I’ve written a  post that advertises my consulting services. The language is more the “hire me” tone but the message is consistent with what I’ve being writing about this past year. Hugh MacLeod’s illustration captures my message perfectly. It’s not the tools, it’s what the user does with the tools. As a leader, you want to strengthen your organization’s capacity to fulfil its mission and meet its core business goals. Now, you have a new set of tools to help you achieve these goals: social media technologies power social learning, and radically increase organizational and staff performance.

So how should you proceed? First, you need to empower staff collaboration, creativity and learning by adopting social media programs that engage, support, and deepen relationships with your stakeholders, including volunteers, service users, supporters, members, partners, funders and the wider community.  And you need to begin this journey now. If you delay, your organization risks losing ground as others forge ahead with social learning and social media innovations.

Consider the following questions:

• Do you have organizational stories that can be used to amplify your core business and engage stakeholders?
• Are you concerned about you or your staff taking on a more public online presence in your business and sector?
• Do you need to listen more effectively to what your community, service users and supporters are saying and doing?
• Do you have valuable insights and knowledge within the organization that is not being shared or utilized?

If your organization is struggling with any of these issues, I can help you chart your course. Through my company, Social Media Tools for Work & Learning, I help businesses and non-profit organizations build social media programs that integrate with their core business goals, achieving concrete results from their social media investment.

You can learn to use online collaboration, storytelling and mapping tools to tell your stories, increase engagement capacity inside and outside the organization, and build commitment to your organization.

I offer an in-depth half or full-day workshop called “Learning & Working Smarter.” This interactive workshop will fully equip your employees to use social media effectively in the workplace.

With 20 years’ experience managing non-profit organizations, I understand this sector’s specific challenges. My company is uniquely positioned to provide the integrated social media programs and consulting services that non-profit organizations require.

Whether you need to build and manage your web site, develop an effective social media plan that maximizes the strengths of your organization, or train your staff in the latest social media technologies, Social Media Tools for Work & Learning can provide specifically tailored services and workshops to help you excel in the social media landscape.

Contact me today to start building your social media strategy and infrastructure.

Brent Uncategorized performance improve staff organization

I’m very pleased that Harold Jarche posted a video of Dave Dave Snowden explaining the Cynefin framework. I’ve been fascinated with this model for some time and having Dave Snowden, the originator of the Cynefin Framework explain how can be used was a real treat.

The Cynefin model is a sense making framework. It can be used to understand complex situations in which your organization is struggling. It is different than a categorization model where you plop data from your situation into a two by two matrix and sort out your decision based on how the matrix categorizes your data.

With complex situations (which the non profit sector is deeply mired in)  the categorization model doesn’t reveal the nuances that can jump up and bit your analysis on the backside. The Cynefin model lets the data stand on its own and the model rises to the surface through the data, enabling you to make sense of it and then you can decide on your course of action.

Read more…

Brent Uncategorized complexity cynefin network