Twenty Theses for Government 2.0, Cluetrain Style

“ Jump on the Government 2.0 Cluetrain or Get Hit by It” A Look at Government 2.0 from the Lens of the Cluetrain Manifesto Conversation Insight Action Results

Who is this guy talking right now?

Steve Radick, Associate with Booz Allen Hamilton

Lead of Social Media/Government 2.0 Practice

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The risks of doing social media are greatly outweighed by the risks of NOT doing social media. "Although some may dismiss the site as a simple prank or minor irritant, the fact is that the information presented was false and misleading and could lead to unwarranted concern by the public." - Police Chief Art Acevedo

Social media is not driven by the position, the title, or the department, but by the person. I wanted an online home for people around government to connect and share ideas to improve government. And it wouldn’t matter if you were junior or senior, federal or state or local, in Alaska or D.C. So I spent a few months researching the technology and on Memorial Day 2008 I launched GovLoop to about 10 friends. Now we have over 8,400 friends on the site.” - GovLoop Founder, Steve Ressler

Younger employees are not necessarily any more knowledgeable about social media than older employees. Stop assuming they are. 276.4% Growth! 194.3% Growth!

Social media is not about the technology but what the technology enables.

Policies are not written in stone. With justification, passion, and knowledge, policies and rules can and should be changed.

Assume that your employees are good people who want to do the right thing and who take pride in their work.

Government 2.0 is about accomplishing the mission, not about looking cool.

The legal and IT security departments are not Government 2.0 villains; they can and should be your partners. Actively engage with them. OGC Online Lisa Schlosser, former chief information officer at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) "We realized our security tools are pretty good and our bandwidth is good, so why are we blocking it?" Schlosser says. "We opened it up. We will see how it goes and if there are problems or security concerns, we will relook at the decision."

Mistakes can and will be made (a lot). Stop creating safeguards to eliminate the possibility of mistakes and instead concentrate on how to deal with them when they are made.

Instead of marketing your social media capabilities, skills, experience, platforms, etc. to the government, why don’t you try talking with them?

Agency Secretaries and Department Heads are big boys and girls. They should be able to have conversations with their workforce without having to jump through hoops to do so.

You can’t just listen to what the public has to say, you have to also care about it too.

Government 2.0 isn’t just about using YouTube, Facebook and Twitter – Government 2.0 exists behind the firewall as well.

Your Government agency/organization/ group/branch/division is not unique. Your challenges, while unique to you, are not unique to the government.

You will work with skeptics and other people who want to see social media fail because their weaknesses will be exposed. Steve Radick

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Steve Radick

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Information security is a very real and valid concern. Do NOT take this lightly.

Be humble. You don’t know everything so stop trying to pretend that you do. It’s ok to be wrong.

But, be confident. Know what you know and don’t back down. You will be challenged by skeptics who do not care about or understand social media. Do not let them discourage you.

You are not alone. There are true social media champions throughout the government. Find them. Talk to them. Learn from them.

Government 2.0 is still being defined. Join the conversation. Help define it. Help provide the solutions.