According to SmartBrief “The US State Department unveiled a new look website yesterday as it embraces social networking and other Web 2.0 tools in an exercise it called ’21st Century statecraft. “Smart power meets smart design,” Katie Dowd, the State Department’s New Media Director, said in a post outlining the changes to State.gov on the State Department blog “DipNote,” which is also undergoing a facelift.

The new website provides front-page links to the State Department’s official YouTube channel, Twitter feed, Facebook page and Flickr photo account. The State Department said in a statement that the revamped State.gov incorporates improved “functionality and an updated design” and aims to “present the Department of State more transparently.” It is intended to “engage audiences in an ongoing dialogue with Secretary Clinton and others in the department on the foreign policy issues facing the country,” it said.”

http://blogs.rnw.nl/medianetwork/us-state-department-revamps-website-in-web-20-push — US State Department revamps website in Web 2.0 push

This article from ITWorld Canada speculates on the impact of the cabinet shuffle on Canadian IT providers. The author ponders if technology efficiency will be one of the initiatives that Mr. Day will take on as the new Treasury Board Minister. He points out that the aging legacy systems will need replacing and new efficiency-focuses applications will be preferred. He also points out that close to 40% of the public sector will be retiring in the coming years which will put pressure on the government to automate more of its services. Is this a driver for Government 2.0? I hope so. A greater focus on multi-departmental and multi-jurisdictional e-collaboration could only help achieve the levels of efficiencies sought. And wider implementation of open source web 2.0 applications will allow for better platform integration and less data lock-in by closed vendor-based applications.

http://www.itworldcanada.com/news/why-cabinet-shake-up-isnt-bad-news-for-it-industry/139797-pg1

CNN reporter, Pete Cashmore writes this interesting and thought provoking article on how social media is being used to support the relief efforts in Haiti. He notes that everyone from aid organizations to politicians to celebrities are tapping into their social media followers to ask for them for donations and help.  According to Cashmore, this is one of the first times in history that social media is overcoming “Slacktivism“. Followers are actually doing more than just observing or “following”;  they are actually doing something to make a difference.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/01/14/cashmore.haiti.earthquake.relief.technology/index.html

Hi all. We’re looking for a new account manager for our montreal office. If you know of anyone you can recommend, please let me know by contacting me (Jennifer) at jobs@webdrive.ca

The governance of social media applications is such a critical component of implementing an initiative within government. However the governance structure or parameters are not clear to all that are responsible  for this area of operations.  The following report looks at 100 social media governance structures and gives the following recommendations:

http://socialmediagovernance.com/policies.php?f=5

1.  Create at least two policies, as follows:

a. One policy that sets expectations and boundaries for all employees, including any relevant limitations or suggestions for the personal use of social media.

 b. Operational guidelines for employees working in social media as part of their job.

 2.  Determine valuable opportunities to leverage your employees as ambassadors in your markets, then provide guidance that helps your employees to achieve greater impact and value in their social media interactions.

 3.  Support your employees and let them know where your boundaries lie. For example, tell them whether they are permitted to use your organizational trademarks, such as logos, in their personal content. Don’t leave them guessing.

 4.  Provide the right information to the right people at the right times. Create distinct documents with specific purposes that your employees are likely to consume.

a. Help employees understand the benefits of the document, then post the document where employees can easily find it as needed.

b. If you want to create a positive impression of your brand, post it publicly, and consider posting the policy at:

http://SocialMediaGovernance.com/policies.php

 5. Provide hyperlinks in your social media policy to all relevant policies. Make it easy for your employees to find additional information as required.

• Also provide a link to relevant contacts, such as email addresses of key personnel or URLs of internal web pages that provide relevant information.