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10 best intranets of 2012 named

By on January 6, 2012 in Post

User experience and usability experts the Nielsen Norman Group (NNG) have named their choice of the ’10 Best Intranets of 2012’. Among the winners are UK based companies Everything Everywhere and Logica, MAN Diesel and Turbo SE from Germany, and Sweden’s Skanska. Other winners include Genentech, NCR, LivePerson and Staples.

According to NNG, smaller companies are designing better intranets compared to previous years – of this year’s 10 winning intranets, 6 support fewer than 15,000 employees, with the smallest being LivePerson at 550. The average number of employees in this year’s winning organisations is 19,700, which is the smallest since the contest launched 12 years ago.

The size of the average intranet team size grew to 15 people — slightly less than 1 intranet specialist per thousand employees, with the smallest teams consisting of 6 people at both Everything Everywhere (15,000 employees) and LivePerson Inc. (550 employees). The largest team was 26 people at NCR Corporation (21,000 employees).

Although mobile intranets have looked promising in recent years, this year saw a decline in the number of intranets offering mobile versions – possibly because teams do not have the time or resources to do more than focus on the main intranet. At the same time, social media components seem to have really taken off with a number of organisations such as MAN Diesel and Turbo making the most of the social potential of people search functionality within their intranets.

More information can be found here.

‘Person of the year’ is ‘the protester’

By on January 1, 2012 in Post

You may remember that Time Magazine named Mark Zuckerberg as its 2010 ‘person of the year’ (and the readers of Time Magazine nominated Julian Assange in their own poll).

This year, in a break with tradition, Time Magazine has named not one individual but a group of people who have called for – and brought about – change throughout the world.  Time Magazine’s ‘person’ of the year in for 2011 is ‘The Protestor’.

From the Arab spring to the Occupy movement, 2011 has seen a ‘contagion of protest’.  The protest movement has provided three of the OUP’s words of the year, chosen for their resonance for 2011.

Protest has been transformational in 2011 and seems set to continue in 2012.

Bring your own…. device

By on December 15, 2011 in Post

The blurring of work and personal life and the increasing ownership of mobile devices mean that more people are choosing to use their own devices in the workplace.

Whereas once it was the organisation that provided the technology infrastructure to its workers, it is now the users who are making these decisions based on their own preferences.

This trend (Bring Your Own Device or BYOD) brings challenges for organisations when it comes to managing access and security but it is important as employees and customers are increasingly expecting instant access to whatever they need, through any channel and via any device.

Writing on eChannel Line, Leyland Brown of Hewlett Packard says that companies need to shift their focus away from devices to the actual content.  If they get it right, organisations will find that they can improve the productivity and performance of the workforce by ensuring that they have instant access to the appropriate information delivered in the format of their choice via their own devices.  Sounds like a job for the information professionals!

Word(s) of the year

By on December 6, 2011 in Post

As the year draws to a close, the dictionaries teams at Oxford University Press announce what they consider to be the words or phrases of the year.

In 2011, the teams have announced that their global word of the year is the phrase ‘squeezed middle’.  Referring to the section of society affected by a range of economic factors, including inflation and pay freezes, the phrase has resonance in both the US and the UK.

The US shortlist of ten words or phrases provides a fascinating snapshot of world events and technological trends for 2011.  Joining the words ‘crowdfunding’, ‘gamification’ and ‘clicktivism’ are ‘Arab Spring’, ‘the 99 percent’ and ‘Occupy’.  Also included is ‘bunga bunga’ – a noun associated with parties hosted by Italian PM Berlusconi.

Meanwhile, over in Germany the ‘youth word of the year’ has just been announced.  ‘Swag’ is used by German youth to describe a cool, charismatic persona.  The choice of the word is somewhat controversial because it has clear roots to an English word ‘swagger’.

Other words shortlisted in Germany included the verb ‘Googeln’.  Which needs no translation.

The Amazings – a social knowledge transfer venture

By on December 2, 2011 in Post

Having been inspired by Rachel Botsman‘s keynote presentation at Online Information conference I was delighted to learn about a new social venture that seems to pick up on so many of her key themes.  The Amazings is designed to help people at retirement age share, and capitalise on, their experiences.

It’s an example of the ‘micro-enterprise’ which Botsman believes will mark out a new social and economic revolution every bit as influential as the industrial revolution of old.  Not only does this enterprise encourage knowledge and skills transfer but it places a real value on the expertise and experiences of older members of society and encourages social interactions between generations.

The Amazings has been receiving a great deal of positive press, as both parties to the experience gain real benefits.

 

Word of mouth really matters

By on November 9, 2011 in Management, Post

When it comes to ‘mission critical marketing’, there are a number of tools and techniques that libraries can use to retain and gain customers.  Beatrice Pulliam and Jenifer Bond wrote about strategic marketing for us last month and shared their experiences and ideas for ‘spreading the word’ at ILI2011.

Meanwhile, some interesting research was released this week by Keller Fay – a consultancy and research company that focuses on the power of ‘word of mouth’ marketing.

They have been conducting tracking studies in the UK and have just announced some of their latest findings at a conference in London, along with a list of the ‘most talked about brands’.

The study suggests that ‘the average UK adult’ talks about brands 78 times per week, and that 94% of these ‘mentions’ happen in face-to-face situations.

Positive word of mouth is extremely powerful.  Recipients attribute credibility to personal recommendations.  According to Keller Fay, organisations and marketers must learn what actually triggers the conversations (advertising/social media campaigns for example).

Happy consumers of your products and services really are a wonderful asset!

Libraries – it’s all about reading, not books

By on November 7, 2011 in Post, Public Libraries

Reading has the power to connect people and to transform lives.  The UK charity the Reading Agency exists to help people feel confident and inspired about reading.  Speaking at Axiell’s Rethinking Libraries event, Miranda McKeaney (the Reading Agency’s Chief Executive) spoke about some of the Agency’s successes and challenges and shared some transferable ideas and lessons learned.

HAVE – AND BE ABLE TO ARTICULATE – A BIG PURPOSE

It is vital that you have a crystal clear and significant sense of purpose.   You must identify and be able to articulate exactly what it is that makes you/your service unique.  Do you have a ‘noble sense of purpose’?  Why do you exist?  With public libraries, a shared articulation can be difficult and it is important not to cling to the past.  Libraries exist to support reading, not books.

HAVE A BIG PICTURE

It is important to create a big picture – to think about the future and to begin to shape the future you want.  Part if this is identifying what trends are active and working to best thrive in the future  these trends are pointing to.

Some UK trends to pay attention to

  • The number of bookshops in the UK has halved in the past six years
  • Opportunities in combining ‘live’ experiences with digital
  • Offering live and social experiences
  • Digital book sales and loans
  • Take a lead in social issues  – e.g. articulate the social costs of low literacy levels; demonstrate the links between reading and good health

WIN BIG SUPPORTERS AND KEEP THEM HAPPY

It is critical to ensure that partnerships are balanced.  You must give your partners and supporters what they need – without compromising your own mission.  For example, when the Reading Agency began to develop partnerships with publishers, the outcome would be beneficial to both parties.  Public libraries gained access to the type of author events that were previously only available in bookstores.  Publishers were gaining access to new audiences and markets.

Finally, tough times should create a spirit of innovation.  We should not be afraid to dream or experiment.

Rethinking libraries – a success story

By on November 4, 2011 in Post

Pam Sandlian-Smith, the Library Director of Anythink [Public] Libraries in Colorado, promised a tale of hope and inspiration when she closed Axiell’s Rethinking Libraries Symposium.

When she first joined the library service she encountered ‘every possible mess’.  It was the worst funded in the region and had been in decline for years.  However, with some new funding she and her team set about transforming the service.   She told the audience exactly how they did it.

New spaces

The existing spaces were refurbished and new library buildings created.  The libraries – rebranded Anythink – were re-designed to become spaces for creativity and community connections.  The design of the spaces was informed by retail philosophy.  The buildings have lots of natural light and there are other features, including fireplaces, ‘tree-houses’, wood shelving, sculptures, verandas, and outside spaces.  The collections are grouped by subject – just like in a bookshop.  They are easy to navigate.  The new branding is used at every touch-point.

Community benefit

Adams County, Colorado (in which Anythink is situated) is a young community – 75% of the population is under 50.  The team wanted to plan for sustainability by building family programmes and services.  Initially inspired by the ‘floor walker’ model of Tower Hamlet’s Idea Store, the team sets out to provide services that ‘help people become their best selves’.  There is a focus on inter-generational programming and other creative initiatives – including community gardening.  They seek to go beyond customer service, and instead to provide ‘hospitality’ – a mindset that helps eliminates barriers between people.

The people

Anythink wants passionate staff.  Job descriptions and competency frameworks were completely revised, using Apple job descriptions as an inspiration.  Staff job titles include ‘guides’, ‘concierges’ and ‘wranglers’.  They need to be part wizard, part genius, part explorer.  They must be able to motivate people to explore and discover.  They are continuous learners and have the capacity to lead others.  And they must be emotionally mature.  Staff are evaluated against these competencies.

The results and some key lessons

What really worked in Colorado was the focus on building emotional connections with its community.  People ‘love’ the library.

  • Circulation figures have quadrupled, as has public access computing usage
  • The library received the National Medal for Museum and Library Services
  • The library is having a dramatic impact on its local community
  • Be disruptive (they dumped Dewey!)
  • Be bold and dramatic!

You can watch an inspirational video about Anythink – and see the results – on YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dqs6bpdo_kA&feature=related

 

Librarians as agents of social change

By on October 29, 2011 in Post, Professional Development

Speaking at ILI2011 about the role of libraries in a post conflict society, Fedja Kulenovic told his audience that “war is the opposite of libraries”.

This seemingly extraordinary statement makes absolute sense when you consider that times of conflict bring disinformation, loss of trust, cessation of conversations and, sometimes, destruction of physical resources (two million titles were lost in the conflict in Bosnia and Herzogovina and the national library was destroyed).

There is so much potential for librarians to make a real difference in ‘turbulent times’.  Feda outlined the role of librarians in providing inspiration, creative spaces, and creating opportunities for healthy and positive dialogues between different populations.   They can rebuild the information landscape too, helping society move away from misinformation to clarity and balance.  There is scope to educate people in the information skills that can contribute to economic growth and prosperity.

This theme of supporting the development of information and media literacy skills, (in this case against the background of the Arab Spring), was also discussed by Kayo Chang.  In such circumstances, students need to understand a range of information issues, including maintaining online reputations, analysing information and working within the law.

Speaking at the same session, Maria Cotera reminded the audience that there are many people in the world who are information poor.  Maria volunteers for a charity that seeks to bring library services, and literacy support, to prisoners in Africa.  Such services can be completely transformational to disenfranchised populations.

Key lesson – librarians really can contribute to transformation – of individuals and society.

Maria Cotera, Kayo Chang and Fedja Kulenovic were speaking at Internet Librarian International 2011.

 

How to dissect a website – and keep it healthy

By on October 27, 2011 in Content, Post

When it comes to sharing ideas for analysing library websites, Jennifer Phillips-Bacher of the Wellcome Library has some helpful analogies.  She likens the first stage of content auditing to dissection.  This is where you look inside to see what’s working – and what’s wrong.  Jennifer’s content audit was a detailed and tedious task.  Starting with the site map, every link must be clicked and each webpage analysed.  Content type, URL, author, metadata, when the page was created/updated and other information was captured.  In particular Jennifer recommends you keep an eye out for ROT – content that is redundant, outdated or trivial. The output of this type of content audit is an enormous spreadsheet.

The second phase is diagnosis.  You can use the information you have gathered, as well as other tools such as Google analytics to understand exactly how people are using your site.  You can see what content is never used and which are your most visited pages.   Diagnosis helps you validate exactly what you are going to include, and omit, from your website.  You can begin to identify your underserved audiences.

The next phase focuses on strategy. For the team at Wellcome, processes are being built in to ensure that the website is kept healthy and happy.  Governance of the new website is critical.  Accountability will be built into the website and an editorial strategy and content lifecycle will be developed.  The team is consulting with a branding agency and all staff will be trained in writing for the web.

Even if you are not embarking on a full redesign of your website, brief content audit can reveal all kinds of interesting information.  Start to explore your site’s analytics and see if you can find unmet needs and other opportunities.  Audit and analysis can help make you stronger!

Jennifer was speaking at Internet Librarian International