Thinking Digital 2010 - part 1
Saturday, May 29, 2010 at 3:36PM Attending Thinking Digital (#TDC10) for the first time, I wondered how it'd compare with other events I regularly attend and rate highly. Events such as Online Information, SharePoint Evolution and Gartner PCC. The bar was set high indeed!
I can safely say that Thinking Digital (#TDC10) is right up there with the best!
Yes, Herb Kim (@herbkim) and team have done an outstanding job, attracting some names that are very well reknowned in their respective fields. Names including Louis Von Ahn, Joichi Ito, Brian Solis, Don Levy, Robert McKee, Jer Thorp, Christian Payne, Andy Hobsbawm, Rory Sutherland and David Siegel. The list goes on and on...
Mash this up with a vibrant, energetic crowd and the overall affect was something even greater than the sum of its parts. A diverse but absolutely cohesive event.
So what did I learn and how do I think it'll help my current work within the public sector in the UK?
Let's (start) breaking it down...
Social Media Insights
Thought 1 - My current thinking around social technologies was validated by many speakers, i.e. Social Media will play a pivotal role in shaping future markets. The social space is the market, and word of mouth / human opinion a key factor to decision making, especially when purchasing. We want a personalised and intimate experience with the highest level of customer service possible. My opinion is that any organisation not currently developing a social media strategy or approach is set to fail.
I also firmly believe that we need to see significant change in the UK public sector's willingness to engage via social media channels, especially from the NHS at a more local level. There really is so much opportunity there, which if leveraged correctly, could assist in driving better health outcomes whilst also reducing cost and increasing patient satisfaction. More thoughts on this in a later blog post.
Thought 2 - People need to be educated about posting into the online social space in terms of privacy - oh yes! Some great stories were told by the event's speakers regarding what can happen if you're not careful with your online social privacy settings.
My favourite story detailed how someone posted detail of an intimate mile high encounter on Twitter. Because of supplementary information collected at the time, it was actually possible to trace which flight this occurred on, meaning privacy was blown and informed conclusions could be drawn. Be careful!
Thought 3 - The current trend and emergence of location-based social apps such as foursquare will become more prevalent; as they enrich the online social experience, making it more engaging through the addition of a fun element that plays to the human psyche. You can imagine how this type of app mixed with augmented reality features will take this another step further!
More thoughts on trends in this space in a future post!
To finish off this first part of my TDC10 blog, I think it has to be said again that this is a must attend event for the future. Also, great to see such a high profile proceeding in my home city of Newcastle upon Tyne!
I'll leave it there for now, but please follow this blog as I'll be updating it over the coming weeks with further insights from the event covering some things I’ve already mentioned, plus:
- Data Visualisation trends
- UxD and IxD thoughts
- Future online insights
Thanks for reading and please comment.
Reader Comments (2)
Nice post Michael. Unfortunately I was unable to make the conference, so I am piecing together nuggets of info from various blogs and tweets about the event. I'm going to make sure I don't miss it next year!
On "Thougtht 1": I totally agree with you - people are already having these transparent, open, networked conversations and the public sector, particularly local NHS agencies are not able to contribute fully. I think that a few trusts are dipping a toe into the "social waters" but until someone dives in, everyone is going to be apprehensive of the litigation implications of allowing staff to talk openly in cyberspace. It's a huge challenge to mitigate these risks but a one that is undoubtedly worth the effort.
Great summary Michael. I wish many people from the NHS could have a taste of TDC, maybe through TED Talks? As well as social networking with external groups, I think there is massive scope to open up easier communications and communities within the sector, especially where local organisations re-structure. Sometimes I think concern for information security is a smokescreen for reluctance to share information and knowledge. As you know, one of my NHS clients described how a trust was "data rich but information poor".
Following on from Chris' comments, who can the NHS learn from and where is this kind of networking already happening? I think academic scientists use it across organisations and nations, what learning can they share?