The event – and all those who are a part of it – is great at building buzz through social media. I guess that is not too surprising as the content is about, and many participants are heavy users, of social tools.

I work on the event curating and creating content from it. By curating content about the event prior to it starting I get to see how buzz builds. Here are some tips, taken from Tru London, on how to build buzz before your event.

1 Create a Twitter hashtag for the event. This will become the Twitter ‘label’ for all content and discussion related to the event.

The Trulondon recruiting unconference uses #trulondon – check out the hashtag to see how the pre-event buzz is building.

2 Have a promoter, someone on Twitter who reaches out to people – speakers, potential speakers, potential delegates – and makes them aware of the event and the hashtag. Buzz is created by people so make sure you have someone who can do this.

Bill Boorman runs Tru events and is a heavy user of social media so he understands how to use it for his events. He is also a a great event maker and knows how to host them and he uses these skills online to engage people.

3 Ask speakers to blog about their presentations/thinking for their session and make sure they share this using the event hahstag. Make sure you ask sponsors to post as well.

Many, many speakers have posted about their sessions at try London. You can see the posts listed in this post.

4 Ask sponsors to blog, especially if they are sponsoring speaker sessions. Get the speakers to blog on the sponsor’s site and make sure it gets promoted on the event hashtag.

Jobsite is the headline sponsor for Tru London and in the lead up to the event it has published posts from the speakers it has sponsored, such as this one from Bryan Wempen.

5 Keep pulling the content together. Ideally do this on your site but it doesn’t matter where as long as it gets done. This will provide a useful service for anyone interested in the event, attending or not.

I am working as the event reporter and curator at Tru London. That means I pull together all the content and curate it in one place. I do this before the event to help build buzz and to provide value to those who are going and those who are following the event from afar.

6 Share developments about the event – new sessions added, innovations etc and post as soon as you can.

Social media enables you to update people in a timely way so let people know useful information and share how the event is developing. Here is Bill sharing news of a page that has been built for the event . . .

7 Keep talking about the event so the hashtag is busy. Busy = buzz.

Make sure your ‘promoter’ keeps an eye on the hashtag so the conversation continues. Think about it like you would if you were a party host – wander around making sure people are OK and connecting them to others to talk to. Just do all this in your social media networks instead.

Here’s a good example of being a host . . .

8 An open conversation will enable others to pitch in. And even if they aren’t coming they can add to the buzz . . . e.g. I can’t be there but wish I was.

9 Let your fans and advocates get on with promoting and sharing on your behalf and wherever they choose – they are advocates so let them advocate and trust they will do a good job because they will.

For example, regular attendee and Tru speaker Geoff Webb has set up this #tru friends Facebook group.

10 And finally, share openly ie not just in closed groups. Make sure you retweet, share in Facebook, in Linkedin, Pinterest, Google Plus, your site, blog etc so as to maximise the number of potential eyeballs looking at what you are doing.

So why don’t we have ideas festivals for the workplace? There is so much change coursing through organisations at the moment it would seem the right time to create a space and place to share thinking on these changes.

As I said, there are smaller events covering elements of the workplace such as this week’s Tru recruitment unconference, next month’s Social Learning conference (it is half unconference), the forthcoming ConnectingHR unconference plus the new L&D Connect unconference. There are also many traditional conferences servicing the workplace sector.

Be great to see a Do Lectures or LikeMinds or SXSW for the workplace.

The event is actually a mix of conference and unconference and features a range of great speakers and case studies including Nick Shackleton-Jones from BP and Clare Norman from Accenture.

I’ll be facilitating discussion in an unconference session entitled From Learning 2.0 to social learning. It will be interesting to see what delegates will make of the title and how they interpret it and what we understand social learning to be.

My thinking will be based around what social learning looks like and what the implications are for the organisation.This is based on my experiences co-founding a knowledge sharing event at Reed Business Information using a range of tools including Yammer and blogs – more on that here and here.

Clearly, social – networking, business, recruiting, HR, learning and so on – is the buzz, but what does it really mean for learning within the organisation?

I thought this 20-minute film of Noam Chomsky talking about the purpose of education is worth looking at as he describes the two main concepts behind our eduction system:

The Enlightenment

This interpretation of education system says that the highest goal in life is to inquire and create and search the riches of the past and try to internalise the significant parts and carry them forward in your quest for understanding. Education is to help people determine how to learn on their own. It is up to you how you use it and learn and create new things.

Indoctrination

The concept of indoctrination is about creating a framework for young people in which they learn. This educational environment is controlled and promotes conformity.

There is a constant struggle in education between these two concepts, Chomsky says.

Workplace learning
Why is this relevant to workplace learning? Because there is a tension within organisations around needing  to share with colleagues what the organisation needs them to know and colleagues discovering what they need to know for themselves (wherever they might find it).

Jane Hart has written a great post on social learning, which I would encourage you to read. I also enjoyed this post on the value of social by Sukh Pabial.

I would also add that how L&D professionals learn is a part of this mix! Last year, whilst working at TrainingZone, I asked four L&D professionals how they learn. The answers highlight the range of different ways in which we learn on the job, which I think is important when we talk about social learning in isolation (you will need to login for free to see the articles in full).

• David Mascord
• Rob Jones
• Claire Walsh
• Sukh Pabial

You can also follow the event on the conference hashtag, which is #slconf.

If you are coming to the conference, then I look forward to meeting you there.

Last week, Mike Morrison hosted the first webinar for the CIPD members Linkedin group – the group Mike created, which now has more than 11,000 members.

It is good to see that Mike is now trying to build on the great engagement amongst members in the group. In this inaugural webinar – Virtual meetings and the etiquette of being online – David Smith from Insynch Training provided attendees with top tips on how to facilitate effective online meetings.

I provided Q&A support, gathering questions from attendees and throwing them at David in the Q&A session directly after the presentation. There were lots of great questions which meant the hour-long session was evenly split between presentations and Q&A.

With more than 100 attendees the event proved popular, which is interesting considering the HR and L&D communities have many opportunities to attend webinars through their professional bodies, trade media brands etc.

Maybe there is an insatiable desire to attend webinars or maybe the topic hit the right note? One thing is for sure, the feedback from attendees demonstrated that online live events are on the agenda for many organisations as a cost-effective way to bring people together and share learning.

It was also interesting to note that many HR and L&D practitioners are still learning about what the technology has to offer. Feedback from the event demonstrated this point, with comments such as:

Useful to be able to see and use the technology to experience an on line meeting.

It was easy to follow with some great tips. I liked the graphic of the meeting table showing the areas you need to consider in a graphical way.

 

It was also good to see the Twitter stream being used at the same time as the webinar was taking place – on the #cipdlrn hashtag. Managing a Twitter hashtag for a webinar is not easy, especially if you have a hands-on role in the running of the event. Well done Mike and the attendees who participated in the Twitter discussion – this added valuable input into the event and help share learning well beyond the webinar.

It was also good to see some innovative thinking in action. Before the presentation started and David was introduced by Mike, they were chatting and screen sharing to demonstrate the kind of things that could be done in an online meeting.

I liked the way this mirrored the way face to face meetings take place – the first couple of people in the room chat as others arrive. Even in the online environment it felt as if I was joining something active, rather than sitting in silence waiting for a presenter to start talking at me.

So, a good topic and presenter, a bit of innovation at the beginning and lots of Q&A and great feedback. I’d say that was a good start.

Mike is planning similar events so keep an eye on the Linkedin group to see what’s coming next.

Here are 10 reasons why you need to get your event covered:

1. To generate demand: prior to the event create a hashtag and promote the event on Twitter, create a Linkedin Group and start talking to delegates before the event and do the same on Facebook
2. To create anticipation: start writing about the event on your site or blog – this will help generate interest in the speakers and what they have to say and will provide traffic benefit for your site
3. To provide a useful service for delegates: on the day share practical content about the event and provide support for delegates using social media
4. To amplify promote your event as it happens: use social media to share your live coverage and  what you are hearing at the event – there are plenty outside the room who will be following the hashtag. One event we covered reached 37,500 people and there were 35 delegates in the room
5. To provide a window into your event: the more you share content from the event, the more your event will be noticed. But make sure it is interesting content – pictures are great for giving a good feel for the event but add audio, video and words into the mix
6. To engage with those outside the room: bring outside conversation into the conference room (in Q&As, for example) on screens using tools such as Twitterfall
7. To provide extra marketing: brand your blog/site so that speakers and sponsors benefit from the extra eyeballs looking at your event coverage
8. To show you understand the power of content: as an event organiser you already know that content sells. Now make the most of sharing that content as the event takes place – a wider audience is waiting for it
9. To market to delegates post-event: use the live blogs, audio and video content to provide a post-event round-up (think email, PDF) and use the content generated at the event to help market your next event
10. To grow your business: through reporting tools such as Tweetreach, identify who has interacted with your event and event coverage.

Chances are your competitors are not doing this, so you also get a chance to steal a march on them.

Find out more about our live event coverage below. If you would like help with your events then please email martin@itsdevelopmental.com

Live event coverage from Itsdevelopmental

In this post I will curate all the content from the event. As is usual for a Tru event, however, there are plenty of posts to get us in the mood.

I’ll be adding more as they are published and please let me know if have missed any.

The event is on 22-23 February at the City Hotel, London – more details here. I’ll be live blogging on the Tru London 5 live blog and you can see Jobsite’s live streaming and other coverage at its Tru London hub.

Bill Boorman has now released the schedule for the event.

Posts

Already many of the track leaders have written about the thinking behind their tracks . . .

Wisemansay shares what he is attending and why in Tru London 5 – The Tracks I’m attending and why

The Radical Recruit on the Tru unconference movement he helped create . . . We’re all Thought Leaders Now! and he says a hi to Tru London too in his video blog.

How you can follow and join in the TruLondon5 conversation!

Steve Ward is running a track on the ‘Social agency’ – here he starts the discussion . . .The Social Agency – Changing the Perception of the Recruiter

Bryan Wempen is over from the US to run a track on social influence. Bryan sets out his thinking in Communication is a Gift That Comes in Many Forms

Here’s a first for Tru – 4Mat will be running a careers website lab. Find out more in this post:  Trucareers – 4Mat apply the science

So why does an HR professional attend a recruiting unconference?  #Tru London 5 – Why do I go . . .

Check out the page which has been created for the event at Recruitingblogs.

Jobsite’s Mervyn Dinnen and Brave New Talent’s James Mayes will be debating the death of the CV. Mervyn gets the the discussion going . . .  Will it be The Last Rites for the CV at #TruLondon?

Tribepad are sponsoring Tru London 5 and CEO Lisa Scales is running a track on the role of communities in recruiting  . . . #TruLondon comes to town..

Some live broadcast as #TNLive Goes Global at #truLondon

Great to see John Sumser will be at Tru London.

Great to see RIDE – the Dutch Recruitment Industry Dance Event – hosting a meet-up after day one of TruLondon. Organiser Rob Van Elberg promises free champagne. I’ll drink to that.

If you are newbie to #trulondon then let the host with the most set the scene and put you at your ease . . . #trulondon: a survivor’s guide

We have poetry in the lead up to the event! Andsomepeople get you in the mood for their track on social recruiting and engagement Let’s get engaged #trulondon

Tru disorganiser Bill Boorman on the conference format and news of a Google hangout for Tru London 5 . . . Who moved my conference? #trulondon

Platinum sponsor Jobsite is looking forward to next week’s event, sharing what they will be up to  . . . Getting ready for Tru London 5

One of the big names attending from the US, Craig Fisher has produced his own promo . . . Craig Fisher TRU London Promo

Max Heywood is running a track on Pinterest. Not heard of it, not sure how it impacts on recruiting? Let Max be your guide . . . The Pinterest Puzzle: Are There Recruiting Applications? A #TruLondon track

Rob Jones is running a track on how to effectively measure quality of hire The one with TRU Quality

Business has to take responsibility for bringing new skills into the workplace and HR has to take the lead. Agree? HR directors Neil Morrison and Alison Chisnell will be running the discussion at Tru London. Neil outlines his thinking here . . . HR, job creation and an economic imperative

A wish list for your recruitment software. If you have one then share it at Tru London . . . Colleague Software – rethinking recruitment software

And here is the press release from Colleague Software

And here is a post about the survey at the UK Recruiter blog . . . Recruitment Software Survey at #TruLondon

Do candidates really want to apply for jobs through their mobile, asks Peter Gold. Peter will be running a track looking for answers, sharing findings from his Linkedin poll and looking at the implications of mobile for the entire hiring process. TRU London 2012: Should the online job application be mobile?

Preview piece from event disorganiser Bill Boorman. #TruLondon 5: You wouldn’t want to miss it!

What’s the difference between referral and recommendation? Bill Boorman looks at the issues, which will be discussed at Tru London. How to make a social referral program work #trulondon

Bill Boorman shares his thoughts  . . . Twitter Tricks For Recruiters #SocialRecruiting #TruLondon

With YammerVersity, we have created a private and secure environment for new hires to begin navigating Yammer, learning the company culture and completing their training. We are able to invite new hires into this separate external network, YammerVersity, prior to their start date so that they could start to casually internalize Yammer culture.

The approach is interesting in that it is all about:

• Creating safe places for colleagues to interact and share
• Using and reusing learning content that already existed in the organisation
• Providing a platform for subject matter experts to share their knowledge and experience
• Creating new content specifically for the people in the groups – enabling subject experts to create and share video content.

I’ve written a short piece below about the  Good Practice Learning Trends Index. You can also download the report (link takes you to the PDF).

Employers are focusing their L&D efforts on increased use of learning technologies, using more social media tools and supporting more informal learning, according to the Learning Trends Index.

Some 83% of the 250 respondents to the index, produced by GoodPractice, Reed Learning and INL Consultancy, said they would be using more  e-learning and virtual delivery methods over the coming six months. Of these, 30% said there would be a significant increase in the use of technology.

Larger organisations are more keen to increase their use of technology to deliver learning with 84% of respondents reporting an increase in this area, compared to 67% of smaller organisations.

Organisations continue to rely on informal learning – learning that takes place away from organised formal training – with 41% seeing a minor increase and 23% a major increase in this area. 33% report no change in the use of informal learning.

The report authors say that informal learning should  be part of an organisation’s learning strategy.

L&D’s role should not be to try to ‘manage’ informal learning, but to find out what informal learning is taking place in order to build up a picture of how it is contributing (or otherwise) to organisational performance.

 

Social media tools are growing in importance, with 56% of learning managers saying they expect to see increased use of social media tools in their learning and development solutions in the coming six months.

Smaller organisations will be making more use of social media with more than 20% of learning managers from smaller organisations (less than 1,000 employees) predicting a major increase in social media in the coming six months. None of the L&D managers in larger organisations said they would be seeing a major increase in the use of social media tools although they said there would be some increase in the coming months.

Respondents were upbeat about the role of L&D with 60% of learning managers saying that the function’s positive status as a key strategic contributor will improve in the coming months. Resourcing has not been impacted significantly by the worsening UK and global economy with 35% reporting a reduction in resources.

Looking forward, the top three business drivers that will have the most impact on L&D will be:

1. Improving organisational execution and efficiency
2. Employee engagement
3. Revenue growth

About the index

This is the fourth set of results for the Learning Trends Index.  The report provides an overview of the key trends that have emerged across the L&D industry during the two year period from May 2010 to May 2012 and beyond.

The fifth survey is scheduled to take place during May 2012, and will continue to be run every six months following that in order to track the industry.

Here I am going to talk about praise. Sounds obvious to say that praise is so important for children. However, how good are we at it really?

Children need praise for a variety of reasons – it encourages them, it supports them, it provides positive reinforcement . . . it makes them feel good about what they have done and, more importantly, who they are.

The course gave some great tips on how to praise:

• Ensure it is sincere
• Ensure it is specific to an action/achievement
• Make it immediate
• And make it obvious.

As a parent, make sure you catch children doing things right and praise them for it. Another important element for parents and children is the concept of giving praise to get praise.

However, it is the impact of praise on children’s overall emotional development which is critical. A child who is praised is building up what we called in the course their ‘emotional piggy bank’ so that when it comes to disciplining the child is more resilient.

A child who hears negative comments has his or her emotional piggy bank depleted so that when a parent has to discipline that child they are not able to cope so easily with it.

And then there is the behaviour that parents model – the behaviour that children copy. Children need to see and hear their parents praise each other. I won’t go into the impact on children of parents who are mean to each other  . . .

The big take away for me, aside from the need to praise behaviour in a timely way, was that we need – parents, children, grandparents, all of us – to make sure we praise behaviours in others.

I don’t think this happens nearly enough and especially not in the workplace.

Thanks to Gavin Heaton for pointing to this. Slide sharing service Slideshare provides us with a look into its usage over the previous 12 months. If you are keen to see how many slides on average are being used by country, the longest slide deck of 2011, whether men post longer slide decks than women and which regions use Slideshare the most (plus a lot more) then this is worth a look.

I particularly like the way Slideshare has put this together. All companies sit on data that has the potential to be shared in this way. Just think what your zeitgeist report for 2011 might be.

And if you want to produce a great slide deck? The stats say that the average number of slides on a great slide deck is 65, with an average of 32 words per slide.