ItsDevelopmental - content + technology + people

Picture: responses to the NUJ 'effing blog' post

 

[Click on picture to see it fully - it's not showing properly at the moment]

Been really busy catching up this week and have missed out on (and haven't had time to enagage properly) the NUJ blog discussions. However, I had a look through lots of the comments and was thinking about my response and then I thought I'd do this.

I created a Wordle of the effing blogs post.  I pasted all the comments into Wordle and it came back with this visual presentation. I like the fact it highlights the most used words. Note: standards is a big one and is actually a main theme in all these discussions.

NUJ training storm follow-up

Been away so this is an update of what happened to my original post on why NUJ must be focussed on training right now.

The post was picked up by Adam with a post entitled: NUJ: Still not 'getting' social media [30 comments]

Then Adam again in this post: NUJ: 'Effing blogs' [54 comments]

NUJ and Adam Tinworth’s ‘effing’ blog by Kevin Anderson on Strange Attractor.

Kevin Anderson at The Guardian posted: NUJ training chair at centre of blog storm [79 comments]

Then Adam: The NUJ and social media - a few follow-ups

Adam again: The NUJ, Social Media and Video Conversation

I have also had some comments via Twitter and email, which I will follow up shortly in a separate post.

If you read the comments to the related blog posts you will see how the conversation took a different course and got quite personal and not very nice in places. The comments (and number of them) and the way the conversation developed are quite an eye-opener.

Heaven knows what would-be union members would make of this. I find the whole thing quite depressin.

All is not doom and gloom, however, as i had a couple of more constructive comments from NUJ members in Scotland about the type of training they are developing for members.

More on that shortly.

Top 10 social media sites 2008

Thanks to Alex at Nielsen Online for these 2008 unique user stats for UK social media sites. I was hunting around for these but couldn't find them - they must have been published somewhere.

Anyway, a useful reference as I am doing some research around this. Was struck by the popularity of the blogging platforms.

Rank	Social Media Site	Unique Audience (000)	Active Reach (%)
1	Facebook	17,645	48.7
2	YouTube	14,508	40.1
3	Wikipedia	12,793	35.3
4	Blogger	7,525	20.8
5	MySpace	5,361	14.8
6	Yahoo! Answers	5,298	14.6
7	Bebo	4,324	11.9
8	WordPress.com	3,498	9.7
9	Flickr	3,066	8.5
10	TripAdvisor	2,933	8.1

 

Identity crisis time for publishers

Thanks to Adam for pointing to this post by Rory Brown. As Rory points out, reporting time for listed media companies gives a good insight into how they see the world and how they are looking to grow and adapt. And there will be more reports next week, and they may not be pretty.

Here is a key point about my parent comapny Reed Elsevier

The vast majority of Reed Elsevier’s revenues and profits do not come from a ‘buyer meets seller’ introduction service that a lot of publishers cling to. Instead they are providing valuable data and workflow solutions that help their customers do their jobs better, more efficiently, with more transparency and faster. 

This point really resonates for me as I am reading Jeff Jarvis's What Would Google Do? In particular, the following lines.

You should be asking: am I a knowledge company? a data company? A community company? A Platform? A network? Where is your value and where is your revenue? Remember that they might not be in the same place; the money may come in through a side door. It's time for your identity crisis.

Siftables - transforming technology

Thanks to Travolution for sharing this. The way technology is developing is quite amazing. And so will its impact be on the way we live our lives, work and do business. Just think where we were five years ago and where we are now. 

More of these types of videos at Ted.

Legal training at RBI - can we learn from the BBC?

Am involved in looking at how we deliver legal training to the editorial community at RBI.

I have already carried out a survey of editors and production editors, had some meetings and now I have found this interview with Nick-Shackleton Jones, the BBC's manager for online and informal training (interesting job title).

Looks like The Beeb have produced some interesting online content around this. Am waiting to hear from Nick.

 

The NUJ training conversation continues . . .

. . . over at Adam's blog, where he posted his response to my original post.

Do's and don'ts of downsizing

UPDATE: NUJ top brass is looking to meet media chief execs to look at impacts of cange.

Some do's and don't of downsizing from the Human Capital Institute and talent management company Taleo.

These tips have been distilled from a white paper entitled Recessionary Management [you need to provide personal info to get the download]

Downsizing do's

• Identify the work that is core to retaining business (Not just the work that is being done well). 56% of companies look at core and critical positions first to prioritise where headcount can be cut, if necessary.
• Identify competencies needed to meet business goals. Use scenario-based workforce planning and performance management to make better decisions.
• Protect your bottom line and your brand.  When making downsizing decisions, consider that poor execution and planning has long-term brand effects and instant Internet scrutiny.
• Communicate constantly.  Let staff know what you know, when you know it and provide them the dignity they deserve.
• Pay attention to survivors.  Let them know why they were kept, or bear the consequences ranging from low engagement and productivity to leaving of their own volition.  Voluntary turnover of key performers has gone from 10% to 25% in the past 12 months, according to Herman Trends.

Downsizing don'ts

• Don’t cut with a hatchet, use a scalpel. Or, you may be understaffed for the recovery.
• Don’t commit “death by a thousand cuts.” Plan for it well and do it all at once.
• Don’t plan a layoff on a Friday or right before a holiday. Primarily for the survivors: they need reaffirmation and connection.
• Don’t shoot from the hip. Have solid justifications, and consider legal ramifications in your plans.
• Don’t keep employees guessing. Be forthright, honest and as detailed as possible.

 

NUJ should be focussed on training

I had to write something about the National Union of Journalists' strike ballot at RBI because a) it affects me and b) it is missing an important point.

I am a member of the union, which is why I feel strongly about what I am seeing. I don't want to go into the detail of the RBI situation but I do want to raise the one issue that seems to be lost in much of the NUJ's recent efforts to defend jobs.

That issue is training. We all know how quickly the media is changing both the way we produce and consume and share information. This change is challenging us all to come up with new business models.

It is also challenging us to change the way we work and that means adopting new attitudes (open, keen to learn, share and do things differently) and skills.

Right now the job of the union should be to help members upskill for digital publishing. And this means pushing employers to provide the relevant training and opportunities. Who knows, could that even mean using training resource collabaratively for the greater good of journalists?

At RBI there is no learning rep and a look at the NUJ training site reveals that the new skills agenda is not being pushed.

When it comes to new business models, the NUJ also has an opportunity to work with employers to help shape new ways of working and of making money. Is this happening? I don't know but I suspect not.

Strangest of all is the fact that these are very exciting times to be in the media (in terms of learning new skills, raising your profile etc) - but you would not think so.

This is a period of immense change and those of us who work in the media need to keep abreast of this change. And organisations that represent those that work in the media must keep pushing the training agenda. These are collaborative times, so let's collaborate.

No one wants to see jobs lost but until we find new ways of making money to replace sliding print revenues this is the reality.

What will be even more tragic is if the NUJ fails to rise to the training challenge because it is too busy 'defending jobs'.

I would have expected a bit more creativity at a time like this (do unions do creativity?) and more focus on what members need to do to be employable. We know there will be more jobs lost across the industry but the union could and should be mapping out what a future in digital publishing will look like.

Surely other unions are addressing the same issues and challenges right now? Maybe my time as a member is coming to an end as I am out of step with current NUJ thinking.

But the debate about the role of unions during periods of change is one that needs to be ongoing

I'll post a link to this on the NUJ at RBI blog.

Making money from content

Really interesting post by Steve Outing. Publishers need to get their heads round this and quickly.