Apr 19
Northern Voice Blogging Conference 2008
Moosecamp
The first day of the blogging conference was an “unconference” (affectionately called “moosecamp”). This “unconference” format is modeled on the popular “barcamp”, which is a day of unstructured conversations initiated by computer geeks on various technical topics.
I was particularly interested in ithe session on (Microsoft) Sharepoint software, and it was suggested by the organizers that we also attend the session on Social Enterprise first as both of the topics are related. The majority of the conversations in both sessions circled around company culture and how it related to collaborative culture when the software was introduced.
I’ll try to give a summary of some of the points:
Social Enterprise
Why use collaborative software? Some companies found there were issues of permissiveness in emails. With problems opening email attachments, due to formats used and problems with viruses, it was preferable not to send documents as attachments. One solution to these problems was to use a form of collaborative software to share documents. Sharepoint is a closed system, which is useful for restricted-use documents.
What challenges were involved in using software in a social enterprise system? Some companies had difficulty getting their employees to adopt the system as a work tool.This may have to do with some people’s distrust of technology and that it wasn’t part of their office culture. How does it become part of the company’s culture? One participant questioned how much of the resistance to the technology had to do with language. Context and culture are interdependent concepts. In cases where it had become successful it was noted that in order for the collaborative software to be successful it had to mimic the cultural communication in the company and it had to serve the purposes of the group. It should be a grassroots effort. If it came down from management, there was lack of interest. It has to become the culture of the company and not just a project. It was also important to get the search algorithm working and needed to be professional about the search (it had to be meaningful); Google search, for example. Another participant noted that usage of the software went up when there was also some personal meaning in some of the activity that went on within the software structure. Organizing staff socials, for example, gave personal meaning as well as fresh content which in turn kept people returning to the system.
Feb 08
It’s that time of year again….
Nov 02
Susan Johnston of Urban Muse wrote a good article about paying one’s dues as a recent university graduate in their first job:
The Starter Job, by Susan Johnston
Oct 02
PMI - Perry Martel International has some good articles on researching career paths and uncovering opportunities at their website: http://www.perrymartel.com/ . Of particular note is the article “Hunt Your Own Head” which discusses the more nontraditional approaches to finding career opportunities. It gives a good summary on using ’structured search engine queries’ as a means for doing a quick online scan in your career interest areas.
Oct 02
An article in the UBC E-strategy October newsletter mentions UBC Circle where I have been working with the communications group on this pilot project for the Institutional Repository:
(full article): Opening Minds by Opening the Circle at UBC
Sep 03
The Faculty of Arts at UBC has an excellent website with a number of biographies from former BA students who describe their career paths. Of particular note is Susan Biro’s interview which describes how she became a certified personal coach. She went through a period of time when she felt uncertain about her career path choices and how she might use her BA in Psychology. She eventually went to a personal coach to assist her in clarifying her goals and interests. She found the process appealed to her so she investigated the training and career possiblities in this field and eventually started her own business as a personal coach. Her story is a good example of how the career exploration process may uncover unexpected opportunities. Her website is at: http://www.susiebiro.com/cs.html .
May 28
Courtesy of the folks down in Seattle at Common Craft a video explaining RSS
May 15
I have been doing a lot of reading lately on career development and career searches and I’ve found a few interesting titles of note. For those that peruse the resume and career development section at your local bookstore you might be overlooking some gems that are hiding in the business section. Here are a few:
- U R a Brand: How Smart People Brand Themselves for Business Success, by Catherine Kaputa (Davies-Black Publishing, 2005) - This piece details how to create a notable brand for yourself and use it as a marketing tool for career development, job search and networking opportunities. It gives the reader some prescribed strategies to realize what is unique about themselves and how to utilize this in their careers. There are some useful ideas here, in particular how to network and get yourself noticed. It does touch on how to use your resume as a strategic marketing tool but I would have preferred to see some more concrete examples of before and after resume revisions as opposed to the brief descriptives offered. I was happy to discover that our local library has this available online as an ebook.
- Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything, by Don Tapscott and Anthony D. Williams (Portfolio, Penguin Books 2006) - While this text aims to be a lively description of how business has changed due to new distruptive technologies (and it does succeed in this goal) it also serves as a good survey of how careers and employment opportunities have changed in reaction to mass collaboration innovations. There have been notable shifts in employment in industries and this is due in part to the adaption of new technologies and the restructuring of companies in reponse of the adaptation thereof. Perceptions of employment have also changed and the number of free agents are on the rise. There are more instances of freelancing and individual doing consulting. One cited example is the website InnoCentive which solicites freelance scientists to create solutions for problems and offers a set fee for a solution used. I mostly appreciated the concrete examples of where collaboration has created cultural changes within businesses. This one is definitely worth a read.
- The First 90 Days: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels, by Michael Watkins (Harvard Business School Press, 2003) - This text provides a very readable description about the initial period as one progresses into a new leadership role in business. In particular I liked the first chapter “Promote Yourself” in which it effectively gives advice on breaking your old habits (from your previous role) so that you can succeed in your new position. The most difficult issue in this situation is the adjustment to a new “culture” which more often than not determines if you are a good “fit” for your company. This title is also available as an ebook.
Question: Has anyone else read any other books or articles that are useful for career development?
May 10
Last weekend I attended a most excellent writing workshop put on by Geist magazine as part of the festivities to celebrate “When I’m 64″, namely the 64th issue of their magazine. Geist magazine is put out by a non-profit organization whose interests are in promoting Canadian writers and photographers. Stephen Osborne lead the workshop on the “Art of the Sentence” to a group of about 20 writers at the Listel Hotel on Robson Street. His focus was on creating interesting sentences following the formula of the 5 Ws (Who, What, Where, Why & When). After 2 hours of exercises we had all come away with a good sense of how to formulate strong sentences suitable for writing narratives, prose & short stories. As a continuation to their workshops Geist has now added “The Writer’s Toolbox” to their website at geist.com . As part of the toolbox (http://geist.com/toolbox) they have included tip sheets and writing exercises suitable for the individual writer as well as teachers to use with their writing classes. This is the second Geist workshop that I have attended and I must say that they are quite excellent!
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