very in line with what non profit groups are experiencing in York Region and across the GTA. I think the non profit community, funders and donors will gain insight and possible strategies after a full read of the Report, its findings and recommendations.
MEDIA RELEASE
Stretched to the Limit: An Economic Impact Survey With little relief in sight, nonprofits and charities are bracing for the worst
CALGARY, AB – November 30, 2009– Results of an economic impact survey conducted by the Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations (CCVO) in October indicate Alberta’s nonprofit organizations and charities have been adapting to the recession, but they are stretched to the limit with little capacity to adjust to increased demand or reduced funding.
Despite predictions that economic conditions will improve in 2010, the real financial impact of the recession is expected to hit the voluntary sector next year. Although organizations reported reductions in 2009, the major impact of government cuts and decreased revenues is expected to hit in 2010.
Many organizations reported reducing costs and said they were operating as lean as possible, trying to preserve programs and services. More than 30 per cent of those surveyed, however, had to make cuts in services. If economic predictions are correct and 2010 presents the greatest challenges nonprofits and charities have faced in this recession, even more programs and services will be on the chopping block.
My focus is working with organizations to develop their online communication strategies then utilizing appropriate social media tools. Complementing my expertise, I partner with great web designers and developers to deliver a full range of web 2.0 services. Let us help you be better at what you do, using the power of the social web.
Social Media – a definition
Social media are works of user-created video, audio, text or multimedia that are published and shared in a social environment, such as a blog, podcast, forum, wiki or video hosting site. More broadly, social media refers to any online technology that lets people publish, converse and share content online. (via Socialbrite)
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