Internal+Communications+taskforce

On Thursday 16th February 2012, the ILRI internal communications taskforce that was formed at the Partnerships and Communications Annual Meeting 2012 held a virtual meeting to assess the feasibility of the ideas that were initially raised at ParCom12 on Internal Communications, raise any new ideas and assign responsibility for the favored ideas.

(To view the MeetingWords notepad of the meeting notes as they happened, click here)
 * Attendees:** Paul, Evelyn, Tsehay, Meron, Ewen, Milcah, Abenet and Andrew

// Existing ideas //
(from ParCom12) // Assessment: Relatively high impact, relatively easy implementation // // Assessment: Relatively low impact, relatively easy implementation // // Assessment: Relatively very low impact, relatively very difficult implementation// // Assessment: Relatively low impact, relatively easy implementation  // // Assessment: Mid-range impact, mid-range difficulty in implementation // // Assessment: Relatively high impact, relatively easy implementation // // Assessment: Relatively high impact, // //relatively difficult implementation// // Assessment: Relatively high impact, relatively easy implementation //
 * **Yammer (maximizing yammer use)**
 * Key discussion points:
 * How to get more individuals involved
 * Including how to approach different levels of people and different groups
 * Encouraging existing members to become more active
 * More corporate announcements - possibly from Jimmy
 * Increase KommsKlinic
 * Establish contact person/s in each department who specialize in Yammer
 * Review guidelines on Yammer use and how it is being disseminated
 * Possible prize incentives for //Yammerer// of the month
 * Consistent follow-up with individuals or groups
 * **Coffee morning (remodeling the coffee morning model)**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Go beyond routine announcements
 * Ensure all staff share project updates and across regions - in Addis and Nairobi
 * Present ations on yammer through coffee morning
 * Choosing different venues
 * Capturing and sharing the ideas and discussion from morning with other regions, possibly via audio recordings
 * **Scientific conference (revamping the scientific seminars)**
 * Key discussion points:
 * How to engage scientists from different regions (share on Yammer)
 * Field days
 * **Physical and virtual Notice board**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Use board to display announcements e.g. what's planned
 * Twitterfall-like/Yammerfall-like
 * Feeds from blogs...
 * Share 'week ahead' template
 * **Campus and events calendars**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Improve content on physical / virtual calendar
 * Staff moves, events should be ON
 * **Jimmy’s video**
 * Key discussion points:
 * We have to consider how to make it regular
 * Have someone to chase Jimmy up for sharing news?
 * Report on every MC meeting
 * **Improving town hall meetings**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Ewen and others working on it with feedback planned on 8th March 2012
 * Gender focus the whole day activity?
 * Ideas start stimulating better facilitating and engagement
 * Strategizing as to how we can collect feedback from the meeting
 * Short presentation
 * Mini buzz group
 * Technical equipment will need to be asses to allow people to follow from different regions
 * **Week-ahead email messages**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Make them more descriptive
 * E.g offer updates on objectives of events
 * Vary listing order
 * Changing structure
 * We need to be careful not to make it a requirement
 * Should be easy to be read
 * Something really working, no major changes needed etc) **.**

// New ideas //
// Assessment: Relatively low impact, relatively very difficult implementation// // Assessment: Mid-range impact, mid-range difficulty in implementation // // Assessment: Relatively high impact, relatively easy implementation // // Assessment: Relatively low impact, relatively very difficult implementation// // Assessment: Relatively high impact, relatively easy implementation // // Assessment: Mid-range impact, relatively very difficult implementation//
 * **Innovative Fridays**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Similar to the Google concept of allowing staff to spend time on Fridays on their own personal projects to foster continual innovation
 * Challenges:
 * Budget!
 * **Revamp Comms-Wiki**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Better organised FAQs
 * Also more emphasis on marketing our comms services
 * Make it available for others
 * How to improve it?
 * How we help others,
 * Marketing marketing marketing!
 * Promote our expertise
 * Access from ILRINET / website
 * **Komms Klinic series' revamp**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Packaging different tools for different audience and purpose
 * Link with other regions/staff
 * Locate expertise everywhere
 * **Informal coffee gathering**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Invite people for those bilateral gatherings because they might not attend formal events
 * Links with department coffee gatherings)
 * **Carry an institutional survey**
 * Key discussion points:
 * Maybe during Friday coffee, ask staff to vote on their best internal communication tools and give their feedback and suggestions
 * **Management team meetings** :
 * Key discussion points:
 * Communication to the whole staff without formal protocol

**Conclusion**
Based on the assessments, we have selected a few ideas to focus our efforts on. Each idea was assigned to at least one task force member with a deadline of **February 27th 2012** for a more detailed road map to be fleshed out and shared on this WIki and the Yammer.

Following this, we plan to provide a more concise report and action plan for each priority to the wider Comms community by **March 6th 2012.**

// **Main priorities** //
 * M axim i zing Y ammer Us e  -->  (Tsehay, Ewen, Andrew)
 * Jimmy's Video -> (Paul)
 * I mproving the town hall --> ( Ewen )
 * Week ahead email message --> ( Andrew + Meron )
 * KommsKlin i c --> (Tsehay, Abenet / Ewen )
 * Institutional survey --> (Evelyn + Milcah)

// **L** **ower priority** //
 * P hysical notice board +  C ampus calendar --> with week ahead email message
 * Coffee morning --> (Ewen)

Final presentation:

Please rank between 1-10, where 1 is the least favourite and 10 is the most favourite Comments and feedbacks from final presentation

1. Email 2. ilrinet 3. Blogs 4. Yammer 5. Friday morning coffee 6. Scientific conference 7. Physical and virtual notice board <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">8. Campus and events calendars <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"><span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">9. Jimmy’s video <span style="display: block; height: 1px; left: -40px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; position: absolute; text-indent: -0.25in; top: -25px; width: 1px;"><span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">10. Town hall meetings