8:00 a.m.
Registration & Continental Breakfast

8:30 a.m.
Chairperson's Welcome & Opening Remarks

Andrew Medd, Senior Manager
DELOITTE, INC.

8:45 a.m.

New Communication Channels And What They Mean For The Public Sector: Evaluating The Business Value Of New Technologies

Webinars, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, Office Communicator, Groove, the list goes on. You are being told to utilize social media, but through which tools and how?

During the last two years, the Province of BC has developed a wide variety of new communication channels to improve operational efficiency, break down traditional silos, share corporate knowledge, crowdsource solutions, drive results-oriented services, and engage citizens and employees.  

In this session, you will learn how to evaluate the business value of new technology and transformation initiatives, including learning about:

• Re-usable business solutions for advanced communication and collaboration tools
• How you can use telepresence to reduce travel cost and carbon emissions and to transform business and intergovernmental relations
• Tips on how to leverage YouTube, Twitter, and/or Facebook
• The Citizens @ the Center: Gov 2.0 strategy to address changes in demographics, technology and public expectations in the future

Kieran Harrop, Director Business Engagement, Strategic Initiatives,
Office of the Chief Information Officer
BRITISH COLUMBIA MINISTRY OF CITIZENS' SERVICES

9:35 a.m.

Social Media Is Not One-Size-Fits-All: How To Choose The Right Tools For Your Audience, Your Message, And Your Organization's Goals

Many government departments and agencies are considering launching their own YouTube channel or Facebook fan page. But how do you choose which tools are the right ones for your organization?

The Army News team in the Department of National Defence has posted nearly 2,000 videos to YouTube over the last three years and those videos have been viewed more than 1.6 million times. Their channel is currently ranked within the top 75 YouTube channels for Canadian news and reporting. They're also using Twitter, iTunes, Flickr and Facebook to share information and engage Army stakeholders.

Social media is not one-size-fits-all. Not every tool is appropriate for every situation. In this session, you will learn how to choose the right tools for your audience, your message and your organization's goals. You'll also review some common issues to consider when using social media tools in a government environment, including:

• Tweeting in both official languages
• Managing comments – and responding when necessary
• Giving your organization an authentic "voice" and personality through social media
• Developing content that is relevant, interesting and timely
• Matching your policies to your tools
• Analyzing your audience and evaluating your tools to ensure they’re working for you and not the other way around

10:25 a.m.

Break-Out Blitz! Network And Discuss Social Media Challenges With Your Fellow Seminar Attendees

This session will open the conversation by connecting you with other seminar participants and gain greater understanding into many similar issues, concerns, and challenges that your peers are also facing. Become acquainted with your fellow seminar attendees in this fun and fast-paced forum!

11:20 a.m.

Harnessing The Collaborative Power Of Social Media To Strengthen Your Organization’s Story

The City of Richmond, British Columbia was an official Venue City for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. They were determined to use it as an opportunity to gain international media exposure. With limited resources, the City had to find ways to stand out in the five-ring circus that is the Olympic Games.

With the use of a multi-faceted communications plan, including the use of Web 2.0 and social media, vast dividends paid out in their favor. From branding the Richmond Olympic Oval as the "premier" venue of the 2010 Games, to unleashing the power of celebrity and social media to turn an encounter with Stephen Colbert into a national news story, to creating an Olympic spectacle out of cranberries, Richmond consistently found innovative ways to communicate their story.

In this session, you will discover ways to make your organization stand out against the masses, including:

• The power and pitfall of using Web 2.0 and social media tools to connect with new audiences
• How to overcome organizational resistance to utilizing social media tools and other creative tactics
• Collaborating with media to create and enhance the story
• No matter how new or powerful the tool, there is absolutely no substitute for creativity

Ted Townsend, Senior Manager, Corporate Communications
CITY OF RICHMOND, BRITISH COLUMBIA

12:10 p.m.

How To Develop An Effective Social Media Presence For Your Organization In A Short Timeframe Without Resources,
Budget Or Buy-in

The City of Oshawa’s social media story began just 18 months ago when Corporate Communications & Marketing (CC&M) began investigating new ways to meet key objectives outlined in the Community Strategic Plan and the CC&M Strategy: increase public awareness of city programs, services and events; enhance community engagement and cooperation; and promote positive community news to improve the City’s image and new brand. The challenge for the small team was to meet these objectives without additional resources or a budget. The answer was social media.

The City’s Corporate Communications Officer took the lead on a social media pilot project that began with the launch of a Twitter account in November 2009. A one-person project has since evolved into a comprehensive, effective social media strategy that promotes programs throughout the entire organization and the community. Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, combined with the use of RSS feeds and bookmarking/sharing services, have been used to maximize results.

• How to get senior management and IT to “buy-in” to social media
• Time-saving, easy-to-use (and FREE) social media tools and techniques, including RSS, bookmarking/sharing and social media account sharing
• Specific tips on how to use Twitter, Facebook, YouTube to engage stakeholders and community partners, your residents and the media
• How to monitor and measure social media for FREE using tools such as Google Alerts and RSS feeds

Shannon McFadyen, Corporate Communications & Marketing Officer
CITY OF OSHAWA, ONTARIO

1:00 p.m.

Lunch On Your Own -- But Not Alone!

Join a group of your colleagues for lunch with an informal discussion facilitated by one of our expert speakers. Take this opportunity to join others in a small, interactive group setting to network and brainstorm solutions to your most pressing social media concerns.

2:30 p.m.

Using Social Media To Bridge The Gap Between The Public And Government

The City of Nanaimo is committed to implementing innovative technological solutions to assist in serving their citizens and utilizing social media has helped the city do that very thing. Some of the recent lessons they’ve learned include: taking risks, being responsive, having a consistent voice, allowing discussions to take their course, acknowledging feedback and limiting administrative access.

Some of the resulting benefits that the city has seen from their social media efforts include: being able to better respond to feedback (good or bad), playing an active role in citywide discussions, creating opportunities to connect with citizens and receiving and implementing program and service suggestions just to name a few.

From the experiences of the City of Nanaimo, you will take away lessons on:

• Ways to reach a more diverse range of the community than if you were to use only ‘traditional’ media methods
• How to implement Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Foursquare and RSS to engage with citizens and disseminate information quickly
• Social media practices that have worked well
• Weeding through configuration options for the networks to conside
  and pitfalls to avoid

Hannah King, Marketing and Communications Specialist, Parks, Recreation and Culture
Ross Collicutt, Applications Analyst, Information Technology
CITY OF NANAIMO, BRITISH COLUMBIA

3:35 p.m.

How To Successfully Encourage Employee Collaboration And Empower Citizens Using Social Media

The Climate Action Secretariat (CAS) drives change to achieve British Columbia’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction targets through coordinating climate action activities across Government and with stakeholders. In order to inform and engage British Columbians in climate action and transformation to a green economy, CAS has begun using the web and social media tools as part of its LiveSmart BC outreach strategy.

Web 2.0 platforms have allowed CAS to draw on skills and expertise from outside of government to build web applications as part of its Apps 4 Climate Action (A4CA) contest. More recently, social software has allowed CAS to create an online community of engaged employees and citizens wanting to contribute to tackling climate change issues across the province.

You will leave this session with practical tactics on:

• How to empower citizens and create value from open government data
• Ways to encourage collaboration across social, business and educational sectors
• Emerging possibilities for citizens to interact directly with government in dialogue about the organization’s mission and future plans

Colleen Sparks, Director, Carbon Neutral and Climate Outreach, Climate Action Secretariat
BRITISH COLUMBIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT

4:25 p.m.


Your Evolving Social Media Strategy: Integrating Online And Traditional Tools In A Changing Communications Environment

Social media has been around since the first wandering minstrels interacted with audiences to tell stories from around the country -- social media is telling the story about people, companies, or governments. You can tap into that stream to tell your story and engage those who are talking about your world.

Genome Alberta has extensively used social media to tell the story of science, to raise awareness with the general public, reach key influencers, and engage the science community, while rolling with changes in technology.

In this session, you’ll get some grounded tips based on ways to develop a unique Facebook application and using Twitter to create a 24-hour newsroom. You’ll hear firsthand how to:

• Select the right social media course for your audience and the specific task at hand
• Make efficient use of your online and offline content and resources
• Pull together both social and mainstream media in your communications strategy to get the best return on your communications dollar
• Go from no social media presence to having a presence described as a “work of art”
• Gain insight on how mainstream media sees the evolving world of social media

Mike Spear, Director of Corporate Communications
GENOME ALBERTA

5:15 p.m.

Chairperson's Recap & End of Day One

5:20 p.m.

Networking Reception: Please Join Us!

We invite you to join us for a drink as you relax with your peers. All seminar attendees and speakers are welcome to join us for this special opportunity to continue networking. Don't miss this chance to benchmark new ideas over complimentary drinks!

Sign up during the day for dinner with a group. Take advantage of Vancouver's fine dining while you continue to network with your colleagues.