Book Review: NO! How one simple word can transform your life, by Jana Kemp

This makes a change from all the "Yes, you can" books! It's basically about getting over the fear of saying now and taking control of any circumstance without negative consequences. A critical aspect as you might imagine is tone of voice and the author words hard to ensure we understand that it's critical we get this right - not too fast, too harsh and to make sure we choos the right words when we do mean it. It is also key to stick to your decision when you've make it.

Kemp has a model called the POWER of No which has an acronym from POWER: Purpose, options, when, emotional ties and rights/responsibilities. She suggests that using this acronym will help us to make a yes / no decision based on the right issues at the time. For me I find it a lot to think about when considering a yes/ no response online, though I suppose you get better at it with practice.

In essence the decision prcess goes like this
- think about the purpose and context of the decision
- what option do you have? What resources are available?
- when is it due? What is the deadline and can you meet it?
- be realistic about the emotional ties
- consider your rights and responsibilities

I'll be trying out some "No's"....

Book Review: New Age of Innovation; Prahalad & Krishnan

If you're interested in large scale change and innovation then you'll find this book fascinating. On the one hand it felt like there was nothing startlingly new to me yet on the other it was neatly put together in a readable way that made sense.

A key premise is the current trend of personalisation and how value is based on the unique experience we all want. The authors refer to this as N=1. Current technology drives this, social networking, web 2.0 etc. How can we co-create value with our users and consumers? What are the challenges with managing who owns the knowledge? All good questions. They also suggest we need to make the most of collaborative networks, electronic and face-to-face, be flexible and ensure scalability. I liked the section on scalability and in my mind there is more in here than what they covered. This is a key element and is also linked to their second premise.

The 2nd key premise is the one that resources need to be global and they use another little formaula: R=G. Here they suggest the issue is that access to resources is more importnat than providing products; namely it is the solutions that matter rather than the kit or pieces. I think I agree with this. Again, scalability comes up.

They mention social movements and how they figure in the process as well as organisational transformation. There was nothing much new in the organisational process other than the context of the infomrational technology infrastructure - well, that is rather new and for some people rather perplexing.

If you've not yet engaged with Web 2.0 and new technology then this is definitely worth a read.

Book Review: The 29% Solution by Misner & Donovan

How can you improve your networking skills so you become one of the 29% of people who are separated from the rest of the world by six degrees? After explaining that we are not all connected to everyone by six degrees and that it takes some work to be in that position, this books provides a 52 week guide to achieving this.

Here are the week by week headings (it is worth reading the book to understand the detail underlying each one):
1. Set networking goals
2. Make time to network
3. Profile your preferred client
4. Recruit your word-of-mouth marketing team
5. Give to others first
6. Create a network relationship database
7. Master the top 10 traits of an effective networker (these include positive attitude, trustworthiness, good listening skills, helpfulness, timely response etc)
8. Diversify your contacts
9. Meet the right people
10. Reconnect with people from the past
11. Talk to your family
12. Break out of your "cave-like" routine
13. Participate in a web networking group
14. Become a centre of influence (develop magnetism)
15. Go the extra mile; be value-added
16. Become a catalyst who makes things happen
17. Find a networking partner to help accountability
18. Volunteer visibly
19. Send thank you cards
20. Follow up today
21. Be available 24/7
22. Create catalyst events beyond the workplace
23. Have purposeful meetings
24. Make first impressions count
25. Seek out a referral networking group
26. Join a Chamber of Commerce
27. Sponsor events
28. Host a purposeful event
29. Ask questions of others
30. Talk about benefits not features
31. Comunicate your business succinctly
32. Speak about your business
33. Leverage your business card
34. Give high-value presentations
35. Create an informative newsletter
36. Write press releases
37. Write your own identity
38. Ask for written testimonials
39. Share your success stories
40. Write your own personal introduction
41. Blow your own trumpet (or toot your own horn if you're in the USA!)
42. Ask for feedback
43. Adopt a host mentality at functions
44. Use the law of reciprocity
45. Write a letter of support
46. Ask for referrals
47. Read the paper with the intent to discover referrals
48. Conquer your public speaking fear
49. Become the hub of a power team
50. Become a networking mentor
51. Recruit an advisory board for your business
52. Commit to lifelong learning

(I've tweaked the wordings on the list a bit to suit my own understanding.)

Using Twitter for Rumour Management

Twitter can be used in a zillion ways. I 've been doing some research to help my understanding how it can be used to manage rumours and/or bad news.

When it comes to rumour management, the first step is to pick up the rumours.  Use Google Alerts or similar programs to collect on a daily or weekly basis, comments that are being said about you or your organisation, or product. Use Twitter search to check if you are trending - for the worse... It's no good relying on traditional paper cutting services - the Interest is a hotbed of gossip, much of which never makes it into the printed papers.

The best form of rumour management is prevention.  Make sure there is lots of positive content about yo, your product or your organisation on the Web.  Use facts and details to enhance your credibility. Use Twitter to post content and to link to content. Retweet content which relates positively to you.

When something crops up, contact people directly and engage them in discussion (either on or off the web). Ignore them at your peril.  "Nipping in the bud" is the name of the rumour management game.  Ask your advocates to speak up for you using their social media methods. Remember Twitter is one way you can provide good answers to questions and allow others to see these answers.

If it gets really big, then call in a Crisis Management expert.It's unlikely that in-house communications departments will have the experience and expertise to manage an Internet based communications mess.

Here are some case studies:

• Guardian newspaper article referring to the 2011 London Riots and how Twitter was used to knock-down rumours
• Guardian resources provide various info graphics to show how rumours spread on Twitter - fascinating

Book Review: Sway; the irresistable pull of irrational behaviour by Brafman & Brafman

Irrational behavour? Me? Never!

The Brafman brothers write a compelling story of how irrational our behaviour is in a variety of circumstances. While most of the book is well evidenced they bring each of the issues alive with stories that make sense - perhaps too much sense.

I'm getting a bit tired of the constant use of the airline industry as a safety example. So it was with interest I read through the case study on the crash at Tenerife which was one of the largest loss of life incidents. The authors demonstrate how the perception of loss played an important part in the creation of the incident.

Next up is a football team in the US which managed to beat all the major players but relinquishing their commitment to the predominant method of play. The story here is about how our commitment to a certain way limits our opportunities for growth and advancement. The authors show how loss and commitment add together to become a powerful irrational pull.

The chapter on value attribution is quite scary. They use a number of examples. One is of a famous violin player dressed casually playing complex tunes in an underground station during rush hour. hardly anyone paid him any notice at all. Yet some would pay large sums of money to hear him play on stage dressed in his dinner suit. The book is worth the read in this chapter about the discovery of a human fossil and how scientists of the day were not prepared to give it credence because the discoverer wasn't "one of them".

If you are currently either interviewing people for a job or going for interviews yourself, then the next chapter which looks at how initial diagnoses or decisions sway our long term responses to individuals.

Perceptions, beliefs and context come under scrutiny in the next chapter. If you want to understand why the USA has a Bipolar epidemic then read about it here. If you are involved in training and developing individuals then the examples of belief are important to understand.

So what is fairness? Read on to discover the importance of context.If you think monetary incentives are a motivation to change behaviour then the next chapter provides some examples which may rattle your thoughts. By now I was beginning to understand just how irrational we are as human beings. And just when I've grasped a bit of my own irrationality, the authors move onto the irrationality of groups, particularly looking at blockers and dissenters.

If you are wondering why no-one is following your instructions, why it is too difficult to plan something, why you always seem right and no-one else wrong... etc. then I thoroughly recommend this very readable book. It is an easy and relatively quick read (once - I had to reread to make sure I grasped what was being said).

Difficult Conversations 5: The Art of Listening

Conversation requires a talking AND listening, and these actions need to be shared by everyone involved. Some people may need help expressing themselves and other may need help in listening to others.  Usually, it is the listening that is more difficult.

The Art Of Listening

View more webinars from Phil Wylie

Difficult Conversations 3: Tips from the psychology viewpoint

There's no one way to approach a difficult conversation. The short slideshow below covers some useful hints and tips - if the psychological viewpoint is interesting and useful to you.

Making Difficult Conversations Less Difficult

View more presentations from John Deely

Difficult Conversations 2: Remembering Body Language

There's research (though controversial) that suggests more than half of our communication with an other comes through body language. We instinctively know this, however, when dealing with difficult situations and conversations we can easily forget this.

Body language is just that - a language. Complete with a syntax and grammar. It is not enough to think that someone who crosses their arms is being defensive. We need to understand the whole "paragraph" they are speaking with their body. They may in fact be cold or they may just be leaning back and relaxing. We need to look at the whole body and its cue.

Secrets of Body Language

View more presentations from Arif Anis

Difficult Conversations 1: The DED Technique

Dealing with the difficult situation is difficult - usually because emotions are running high and emtoional responses tend to send all good planning straight out the window. One technique I've found useful is simple enough to remember when the flak hits the fan and tends to work well - the DED technique.

D = Describe 

E = Example

D - Discussion

Describe the behaviour you're finding difficult, how it makes you feel and explain the wider impacts of the behaviour. Without any description the other person probably has no idea why you are upset.

Then provide an example of what it is you've just described. Without an example the other person may think you're making it up and may not be able to ground the descriptions in reality.

Discussion - or I prefer the term dialogue as that presumes it is a two-way thing - is the obvious important and final step. If the first D and the E have gone well then the discussion should be fairly straightforward - though posisbly still emotive.

Do you have a favourite technique you'd like to share?

Leadership notes from a pilot who saved the passengers

Staying with the leadership theme of the previous posts, Capt Peter Burchil has some interesting reflection of the incident where the BA777 from China, in January 2008, landed short of the runway, due to a technical issue. There was no warning and it was skill, maybe a bit of luck, and a cool head that resulted in no loss of life.

One of his taglines was "plan for the expected and prepare for the unexpected" which I think is an excellent mantra for anyone at work - especially during times of great change.

He summed up his talk by explaining how he was taught in the controlled environment of the simulator to "Aviate, Navigate, Communicate". What an excellent three words those are for any manager or director! For "aviate", substitute the verb that best describes what your job requires you to do (the tick here is to remember to keep doing what you're supposed to be doing and not get distracted.). Navigate - similar to aviate, though I think all Executives should keep navigate in their list of three words. Communicate is obvious.

What are your three words that ensure you remain leading in a crisis?

eLearning Perspectives: Free eBook

The Masie Center has released a comprehensive ebook with contributions from 40 Global Leaders.  A must read for anyone who is interested in the topic of eLearning.

Download it here

Contents
Part I: New Learning Frameworks

Learning National Park, Needs Rangers! Getting to Know Bob
- Allison Anderson, Intel Corporation...............................................................10
What Problem Are We Really Trying to Solve? - Julie Clow, Google..................15
An Idea Whose Time has Come - Deb Tees, Lockheed Martin .........................21
The Power of Deep Expertise! Developing Expertise in a Corporate Environment
THE POWER OF DEEP EXPERTISE! - Raj Ramachandran, Accenture .................27
LEARNING ORGANIZATIONS: PEOPLE POWER?
- Nigel Paine, The Learning Consortium ..........................................................35

Part II: Under30 Perspectives
Learning: Converting the Crash Dieters to Lifelong Healthy Eaters
- Liz Scott, ZS Associates ...................................................................................39
Inspiration and eLearning - Linda Backo, PPL .................................................40
Access and Opportunities - Ben Betts, HT2 Ltd..................................................41
It’s Curtains for the LMS - Joe Beaudry, Verizon Wireless ..................................43
Engaging Learners Through Gaming - Lacey Grande, Ogilvy & Mather...........45
Learning Together To Change the World - Elizabeth Musar, InsideNGO.........46
Underemployed or Unprepared? - Kaylea Howarth, Alliance Pipeline .............47
Conscious Incompetence - Doug Livas, Moss Adams, LLP ................................49
Exciting the Learner - Aviva Leebow, Pacesetter Steel Service, Inc. ....................51
“Question? Try Twitter!” My Take on Social Networking
- Rachel Donley, BGSU Student ........................................................................53
Learning by Falling - Jen Vetter, TorranceLearning ...........................................55
What Happened to OJT? - Michelle Thompson, Poole and Associates .............56
Get Out of Your Comfort Zone: Developing Training for the Learner
- Emily Fearnside, General Mills .......................................................................57
Just Ask! - Katie Mack, Westinghouse Electric Company ..................................58
Passion for Learning - Sarah Carr, Google.......................................................59
4
Gamifying Learning with Social Gaming Mechanics
- Enzo Silva, Oracle Corporation......................................................................61
Incorporating the Human Touch in Online Education
- Jessica Sanderson, Cleveland Clinic ...............................................................63
The changing expectations of learners and the LMS
- Connor Gormley, FM Global .........................................................................64
Getting Beyond the Formal Classroom - Grant Velie, Farmers Insurance .........65
Establishing a Training Culture – Moving from Data Deluge to Learning
- Jennifer Wright, Alstom Power........................................................................68
“Y” not Mentor? - Danielle Sagstetter, Capella University / PACT .....................70
Common Constraints - Meg Hunter, CFA Institute ............................................72
Students have a say too! - Joshua Smith, Department of Veterans Affairs..........74
Learning That Makes a Difference - Julie Thompson, Xcel Energy .....................75
Part III: Learning in Action
The Impact of Knowledge Management on the Workplace Learning Organization
- Patty Glines & Eric Zenor, CUNA Mutual Group.............................................78
The New Ground Rules: A Collision of Knowledge at the Speed of Light
- Lisa Pedrogo, Turner Broadcasting/CNN BEST University...............................84
The Blended Future of Learning - MaryJo Swenson, Novell...............................92
Learning to Meet the Mission - John Guyant, CIA University ............................ 98
Blending AVON’s 125 year Old “Social Network” into Our Learning Approach
- Stephen Barankewicz, Avon .........................................................................107
Is Learning & Development Being Lost in the Age of Talent Management?
- Sean Dineen, Luxottica.................................................................................111
Part IV: Learning Changes
Combining “Cool” with “Core” in Learning
- Elliott Masie, The Learning Consortium .......................................................117
What Shapes the Future of Learning? The Third Industrial Revolution
- Wayne Hodgins, MASIE Fellow aboard the Learnativity ................................119
Trends in Learning Technology: The View from Late 2010
- Rick Darby, Rollins’ University .......................................................................132
The Times They May be a’Changing: From Sizzle to Fizzle in Learning Technologies
- Larry Israelite, Liberty Mutual Group ............................................................139

4 resources why PowerPoint is not a good format for influencing others

PowerPoint has its place. As a method of influence it is limited, however, it has become pervasive in corporate life to the extent it is used beyond its purpose.

1. Life after death by PowerPoint 2010
This video by Comedian Don Mcquillan says it all.


2. Do my slides suck? test
This "Stop your presentation before it kills again" blogpost provides a compelling arguement to ditch your slides, or at least do some self analysis to discover the reason why you are using PowerPoint.

3. 11 ways to images poorly in slides
This blogpost covers 11 ways in how using images in PowerPoint can detract from your message. It is a compelling argument to beware the selftrained designer...

4. Dodging bullets in presentations
An excellent slideset which not only highlights the problems with using bullet points but also shows how to move to something better and more effective

Oh dear, I see I wrote this blog in bullet points. Deary me.

Connection is key for innovation

A little luck and a lot of perspiration is no longer the prerequisite for innovation. Nowadays connections, relationships and networks are key.

Steven Johnson's next book is about Where Good Ideas Come From. You can watch him in action on this TED video (which starts with a picture and talk about the Grand Cafe in Oxford).



A couple of key points include:

1. Innovation is the result of the brain making new connections and these connections mirror workplace connectivity.  The better the networks and more complex the relationships then the more likely it will be that good ideas arise. His premise is that innovation is an interactive process.
2. The architecture of space is important if ideas are to be generated and spread - he has looked into what environments have contributed to innovation. If we want innovation we need to design spaces that enable connections.
3. Great ideas that appear to spark from nowhere are most likely the result of a long period of incubation which may not be obvious and are most likely cobbled together from a variety of existing ideas.. He argues that ideas are networks and the way of thinking about them as sparks, illumination etc is no longer relevant.

5 checks to test whether your conference call is productive

Conference calling is often touted as the more productive way to have a meeting. In many cases it is, however, some calls are so badly organised, chaired and processed, that it may have been better to meet face to face - or not meet at all.

1. Don't start on time.
"We'll wait another couple of minutes for Dean and Tam."
silence
"Is Mike on the line?"
silence
"Janet can you call Mike on his mobile to check he is dialling in"
Silence

If 20 people wait 3 minutes past the start time for the people who have not joined the meeting it means 1 hour has been wasted. If 100 people wait 3 minutes it is the equivalent of 5 hours wasted by the organisation.

A good way round this problem is to predictably open the line 5 minutes before the session starts and then predictably start on time - every time. You wouldn't keep the meeting room door locked until the advertised start of the meeting.




2. Use slides
"For those of you with Internet connections, you'll see the agenda. What? Oh Mary, yes, I'm sorry, the agenda is so up to date it couldn't be circulated beforehand."
...
"Can everyone see the slides?"
"Next slide please. No, go back one. Yes, that's it."
...

Slides are used mostly as personal notes for the person speaking. As some people don't have access to the computers when they dial in, any necessary slides should be circulated before the call (rather than afterwards). Some learning styles work better when they have had time to read and then contribute.

3. Rely only on audio
Meetings of any sort work best when there is trust. Unless the session is an online seminar when your role is to push out information via some slides to a large group, then video is essential. Even in the seminar option, the speaker needs to use video.  The more participants who use video, the more everyone will pay attention and not do their email at the same time.  Multitasking is proven not to be productive.  A 90 minute conference call with everyone doing two tasks at once is unproductive. It could be replaced by a 30 minutes, focused, video-face-to-face committed time discussing what matters.

When presenters refuse to use the video option they lack the ability to influence using body language. The same goes for listeners. This makes the call ineffective and unproductive as messages have to be repeated.

4. Don't use names
'Thanks for that..um.. sorry, who was that who agreed to review the budget?"
...

Audio, especially without visual, is anonymous - which may account for why some groups enjoy using it - it feels like they are having meetings yet no much happens to move the work forward. Anonymity is not a good name as it means listeners have to work hard to keep connected.

Each time you speak, say your name: '"Sarah here, I like what you're proposing Simon, however, I am not sure about item 3."  Try and say the other person's name as often as possible to let them know you are connecting with what they are saying.

5. Have a call when an email would have done
Holding a meeting is an act of power and control, and one to be used with care.  If the intent of the call is to share information then consider first whether an email or discussion group would be a better and more productive option.  If group discussion is required - then a call is good. If information needs to be shared and not much discussion is expected or required, then another method is far more productive. Many calls can be replaced by the use of efficient and productive discussion groups and document storage systems. Huddle is a great one, though Google groups/documents is a good start.  The real issue here is about power and control; relinquishing the weekly conference call and replacing it with an online discussion group means someone has lose control of the process.

Mobile learning may be more significant than web learning for healthcare

Educational methods have long been one of the key strategies to encourage the adoption of existing good practice and evidence in healthcare. The predominant method is face-to-face sessions though over the last three or four years this has started to be replaced by virtual sessions. The Web has been the technology used ofr the virtual learning, however, the advent of smart phones suggests learning via the mobile may be overtake the web portion of learning and may dig deeper into the face-to-face session.

The chart above comes from Ambient Insight Research who have an excellent article on this topic.

Are your spread plans including the use of mobile learning and technology?.

Crowdsourcing shifts us from what to how

"to improve" is a verb. A verb is a "doing word". Improvement is action. Collecting and storing examples of good practice is a displacement for action. Huge knowledge banks where the thing of the 1980's (yes, thirty years ago) and by the late 1990's were largely discredited as a mechanism for helping spread good practice. The few organisations that did manage to leverage the codified knowledge, did so because they institutionalised through clever IT systems, the search and sharing of knowledge. Note, this sharing was linked to the individuals with the ideas and not odd pieces of extracted information. The personal relationship mattered.

What does the modern day action to improve look like when we are aiming to avoid the reinvention of wheels?

a) We crowdsource. We call on the community for their ideas. However, asking for and then collating ideas is not crowd sourcing - it is a cheap way to create an ineffective database. Crowdsourcing works when participants rate ideas, decide which is best. Many organisational leaders fear crowdsourcing because the answers may not be what they want.

b) We get more active in presenting the problems and then asking people to provide answers - as an open call. The joy in this approach is it is not limiting the solution to the thinking and mindsets of employees. This has been around for at least a decade and the are many websites and systems to help make this happen. Some organisations even provide all their data so others, not part of the organisation, can use it to help solve the problem. The first step to making this happen s to give up control and to ask for help.

In the UK we are experiencing the crowdsourcing as the Government has set up systems to ask for ideas on solving problems. I like the way they are asking the citizens on ideas and not restricting it to Government employees only.

Crowdsourcing gives the vote to the hungry consumers and nto to the turkeys.

Some Crowdsourcing links and resources


1. Wikipedia: for starters

2. IdeaScale is where you can set up your own Q&A and ranking community for innovations. There are hundreds of existing web applications for crowdsourcing so if you are spending money creating your own then let's hope there is am excellent reason for doing so.

3. Fevote - place to make suggestions and get votes on them (great for research and tests of change)

4. Kluster: - stunning group decision-making tool

5. Good blog post on crowd sourcing resources

4 kinds of relationships

So much of spreading good, known and evidenced practice is based on social connections and relationships. John Maxwell has four ways in which relationships can be categorised.

1. Some people add things to life (we enjoy them) +
2. Some people subtract something from life (we tolerate them) -
3. Some people multiply something in life (we value them) *
4. Some people divide something in life (we avoid them) /

If a key role of the person who group is trying to influence others to change their behaviour then it might be useful to reflect on the relationship between the "spreader/pusher" and the "adopter/puller".

There are some people I avoid (4) and I am unlikely to even receive the messages they are pushing out, let alone act on them. In a similar vein, those I tolerate (2) I will probably put them low on my priority list and will be fairly sceptical about what they put out. Whether I adopt anything they are pushing will be a matter of personal judgement.

On the other hand, those whose company I enjoy (1) I will probably get to hear a lot about what they are saying, thinking about and pushing in my direction. I will take their information in quite quickly, though may still toss the ideas about before making any changes to my behaviour.

Those I value I will probably not wait for them to send me information. I will be finding ways to connect, listen out carefully and will most likely shift my behaviour quite quickly when they send out behaviour related messages.

So which types of relationships are you creating and endorsing?

How Twitter can help engage staff by increasing transparency & trust

If you're playing Buzz Word Bingo in the healthcare at the moment then you will know that "Engagement" is a hot word. Nothing new there you say, it's been a consistent buzz word for the last 10 years at least.

Well, there's something new on the horizon. It's a bit scary, you may not like it and it seems to be one way to practically engage some staff. More than that it moves from a passive engagement to an interactive process, which through its transparency leads to increased trust.

Let me explain using a very current example. It is 22nd March 2010 and British Airways is on day 3 of a strike, with another series of strike days looming. It's a mess really, for all involved. As with many crises it's interesting to learn from how companies and individuals manage them to best effect.

I've been following @British_Airways on Twitter. The updates are immediate and a complement to the less frequent and more formal announcements on their website. When I start seeing a string of complaints - or compliments - on Twitter I get a sense of what is going on. I have no idea how many people they have handling the Twitter stream (probably only 1 - if so they need a prize for multitasking while keeping their head about them..). More important than the pattern on Twitter is the manner in which cries of despair, shrieks of delight, moans and queries are being handled. All in public and all is transparent for us all to see. When it gets to personal details they request a DM (direct message). As long as the nice BA person at the end of the Twitter Stream keeps calm I will keep calm. And I'm starting to trust they really will get me to my next destination.

Some hints and tips for using Twitter to engage with staff and customers, especially in a crisis
1) Ensure your Twitter stream is managed by a human and not a computer. Endless feeds of your website will not engage me and will most likely reduce my trust in you.

2) The 3 R's of Regret, Reason and Remedy go down very well. A 140 character Regret is enough of an apology. A quick Reason helps me understand the issue and I then know you also understand what I mean. Then a masterful 140 character or less Remedy will make my day. I don't need 3 page letters within which we all lose the point.

3) Be open. Speaking up in front of the crowd means you need to stick with your tone of voice and content of your speeches. If I know most fo the talk is going on where I can hear it then I will be more trusting. An advantage of the Twitter feed is I can scroll back quite a few days ago to see how the conversation has been going.

4) Allow me to discover people like me. Although the official stuff is importnat, I also like to engage with people like myself. I need to be able to do this without you controlling the place, person and pace./ On Twitter I can see who else is having a problem like me and can contact them to see if they, for example, discovered any easy solution.

The continuum of spread: from outward communication to behavioural change

A few days ago I toyed with the idea of producing an FAQ sheet to cover the top 10 questions I am asked about how to spread good practice. Then I realised the answers are in my books and also in this blog. However, I'll revisit some of these questions over the coming weeks.

The top question is.... "how do I spread good practice"! And this usually sends me into panic mode. My immediate response includes:
What do you want to spread (and really, what, like skills, attitudes, behaviours etc)
How do you know it is good practice and who will recognise it as such?
Who is the target audience? Are you sure you are meaning individuals and not organisations?
What do you need people to do?
Why are you planning to do this? What is your stated and underlying intention?
I could go on...

I realise now that in most cases the big question comes from people in charge of something. Either they have the legitimate authority for a group (like Medical Director, CEO) or they are in a facilitative role (National body, program managers, consultancy). In both cases they want someone else to do something. The word "spread" gets used because either they have little authority over the people they want to change or they believe a softer-bottom-up-gentle approach will help people make the change. They may be right.

As the request to spread is coming from those "in charge" it is not surprising that the underlying question I think they are trying to ask is "How can we best communicate our good practice?". How do we communicate in a way that enables the right people to become aware of and do something about our topic? This is the standard approach to spread.

My experience in the last 10+ years on helping make large scale changes across healthcare systems is communication strategies and plans are not enough. Consider this continuum:

Spread (Communicate/Market/Advertise)--->
Communicate for behaviour change (Social Marketing)--->
Organisational change activities (OD, improvement projects)

Traditional spread programs limit themselves to clever and thoughtful (hopefully) design of outward communication. I say hopefully because in the most cases in healthcare the default button is set to "write an article" or "type up a case study".

As a minimum I feel spread needs to include the behavioural change aspect. Without this the communication is worth-less. The techniques from social marketing are a good place to start. This also means the behaviours required to change need to be identified as part of the "what" of the good practice.

Finally there is the perspective of the organisation. Again, my experience has led me to favour this approach. When the intended changes are part of or as a minimum identified as contribution to the organisation's purpose and objectives, with appropriate leadership support, then imprivement happens. Without this contextual setting the speed of adoption is much slower. Also, the breadth of adoption across the organisation may be limited. And there may be inappropriate adaptation to the good practice to such an extent that the intended benefits are not achieved.

So how do we spread good practice? I suggest the first place to start answering this question is to ask "why do you want to spread this good practice?". The aim here is to answer this in detail to get beyond the "to make things better" answer. This reframing will elicit the underlying motives and will direct an appropriate spread strategy.

SMS Texting Campaigns; awareness to action

Mobile phone technology has the means to change lives. A number of campaigns have been running where SMS/texting technology is being used not to raise awareness but rather to deliver action. I'm interested in this as it is breaking some of the "communication rules" and what is in the old research about how ideas spread and are adopted.

An excellent example is from UK Transplant where there are a number of campaigns running to increase the number of people prepared to donate tissue and organs. In the South West of England a campaign is running until April 2010 combining regular advertising and sms texting. The posters create awareness and then if anyone standing int he bus shelter wants to act by registering on the UK Transplant Organ Donor site they can send a simple test to a number with the word GIVE. This is still a pilot and the resulst will be interesting. I am all in favour of innovative ways of moving from awareness to action and this method is modern and relevant to societal trends.

If you want to add your name to the register then go to become a donor
If you want to read about this campaign go to sms campaign