The document provides an overview of a course titled 'Communication through Digital Media & Networks' at the University of Washington, instructed by Hanson Hosein and adjunct instructors Brent Friedman and Adriana Gil Miner. The course focuses on the impact of digital technologies on human interaction, content creation, and community engagement while aiming to equip students with the skills necessary for effective communication in a changing digital landscape. It outlines class logistics, learning objectives, assignments, and grading criteria, emphasizing the importance of participation and relationship-building among peers.

1. Communication through Digital Media & Networks V8 11/8/13
COM 546, Fall 2013
CANVAS: https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/847329
#CommLead546
Instructor of Record:
Hanson Hosein http://www.linkedin.com/in/hansonhosein/
Adjunct Instructors
Brent Friedman http://www.linkedin.com/pub/brent-friedman/4/342/72
Adriana Gil Miner http://www.linkedin.com/in/agilminer
Office: Communications Building, Suite 251
Hours: By Appointment or by E-mail
Contact: hrhmedia@uw.edu, brent.friedman@rainsparklabs.com
Class Time, Dates, Location
Every other Saturday
9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
ALC 136 on the main floor of the Odegaard Undergraduate Library
http://www.washington.edu/maps/?OUG
September 28
October 12 & 26
November 9, 23
Course Description
The connectivity revolution created by the Internet and mobile devices is
changing the way humans interact, the way our professions and industries are
organized, and the political face of the planet. The struggle to be heard is fierce,
but being heard is no longer enough; successful engagement is often a
deliberate interplay among the conveyance of relevant content, strategic
listening, and dynamic conversation. Measurement also plays a key role in
this equation, which helps to justify the effort and investment made in how we
communicate, and determining how we can effectively sustain valuable
relationships once we do connect. Ultimately, this new ecosystem supported by
digital technologies, is challenging traditional social structures and institutional
organizations, placing a higher premium on sometimes less formal, though often
more powerful communities and networks. In this course, we will consider what
it means to communicate through the creation of compelling content, in
order to build and inspire the communities and networks necessary to
engage during this historic time of chaos and change.

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Learning Objectives
After taking this course students will be able to:
- Understand what it means to integrate content into an engagement strategy, in
order to influence and persuade
- Conceptualize an approach to launching and nurturing their own network, to
sustain relationships inspired through content
- Focus on the primacy of assessing the impact of engagement, ensuring that
attention is kept and leads to a desired form of change
- Apply a new set of useful skills intended to serve them during their time in the
Comm Lead program, embodied in an online portfolio that will support their
career development
Class Meetings
Because this class is held once every two weeks for eight hours, the format will
resemble an interactive executive education session with the day divided into
distinct modules that relate and build off one another.
There will also be activities that break you into smaller groups and then provide
time for report back to keep the pace dynamic.
Typically there will be two 15-minute breaks, one in the morning and one in the
afternoon, along with a one-hour break for a catered, free-of-charge lunch.
It's imperative that you arrive on time, as class will begin right at 9 a.m. We will
be covering a lot of ground and the day will move quickly. Out of respect for your
cohort, instructors, and for your learning experience, your attendance and
participation are crucial. We will endeavor to record the class to Tegrity (the UW's
streaming video platform) for future reference, but cannot guarantee that
everything that occurs in class will be fully captured.
We don't really have any technology requirements for COM546, but it would be
ideal if you had at least a smart device (or a laptop) so that you could interact via
the various platforms we may be using in the class. We're OS-agnostic. The
tables you'll be seated at have VGA and HDMI connections, as well as electrical
outlets.

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Course Deliverables and Grading
This course serves as the launching pad to the remainder of your
Communication Leadership learning experience. We also intend it to be useful
right now in your professional daily lives. Through the assignments, we aim to
provide some of the foundational skills that will serve you throughout the
program, as well as connect to your objectives even as you connect to your
colleagues within the cohort -- creating a true learning community. Consider it a
relationship-centric boot camp!
Both of the Comm Lead core courses are graded as Credit/No Credit. This is
intentional, as the focus of this course is different from our other classes that may
be more assignment-centric, and whose deliverables are more easily measured.
Grades can sometimes be seen as arbitrary, but our expectations are not: we
expect superb, timely work. And you only receive credit for this class if you
complete all these deliverables in a superb, timely way. So although there may
be no grades, the stakes are higher. And frankly, this makes us more
accountable to you as your instructors to provide useful, instructive feedback.
This feedback justifies both the assignment itself, along with the time and effort
you put into it.
Finally, please recognize that what you produce in this class has potentially
far-reaching professional consequences. You’ll be forming relationships
(some of them lasting) with accomplished colleagues who may one day have
some influence on your career.
Speaking of influence, you’ll also be interacting with globally recognized industry
leaders (instructors, guest lecturers, speakers) whose references will serve you
well. Some of the best recommendation letters I’ve written for my students have
been based on the work they’ve completed and impressions they’ve made in this
foundational class. I’ve also provided references with frank caveats! In this
always-on, always-connected world, the networks and communities we form
have considerable value. I hope you’ll consider them in the way that I do: a
currency. And you’re accruing it from the moment you enter Comm Lead. That’s
the essence of this inaugural investment that you’re making in your time in the
program.
To earn credit for COM 546 and to avoid an "Incomplete:"
Attend all classes except by prior notification and not to exceed one class
session
Arrive to all classes on time having carefully read the assigned texts
Complete all assignments in a timely and professional manner
Work collaboratively in assigned groups
Provide peer-to-peer feedback for classmates
Participate in class forums online, during class times, and in team meetings
Complete the specific deliverables (which follow)

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DELIVERABLE #1
Watch the following Lynda.com modules prior to start of Class #1 9/28
"Wordpress.com Essential Training" (the cloud-based one, not the self-hosted
version that refers to Wordpress.org -- a huge difference)
"Leadership Fundamentals"
"Building an Integrated Online Marketing Plan" (or, alternatively, "Insights from
a Content Marketer").
Optional though useful
- "Up and Running with LinkedIn"
- "Twitter for Business."
Why this assignment? To provide a universal set of skills and framing that will
help you in this class. By leveraging our partnership with this online education
portal, we can spend more time in-class on more the more strategic elements of
the subject matter.

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DELIVERABLE #2
Write a short (1-2 pages in Word-compatible format, single or double-spaced)
“My Terms of Engagement”, due Wednesday, September 25th 11:59 p.m.,
uploaded to Canvas
https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/847329/assignments/2294122
You wrote a Letter of Intent as part of your application to the program. My Terms
of Engagement is a continuation of this, a preliminary roadmap of your
intellectual and professional focus while a Comm Lead student. Please
thoughtfully include the following in this well-written, grammatically correct
manifesto:
Your name and your LinkedIn profile URL (see #5)
If you were to establish yourself as a standalone, independent known
entity (in other words, separate from any other institution you’re associated with,
be it company, organization or school) -- a credible thought leader and expert in
professional communications, what is the one communications-related skill
you’d like to be recognized for?
Why?
How would you propose to establish this expertise and credibility based on past
and future experience? (For instance, Hanson is recognized as a leader in
storytelling, digital journalism and content marketing; Brent is a writer, a
transmedia storytelling pioneer, and now a technology platform developer).
Feel free to reference anything you’ve read recently, including David Gray’s The
Connected Company. The Lynda.com modules, "Building an Integrated Online
Marketing Plan" (or, alternatively, "Insights from a Content Marketer") may be
also helpful. We don’t adhere to a particular citation style (and bibliography not
necessary), just be consistent in how you make those references.
Based on the Griffin reading for Class #1 9/28 (PDF provided via Canvas),
which theory best suits your approach to communication? Briefly explain the
theory. Why does it resonate for you? How would you like to develop this further
while in Comm Lead?
Based on the Action Idea concept in Hanson’s “Storyteller Uprising” create
your own personal Action Idea that best exemplifies the thinking you’ve outlined
in #2 and #3. Ideally a single line, no more than three sentences.
Create a LinkedIn profile if you don’t already have one. Connect to Hanson if
you haven’t already (and to Brent and Adriana if you like). Link your Canvas
profile with your LinkedIn profile (as "Registered Service" under Canvas), and

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include the LinkedIn profile URL alongside your name in this Terms of
Engagement deliverable.
Copy and Paste your Action Idea into the specified Canvas announcement (hit
"Reply." https://canvas.uw.edu/courses/847329/discussion_topics/1512350)
We're looking for clarity of thought (well-organized, well-stated) with substantive
connection to the readings and your own experiences.
Why this assignment? We want to know who you are, what you seek to
accomplish while a student and pave the way for you to become a credible,
independent thought leader irrespective of where you may work (or end up
working). This also helps us get a better understanding of how you fit in our
community and how we can facilitate connections to maximize that fit. This
assignment will be shared with other Comm Lead staff and faculty.

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DELIVERABLE #3
Provide 5 unique Reflections for each of the 5 class sessions based on the
lectures, readings and conversation (100-300 words). These are due 48 hours
following the end of each Saturday session.
Create a free WordPress.com site (reference the Lynda.com module from
Deliverable #1 if you need help). Customize the name/URL/title as you see fit.
There’s no need to spend any money on templates, custom URL’s, etc. unless
you want to (feel free to check out Hanson’s blog at www.hrhmedia.com for fun,
but it’s not something you need to emulate).
Cut and paste your Action Idea from Deliverable #2 into your “About” page on
the WordPress site.
Post each Reflection to your WordPress.com site; feel free to curate any other
content, ideas you have in separate posts. We’d like to encourage you to use this
site as your public Comm Lead portfolio. These Reflections are meant to be a
venue for deepening class discussion, distilling ideas, taking a step back -whatever is burning the utmost in your mind during that particular session. See it
as an opportunity for inspiration and a way to express yourself as a thoughtful,
individual communication expert.
Post your reflections to the Canvas “Discussion” thread, along with the specific
WordPress URL for your post. We suggest you read anything your colleagues
may have posted already and feel free to comment on them. A lot of learning and
relationship-building occurs in these out-of-class threads.
Why this assignment? A Communication Leader should be in the habitual
practice of content creation and creative engagement. This is ultimately your
profession and expertise -- you should own it. This assignment also
demonstrates how you’ve filtered the class material, and encourages
connections with your colleagues.

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DELIVERABLE #4
You will be assigned to a pod of at least 7 other students. Each pod will be either
overseen by Hanson or Brent. In this pod, you will take ownership of 40
minutes of class in one of the final two sessions (to be determined) on a
specific challenge.
In this HIGHLY ENGAGING presentation, you will:
Define the issue, and further refine the context of the assigned scenario (the
latter prepared in consultation with Brent or Hanson)
Provide a sense of history of the issue
Determine the current trends related to the issue
Outline specific best practices that best respond to the challenge.
During this 40-minute presentation (with no more than 140 characters of text per
slide -- if you use slides) you’ll also lead the class in some sort of conversation or
interaction. Your success with this deliverable will ultimately be measured by the
quality of engagement with your audience in both what you present and how you
engage them overall. This will be done so through a real-time smart device
survey conducted through an SMS poll.
Ultimately, a strong presentation will inspire, educate and take our collective
thinking to the next level of the particular subject.
Steps
Meet with your Pod members. Initial discussion of the assigned subject,
brainstorm approach. Consider Lynda.com module “Leadership Fundamentals”
for guidance of working within the group.
Consult with your assigned instructor (Hanson or Brent) as to your
interpretation of the challenge, your approach, suggested reading(s). Based on
this consultation, we will populate the syllabus’ final two sessions with your
proposed lecture.
Create presentation, share any advance materials with the class. Our librarian,
Jessica Albano has created a research guide specifically for this assignment:
http://guides.lib.washington.edu/mcdm2013
Present material, lead conversation in class.
Following the presentation, the instructors will lead a conversation with the
class regarding the subject itself, and also about the level of engagement during
the presentation. Which content resonated? What didn’t? Why? What have we
learned to advance our understanding of the subject?

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Each pod member posts a distillation of the presentation (along with any
attachments, links) to her/his WordPress site as a separate post.
The 10 class presentations will be later included in a compendium to be shared
within the Comm Lead program and publicly.
You will have the chance to provide feedback on each of the members of your
group through a form available on Canvas.
Each pod will be assigned one of the following challenges:
1. DATA CHALLENGE
Your organization has a new wearable tech product that tracks your location,
time you spend at work vs. family, and your emotional response.
In order to launch the product, your organization needs to resolve issues (and
draft a communication plan) around the personal data that will be generated by
users and employed by your organization. Who should own the data? How
should it be managed?
2. ENGAGEMENT IN ORGANIZATIONS
The head of your political action organization has decided to create a new
Department called “Engagement Team.”
Your team has been asked to lead it. What will determine this new team’s
success? What exactly is “effective engagement?” What would it mean for your
organization’s brand? How will you assign content creators to make this happen?
How do you see your organization’s users/customers/constituents playing into
this engagement calculus? How will it integrate with the rest of the organization’s
traditional departments: marketing, PR, customer service?
3. MONETIZING COMMUNITIES
Your team has been instrumental in pushing your organization to create and
nurture a community of Mini Cooper owners, which is still in its infancy. Now
you’ve been tasked to “monetize” that community (through sales/fundraising).
How do you go about it? How would you communicate your intentions to the
community? What systems would you employ? What partnerships would you
have to develop? How will it change your content? How would you communicate
the risks and value to the organization?
4. GROWING UP DIGITAL
You and your friends have been working with a group of middle-schoolers on
weekends. You’ve been asked to advise them on how they should strategically

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enter into the online world of grownups. What do you tell them, taking into
account privacy issues, even as they seek to start making strategic connections?
5. ENVISIONING THE FUTURE
Your organization wants to create a 10-year horizon for capital
expenditures. Your group is asked to consider the technology that will support
how it conducts communications. What do you think the world will look like a
decade from now? What do you advise based on this scenario?
6. THE PLATFORM DILEMMA
Your organization wants to use a “Platform” to leverage sustained
communications internally, as well as to promote collaboration and idea
generation among employees. What features and functionality matter? Do you
recommend that the organization create a platform or use an existing, publicly
available one? What are the adoption barriers to consider and how would you
mitigate them?
7. THE OPEN COMMUNICATION
Your organization just launched an online photos and videos network that is
getting a lot of traction among early adopters. Even as you want to grow the
network, you also recognize that you have to decide if you’re going to regulate it
or not, and consider the implications either way. You also face steep competition
and the challenge of crossing the “chasm” to early majority – how would you
propose overcoming that challenge?
8. TRENDY TRENDS
You work in a B2B software company that makes project management tools. The
head of your organization has heard all about the trends towards “mobile” and
“storytelling,” but your service is for PC only. Your CEO wants to put the two
trends together as a strategy, telling the organization’s story entirely via mobile.
What do you advise? How would you implement this? What are the
considerations?
9. THE FREE THREAT
You work in a high-end magazine for urban farmers. Your organization has had a
successful run at creating professional content online and offline that commands
a premium price. Increasingly, you realize that you’re facing competition from
“free” online content. What is the impact of this phenomenon? How do you
strategically respond to it? What changes need to be made, when?

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10. THE BEHAVIOR CHALLENGE
Your organization’s mission is to increase people’s recycling habits and help
conserve the planet. What programs, products, services and media strategy
would you develop to make this happen. What are the considerations? How
would you scale? How much would it cost? What resources would you need?
Why this assignment? This is it in an nutshell: the creation of useful, educational
content presented in an engaging way that is relevant to your community and
helps propel your network forward. You get to create, you get to be the expert,
and you get to share it. We get to determine what constitutes successful
engagement as you compete for attention.

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DELIVERABLE #5
Your end-of-class addendum to My Terms of Engagement.
Write a short (1 paragraph to 1 page in Word-compatible format, single or
double-spaced) note about the one item of content that moved you most
throughout the class.
Ideally, you would have already posted about this content to your WordPress
site, so provide the URL to that post as well.
Explain why it moved you and how it might relate to what you initially stated in
"My Terms of Engagement."
Post this final note to your WordPress site. Due November 26th by 11:59 p.m.,
uploaded to Canvas.
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Required Texts
Hosein, H. (2012). Storyteller Uprising: Trust & Persuasion in the Digital Age.
Seattle: HRH Media. (Free to Comm Lead students as a multi-format ebook: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/59659; Your coupon code
is MG68C)
Gray, D. (2012). The Connected Company. Cambridge: O’Reilly.
Other journal articles, news articles, and peer reviewed papers as assigned.
These will be made available on the course website.
Highly Recommended
Zinsser, W. (2006). On Writing Well: 30th Anniversary Edition. New York:
HarperCollins.
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CLASS SESSIONS
(1) Storytelling/Content and Communication: HANSON leads/curates 9/28
SESSION OBJECTIVES
The learning community will:
- Explore the mechanics and goals of this class
- Understand what "Communication" means -- and why developing a sound
theory of it is highly applicable to the "real world"
- Develop best practices towards resolving communication challenges
- Develop best practices towards in-person communication and presentation
DUE prior to this class:
Deliverable #2: "My Terms of Engagement"; LinkedIn sign up (see Syllabus p.5)
SESSION REQUIREMENTS
☐ Hosein, "Storyteller Uprising"
☐ Griffin, "A First Look at Communication Theory", Chapters 1, 4 (Seven
Traditions in the Field of Communication Theory) PDF via Canvas
From Matt McGarrity:
In our two-hour workshop, we’ll discuss some strategies for designing and
delivering presentations. I would like you to do two things before Saturday.
1. Watch these two TED talks (each are about nine minutes).
☐ Eli Pariser: Beware online filter bubbles:
http://www.ted.com/talks/eli_pariser_beware_online_filter_bubbles.html
☐ Juliana Rotich: Meet BRCK, Internet access built for Africa:
http://www.ted.com/talks/juliana_rotich_meet_brck_internet_access_built_for_afri
ca.html
I’m not suggesting that these are the best speakers in the world, but I want us to
have some examples to analyze and discuss. Both speakers are addressing
some recent tech changes that might have overlaps with some of the
presentations you find yourself giving. As you watch each video, please keep
these analysis questions in mind.
☐ Design questions: What were the speaker’s goals for the talk? Did s/he
achieve these goals? How as the talk organized? Would another way of
organizing the talk have worked? Was the talk easy to follow along with? If not,
where was it unclear?

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☐ Delivery questions: What did you think of the speaker’s pacing and vocal
features (pitch variations, pause-lengths, etc.)? What did you think of the
speaker’s movement and gestures? What was the speaker’s persona in the
speech? How was this cultivated?
2. We’ll be work-shopping and practicing stuff on Saturday, so have a
presentation in mind. This could be a presentation that you’ve given or need to
give at work. It could be an upcoming presentation for the COM Lead program.
Just have something to play around with. Don’t write the speech ahead of time,
just bring the idea.
SESSION RUNDOWN
9:00-10:45: HOSEIN Introduction to Comm Leadership (with FRIEDMAN, GIL
MINER) -- the roots of the recipe. Syllabus discussion
10:45-11:00: Break
11:00-12:30: COUTU Dr. Why we need a theory of Communication as Comm
Leaders (Dr. Lisa Coutu, Comm Lead faculty/Associate Director)
12:30-13:30: LUNCH (catered -- Odegaard)
1:30-3:30: MCGARRITY The Art and Science of Presentation (plus move into
groups and do group exercise). Ad hoc break (Dr. Matt McGarrity, UW
Communication faculty, Comm Lead public engagement advisor)
3:30-5:00: GUEST LECTURE: (Sandra Jackson-Dumont, Seattle Art Museum
and Brooke Shepard Executive Creative Director, Weber Shandwick part-time
Comm Lead faculty) on content, networks, engagement and communications
challenges

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(2) Networks & Communities: BRENT leads/curates - 10/12
SESSION OBJECTIVES
The learning community will:
- Explore evolution of networks from Stone Age through Information Age
- Experiment with opportunities and challenges of engaging a network with
content
- Examine best industry practices in network cultivation and promotion
SESSION REQUIREMENTS
☐http://www.kk.org/newrules/selected_maxims.php
☐”Information Rules: A Strategic Guide to the Network Economy” (Chapter 7:
Networks & Positive Feedback; how performance versus compatibility and
openness versus control can work to ignite positive feedback.) PDF uploaded to
canvas
SESSION RUNDOWN
9:00-9:15 -- Introduce Brent, by Hanson
9:15-10:15 -- “Evolution of Networks,” as viewed through Brent’s professional
migration through networks: Linear Entertainment (biological), Non-Linear
Interactive (web) Digital Mobile (cloud)
10:15-10:30 -- Break #1
10:30-12:00 -- Workshop Pt. 1: Crowdsourcing a creative problem
12:00-1:00 -- Lunch
1:00-2:00 -- Guest Lecturer TBD. Topic: “The Power of Networks.” Example by
Manuel Lima as presented in this RSA
video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJmGrNdJ5Gw
2:00-3:30 -- Workshop Pt. 2: Crowdsourcing a creative problem (with a twist)
3:30-3:45 -- Break #2
3:45-4:45 -- Guest Lecturer: Jenna Seiden, Director of Distribution & Strategic
Partnerships for Maker Studios; premier multi-channel entertainment network:
http://www.makerstudios.com Topic: “Building Community & Monetizing
Networks”
4:45-5:00 -- Conclusions

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(3) Data, Measurement and Behavior: ADRIANA leads/curates - 10/26
SESSION OBJECTIVES
The learning community will:
- Understand how digital media and networks produce a wealth of data and the
impact to society
- Grasp how measurement and awareness leads to behavior change
- Understand principles of infographics (storytelling with data)
• The big opportunities and challenges of Big Data and Behavioral Change
• Designing for Behavioral Change
• Storytelling with Data
SESSION REQUIREMENTS
☐Designing to Incentivize, Nikki Pfarr, Artefact
☐We will conduct a debate on the pros and cons of big data and privacy.
Prepare by reading some material related to this topic (you won't know your team
and side of the argument until the day of the class). Here are some examples of
articles and recent papers to read. Please feel free to do some additional
research on your own.
http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/oct/06/big-data-predictiveanalytics-privacy
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2280968
http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/economic-intelligence/2013/09/16/bigdata-collection-has-many-benefits-for-internet-users
http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/business_technology/big_data_the_next_fronti
er_for_innovation
http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2013/08/26/nsa_s_data_should_be_ava
ilable_for_public_use.html
http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2013/03/fuzz_fivebooks_wi
ll_algorithms_kill_artistry_and_creativity.html
☐We will be discussing storytelling with data. A big part of this is infographics.
Here are a couple of good primers for this topic.
http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/
http://www.wired.com/design/2013/10/13-sterling-pieces-of-data-viz-from-thebest-american-infographic-2013/
☐Create an account on Daytum.http://daytum.com/ (you can download the
iPhone app)
For at least one week, keep track and log and categorize activities that you can
quantify such as (these are just examples):
• What type of food you eat and what times
• How many hours of sleep you get
• How many times you check Facebook
• How many times you tweet
• How many coffee cups you drink
•
Some examples of Daytum dashboards for inspiration.

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http://daytum.com/feltron
http://daytum.com/paulsrees
http://daytum.com/nasmo
http://daytum.com/GoodLiving
SESSION RUNDOWN
9:00-9:15 Intro: Hanson
9:15-10:15 Lecture: The Big Question
10:15-10:30 Break
10:30-11:30 Debate: The Two Sides of Privacy
11:30-12:30 Guest Lecture: Jay Al-Hashal, head of mobile for Zillow "The Data
Business"
12:30-1:30 LUNCH
1:30-3:00 Designing for Behavior Change workshop: Gamifying Participation
3:00-4:00 Guest Lecture: Ben Winters, founder of Wintr: "Storytelling with Data"
4:00-5:00 Exercise: Quantified Self -- Create an infographic with your personal
data from Wolfram Alpha FB or Daytum [Homework]; Conclusions

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(4) Community Ownership & Engagement 11/9
Five pod sessions which require your:
- Participation during the Q&A
- Feedback using the PollEverywhere survey
(a) How engaging was this presentation?
(b) How relevant was the media?
(c) How valuable was the information?
(d) How clear and concise was the information?
- Your show of hands about 10-15 minutes into the Q&A segment on whether
you accept the strategy presented by the pod or not.
- Your constructive discussion on what was most engaging (and why), and what
might have needed more emphasis, etc. (once we reveal the results of the poll).
- Your itemization of each of the presentations you observed in your Class
Reflections responding to this specific question: "if this had been a real-world
presentation, what's the one additional piece of information that would have
furthered the presenters' case for you?" Each pod's presentation will have been
posted to the Class Reflection canvas page by the end of the day.
Pod #3 Monetizing Communities
Your team has been instrumental in pushing your organization to create and
nurture a community of Mini Cooper owners, which is still in its infancy. Now
you’ve been tasked to “monetize” that community (through sales/fundraising).
How do you go about it? How would you communicate your intentions to the
community? What systems would you employ? What partnerships would you
have to develop? How will it change your content? How would you communicate
the risks and value to the organization?
Pod #2 Engagement in Organizations
Your team has been asked to lead it. What will determine this new team’s
success? What exactly is “effective engagement?” What would it mean for your
organization’s brand? How will you assign content creators to make this happen?
How do you see your organization’s users/customers/constituents playing into
this engagement calculus? How will it integrate with the rest of the organization’s
traditional departments: marketing, PR, customer service?
Pod #1 Data Challenge
Your organization has a new wearable tech product that tracks your location,
time you spend at work vs. family, and your emotional response.

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In order to launch the product, your organization needs to resolve issues (and
draft a communication plan) around the personal data that will be generated by
users and employed by your organization. Who should own the data? How
should it be managed?
Pod #10 The Behavior Challenge
Your organization’s mission is to increase people’s recycling habits and help
conserve the planet. What programs, products, services and media strategy
would you develop to make this happen. What are the considerations? How
would you scale? How much would it cost? What resources would you need?
Pod #9 The Free Threat
You work in a high-end magazine for urban farmers. Your organization has had a
successful run at creating professional content online and offline that commands
a premium price. Increasingly, you realize that you’re facing competition from
“free” online content. What is the impact of this phenomenon? How do you
strategically respond to it? What changes need to be made, when?
- Engagement index debrief for each; learning discussions
- Guest Lecture, Josh Trujillo, Seattle PI photographer on mobile content.
- Concluding observations
(5) Community Ownership & Engagement 11/23
Five Pod sessions which require your
- Participation during the Q&A
- Feedback using the PollEverywhere survey
(a) How engaging was this presentation?
(b) How relevant was the media?
(c) How valuable was the information?
(d) How clear and concise was the information?
- Your show of hands about 10-15 minutes into the Q&A segment on whether
you accept the strategy presented by the pod or not.
- Your constructive discussion on what was most engaging (and why), and what
might have needed more emphasis, etc. (once we reveal the results of the poll).
- Your itemization of each of the presentations you observed in your Class
Reflections responding to this specific question: "if this had been a real-world
presentation, what's the one additional piece of information that would have
furthered the presenters' case for you?" Each pod's presentation will have been
posted to the Class Reflection canvas page by the end of the day.

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Pod #5 Envisioning the Future
Your organization wants to create a 10-year horizon for capital expenditures.
Your group is asked to consider the technology that will support how it conducts
communications. What do you think the world will look like a decade from now?
What do you advise based on this scenario?
Pod #8 Trendy Trends
You work in a B2B software company that makes project management tools. The
head of your organization has heard all about the trends towards “mobile” and
“storytelling,” but your service is for PC only. Your CEO wants to put the two
trends together as a strategy, telling the organization’s story entirely via mobile.
What do you advise? How would you implement this? What are the
considerations?
Pod #7 The Open Communication
Your organization just launched an online photos and videos network that is
getting a lot of traction among early adopters. Even as you want to grow the
network, you also recognize that you have to decide if you’re going to regulate it
or not, and consider the implications either way. You also face steep competition
and the challenge of crossing the “chasm” to early majority – how would you
propose overcoming that challenge?
Pod #6 The Platform Dilemma
Your organization wants to use a “Platform” to leverage sustained
communications internally, as well as to promote collaboration and idea
generation among employees. What features and functionality matter? Do you
recommend that the organization create a platform or use an existing, publicly
available one? What are the adoption barriers to consider and how would you
mitigate them?
Pod #4 Growing Up Digital
You and your friends have been working with a group of middle-schoolers on
weekends. You’ve been asked to advise them on how they should strategically
enter into the online world of grownups. What do you tell them, taking into
account privacy issues, even as they seek to start making strategic connections?
- Engagement index debrief for each; learning discussions
- Guest Lecture (TBA)
- Concluding observations

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Comm Lead Practices and Policies
Disability Accommodations Statement
To request academic accommodations due to a disability please contact Disability
Resources for Students, 448 Schmitz, 206-543-8924/V, 206-5430-8925/TTY. If you have
a letter from Disability Resources for Students indicating that you have a disability that
requires academic accommodations, please present the letter to me so we can discuss
the accommodations that you might need for the class. I am happy to work with you to
maximize your learning experience.
Comm Lead Electronic Mail Standards of Conduct
Email communications (and all communications generally) among Comm Lead
community members should seek to respect the rights and privileges of all members of
the academic community. This includes not interfering with university functions or
endangering the health, welfare, or safety of other persons. With this in mind, in addition
to the University of Washington's Student Conduct Code, Comm Lead establishes the
following standards of conduct in respect to electronic communications among students
and faculty:
If, as a student, you have a question about course content or procedures, please use the
online discussion board designed for this purpose. If you have specific questions about
your performance, contact me directly.
• I strive to respond to Email communications within 48 hours. If you do not hear from
me, please come to my office hours, call me, or send me a reminder Email.
• Email communications should be limited to occasional messages necessary to the
specific educational experience at hand.
• Email communications should not include any CC-ing of anyone not directly involved in
the specific educational experience at hand.
• Email communications should not include any blind-CC-ing to third parties, regardless
of the third party’s relevance to the matter at hand.
Academic Misconduct
Comm Lead is committed to upholding the academic standards of the University of
Washington’s Student Conduct Code. If I suspect a student violation of that code, I will
first engage in a conversation with that student about my concerns.
If we cannot successfully resolve a suspected case of academic misconduct through our
conversations, I will refer the situation to the the Comm Lead Director, who can then
work with the COM Chair to seek further input and if necessary, move the case up to the
Dean.
While evidence of academic misconduct may result in a lower grade, Comm Lead faculty
(indeed, all UW faculty) may not unilaterally lower a grade without taking the necessary
steps outlined above.