Aims Overview Presentation v2'0

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Union websites 2010 How do we get
there Presentation by Paul Smith to the UNI
Communicators Forum
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Who AM I

• Social Change Online
• Worked in partnership with Australian Union
  movement since 1996
• 50 Unions internationally
• Paul Smith
• Campaigning and Organising background
• Not a techie

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
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In 2010 Unions will organise online online

• With Organisers using the web to
• Campaign
• Recruit
• Organise
• Service
• Using technology that is common place now
• Or they wont exist at all

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
4
Five key building blocks

• Content Management
• Intranets/Extranets
• Membership system integration with web
• RSS
• GIS systems
• And blogs as an opportunity.

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
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Step 1 Content Management

• Content Management is not content publication
• Content management is about classifying content
  so you can instantly use in a variety of ways
• What important is not what on the page but whats
  behind it
• Metadata is information about information.

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
6
Campaigning example

• Need to create a campaign instantly
• Example http//www.actu.asn.au/work_rights/
• Information classifying allows instant campaign
  assembly

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
7
Practical Tip

• Look under the bonnet (it a simple right click)
  and see if you have metadata
• Dublin core is international standard though
  Nations have their own enhanced standard

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
8
Step 2Intranet/Extranet

• Web based intranets can support
• Organising campaigns
• Call centre communication
• Job allocation
• Education
• Member servicing

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
9
What a union official will will see
Login triggers personal profile
Search The site or Staff contact directory
Easy to publish images using AIMS publishers
Search Agreements
Staff support area Content managed by admin staff
Headlines News events from staff Tasks Tasks
linked to calenders
Standardized yet Flexible Main Headings
Manage content From this page
Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
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2 practical Tips

• 1)Support simple workflow
• 2)Be web based

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
11
Step 3 Connecting to members

• Membership is the key
• Joining
• Differentiating support
• Providing support organising

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
12
Interrogating membership online
Login triggers personal profile
Search The site or Staff contact directory
Easy to publish images using AIMS publishers
Search Stratum
Staff support area Content managed by admin staff
Headlines News events from staff External
news
Standardized yet Flexible Main Headings
Manage content From this page
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Practical tips

• 1)Your membership system need provide a web
  interface.
• 2)What we need is an ability to programatically
  communicate with themembership system. API
  (ApplicationProgamming Interface) or SDK
  (Software Development Kit) that we can useto
  communicate with it.
• This allows matching of content to categories
  SOAP, WFS, or some Programming API, such e.g.
  java libraries.

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
14
Step 4 RSS

• Allows for sharing of content with other sites
• workers.labor.net.au
• Allows for targeting of content
• Eg ACTU workers rights campaigns
• Allows for multiple placement of content on other
  sites
• EG Unison Barnodos intranet

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
15
RSS Practical tip

• You must produce XML every time you publish a
  page

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
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Step 5 GIS

• GIS is using a map
• Using a postcode to find a local
• Determine member views
• Organisers to use a map
• To locate workplaces
• To click on Icons to find member information
• Organiser making their own map
• www.canri.nsw.gov.au

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
17
GIS practical tips

• Your systems can work WFS

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
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Blog facts

• A blog is an online diary with reader comments
• They are very easy to set up.
• There are 9 million blogs in the world
• 40000 new blogs a day
• So if 99.99 are not relevant to you
• That means there are 40 a day that are

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
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Opportunities for unions

• Work is a key theme for many eg Waterstones or
  Google
• Opportunity to provide content
• Opportunity to provide debate eg
  www.unitetowin.org
• Opportunity to run disposable organising blogs
  particularly for community organising.

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
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Limits to blogs

• Pew research shows only 27 of internet users use
  blogs to find information
• Can be dominated by small number of users
• Not organising tool unless linked to other tools
  eg Howard Dean and Meet Up

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
21
Tools for organising

• Build and target email linked to your content
• SMS ditto
• Voice over technology eg skype
• Using PDA

Helping Unions Organise Online
psmith_at_socialchange.net
22
3 keys to success

• Remember, Its about communicating with
  people,not about technology.
• Its about changing the way the union works,not
  about repeating it.
• It about walking before you can run

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Two tips for getting started

• Make sure that what ever you do.   
• Make sure produces metadata (information about
  information.Technical term Dublin core)
• Talk to organisers (or even members!) because
  user research is key
• Development projects should spend 10 of
  their budget on usability. Following a usability
  redesign, websites increase usability by 135 on
  average.
• Jacob Nielsen

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Thanks! Paul Smith psmith_at_socialchange.net