Thursday, May 21, 2009, Meeting Minutes
Topic: Web Community Update
Facilitator: Sheila Campbell
Listen to a recording of this call (coming soon)
Agenda
This month, we're talking about all the things happening in the government web community – and showcasing ways for you to get involved. Here's the agenda:
- News
- Forum networking site demo
- Federal Web Managers Council update
News
- YouTube launched the new USGovt channel today – 5/21/09. See http://www.youtube.com/USGovernment and contact project lead Meghan Burrows at GSA meghan.burrows@gsa.gov with questions. If your agency wants to post videos on YouTube, coordinate with your Web Council rep.
- New Media Talks – Web Manager University is sponsoring the New Media Talk series, connecting industry thought leaders with the government web community. We have many exciting presentations lined up for the coming months, including a conversation with Tim O'Reilly – the "father of web 2.0" – on June 4. Full schedule is posted on webcontent.gov: http://www.usa.gov/webcontent/wmu/schedule.shtml
- Archive of past new Media Talks: http://forum.webcontent.gov/?page=New_Media_Archive
- Webcontent.gov is getting a facelift. The webcontent.gov team is working to move all content into a new site design. We expect the new site to be up in a few weeks.
Forum Networking Site Demo
Forum networking site: https://forum.webcontent.gov/
The Forum networking site helps us stay connected with one another, convene communities of interest, and capture conversations for posterity. Use the site to share news articles, ask questions, or discuss topics of common interest.
We're going "Open & Transparent"
Our Content Managers listserv is only open to government employees, but we know that many government web managers work side–by–side with contractors, who often times do the very same type of work. We recognize that these contractor colleagues should be a part of the conversation, because their websites (and customers!) suffer if they are not included. Therefore, in the interest of improving government websites, we have opened up parts of the Forum site to anyone with an official government email address – including contractors.
The primary reason for excluding contractors in the past was to avoid giving unfair advantage in contracting situations – so it is important to note that we still have "government-only zones" in Forum site. Remember to only post specific product/vendor recommendations and comments in the designated area under "Resources", which is only open to government employees.
You can also use the site's Search to locate colleagues from across government. See who's online by selecting "member search" from the left menu, then clicking "who's online now?" at the top of the page. We've also made site registration easier – the process is now totally automated, no paperwork required. If you haven't yet joined the Forum site, now is the time!
Federal Web Managers Council (Web Council) Update
The Web Council has been hard at work on many projects, including updating our Council Charter, to document who we are and how we work. We will post the Charter on webcontent.gov once we've migrated the site to the new template. (We're currently under a content freeze on the site.)
One key component of the Web Council are the Subcouncils – communities of interest o rganized around common topics. The Subcouncils communicate in various ways, including separate listservs, regular conference calls, and via the Forum networking site.
While much of the discussion in our community happens via our Content Managers listserv, the Forum site is a great way to connect with others in our community who share common interests. The best way to participate in these discussions is to join a Subcouncil or participate in a Group on the Forum site. We have established Groups on the site which correlate to our Subcouncils:
Accessibility/Section 508 Compliance
- Co–Chairs: Bruce Bailey (Bailey@access-board.gov) and [vacant]
Governance and Operations
- Co–Chairs: Rand Ruggieri (Rand.Ruggieri@trade.gov) and Mark Elbert (Mark.Elbert@eia.doe.gov)
Metrics/Analytics
- Co–Chairs: Tim Evans (tim.evans@ssa.gov) and [vacant]
Multilingual Websites
- Co–Chairs: Leilani Martinez (leilani.martinez@gsa.gov) and Laura Godfrey
Social Media
- Co–Chairs: Jeffrey Levy (Levy.Jeffrey@epa.gov) and Joyce Bounds (Joyce.Bounds@va.gov)
Technology and Innovation
- Co–Chairs: Russell O'Neill (russell.oneill@gsa.gov) and Rezaur Rahman (rrahman@achp.gov)
Training and Development
- Co–Chairs: Eric Ramoth (eric.r.ramoth@hud.gov) and [vacant]
User Experience/Usability
- Co-Chairs: Nicole Burton (Nicole.Burton@gsa.gov) and Claudette Archambault (claudette_archambault@saa.senate.gov)
Three of our Subcouncil co–Chairs gave us a brief update on the activities of their group:
- Nicole Burton – User Experience (AKA Usability) group
- Tim Evans – Metrics/Analytics
- Rand Ruggieri – Governance & Operations
These Subcouncils serve as subject matter expects in their respective areas, and work with the Web Council to help us collaboratively improve the government web. If you have an interest in a particular topic, please contact any of our Subcouncil Chairs to learn more about a particular group, and get involved. Notice we have a few Subcouncil co-Chair vacancies – so let us know if you are interested in applying to be a co–Chair!
WE WANT YOU – Share your skills and expertise – Help your colleagues – Join a Subcouncil (and the Forum site) today!
Wrap–up
Next call: June 18, 2009 - 11 eastern, 8 pacific
Topic – Google Earth/Google Maps
