I’m always surprised when leaders explain to me why it’s hard to make development a priority. They invariably say that it comes down to time. It’s not uncommon to hear some variation of: "My people are so maxed out, over-burdened, and under-resourced, that they don’t have a spare minute to dedicate to their development." But let’s deconstruct this argument against development.  The first half of the statement is probably the most compelling description imaginable of the business case for development. In our flat and flat-out world, employees are pressed to the limit every day… the limits of their time, skills, and resources. Development is a strategy to push those limits out, increase capacity, and enable expanded impact and results. It’s precisely when people are over-burdened and under-resourced that they need development most. And the second half of the statement… well, it reflects a fundamental misunderstanding about what development is and how it works.  For too long, development has been tucked away in a corner, brought out at annual reviews, and addressed through workshops and classes. But for development to fit the cadence of today’s workplace, it must be brought out of the corner and into the workflow. It must be woven into and around genuine contributions to the business. Real-time. No spare moments required. This demands leaders who are willing to entertain an expanded or updated definition of development… one that includes experiences that build skills and abilities. And, guess what? These experiences can actually focus on real work that needs to get done… creating the ultimate ‘two-fer’ for organizations. Do you have some budgeting, forecasting, or analysis work that must be accomplished?  Find an employee who wants and needs to expand her financial acumen… and turn real work into development. Surely there are projects that you’d like to move forward on. Find an employee who’s expressed an interest in supervision or leadership and assign them to lead a team… and turn real work into development. Are you burdened by too many cross-functional meetings? Find an employee who wants to broaden his exposure to the organization as a whole and invite him to be your designee… and turn real work into development. Powerful and relevant development is like a marriage made (not in heaven, but) in the workplace. A note of caution: This is not about off-loading distasteful tasks to others. This embedded, integrated approach to development demands truly understanding the employee and his/her goals and finding an appropriate match in terms of genuine work that must be accomplished to drive organizational results! The very work that is over-burdening you and your employees is the fodder required for in-role development. Simply looking at these tasks, assignments, and responsibilities in a different light can offer rich opportunities for everyone to transform while they perform. Images: www.dreamstime.net and by Penubag (Own work in Inkscape) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons The post Transforming While Performing appeared first on Julie Winkle Giulioni.

The first quarter 2012 issue of the IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication is now available for reading online.Below are the abstracts of the articles.  Note:  As was mentioned earlier to the membership of the IEEE Professional Communication Society, although we will publish new issues of the Transactions, each quarter as we always have, starting in 2012, we only print those issues semi-annually.   So the March issue will be printed with the June issue.  The shipment in June is a double issue.  Similarly, the September issue will be printed with the December issue and that issue, too, is a double issue.  So the March issue is available online now through the IEEExplore.  The March and June issues will be printed and shipped in June.   To see the complete article, visit http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/RecentIssue.jsp?punumber=47.  (Note: Only free to members of the IEEE Professional Communication Society (get your login from IEEE) and to those entering through university libraries with a subscription to IEEExplore.)Volume 55, Issue 1Research Article:  Exploring Think-Alouds in Usability Testing: An International Surveyby Sharon McDonald, Helen M. Edwards and Zingting Zhao.Research Article: An Examination of Deception in Virtual Teams: Effects of Deception on Task Performance, Mutuality, and Trustby Christie M. Fuller, Kent Marrett and Douglas P. TwitchellResearch Article: A Tale of Four Functions in a Multifunctional Device: Extending Implementation Intention Theoryby Julian Lin, Hock Chuan Chan, Lingling XuResearch Article: Too Early, Too Bad: Uncovering and Understanding the Initial Participation Paradox in Technology-Mediated Learning Teamsby Elizabeth Koh and John LimResearch Article: Assessing the Impact of Student Peer Review in Writing Instruction by Using the Normalized Compression Distanceby Sayuri Yoshizawa, Takao Terano, and Atsushi Yoshikawa Book ReviewsWriting in the Sciences: Exploring Conventions of Scientific Discourse (Part of the Allyn & Bacon Series in Technical Communication), (3rd edition) by Ann M. Penrose and Steven B. Katz. Reviewed by JoLynne Berrett Designing Visual Language: Strategies for Professional Communicators, Second Edition Book Review by Charles Kostelnick and David D. Roberts.  Reviewed by Garth Clayton.User-Centered Design for Personalization by Lex van Velsen.  Reviewed by Charity C. Tran. 

Michael P. Davidson posted a blog postTech Entrepreneurs vs. Terrorists: Could Your Tech Help Fight ISIS Online Recruitment?American entrepreneurs have disrupted entire industries and unleashed a new wave of human expression. Can they also disrupt one of the greatest security threats of our time - thereby securing a right to human expression for millions, if not billions, more? The absolutely can - and should.Recently, young men considering joining ISIS using search terms like "How to Join the Jihad in Syria" found themselves exposed to quality, gaming-feel video messages from former violent extremists called Abdullah-X. A former violent extremist, a credible voice cited by President Obama in the fight against violent extremism, produced the video in partnership with some tech and media savvy entrepreneurs - and it reached its target audience via basic web advertising technology.ISIS was none too happy and issued an urgent public response five pages long. Since then, 100,000 of youth at risk for radicalization have seen the video. This is an example of what can happen when tech and media entrepreneurs take on ISIS. They can win - or at least play in - the online battle of ideas.Such was a topic at last week’s White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism, spotlighting the Internet and what is essentially a marketing of ideas war as the growing frontline in terrorist and violent extremist recruitment. An international war being waged today by ISIS and other violent extremist groups online. Their online recruitment and propaganda machines are highly sophisticated, tech-savvy, and focused - and the coordinated efforts to thwart them must be as well.Why does this matter to you? Your technology could be useful in the online fight against ISIS recruitment and propaganda.In 2012, Google Ideas gathered formerly radicalized individuals from different backgrounds to understand the circumstances that led them to extremism - unearthing deep insights into the motivations mindsets of violent extremist recruits.This work launched the Against Violent Extremism (AVE) network. AVE unites former violent extremists (formers) with private sector leaders through a powerful digital network - all with the goal of placing formers in between possible recruits and their violent extremist recruiters online. After all, the best voices to counter violent extremist recruitment messages are those who’ve been there.The Abdullah-X campaign also illustrates a point well seen at this week’s White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism - governments are ill-suited to battle this problem and simply cannot do so alone. Governments lack the credibility and creativity, while credible messengers lack the skills and resources to reach target audiences and scale.As groups like ISIS grow stronger, it is imperative that the U.S. and its allies - both public and private sector - utilize every innovation, talent and technology available. With the right content, technology, marketing, production, and financial support, Abdullah X and campaigns like them can reach at risk youth around the world. Unfortunately our successes do not match ISIS’ current level sophistication in peer-to-peer marking, social media and the use of tailored propaganda, and high-production value videos from the field - let alone the app ISIS created to extend their Twitter reach.While we all love adventures in capitalism, such endeavors would be irrelevant if the world we live in today doesn’t exist for future generations of tech entrepreneurs. Let’s work together to ensure that it does. It may very well be the most important conflict of our tech generation.Michael P. Davidson, CEO of Gen Next, connects innovative and successful leaders to dynamic mission-based ideas and organizations, creating powerful networks that help make the world better. See More

Today, General Hospitalmarks its 49th anniversary on the air.  Since As the World Turns was cancelled two years ago, it has been the longest running American soap opera.  (The U.K.’s Coronation Street has actually been on air longer—over 50 years).  And since the cancellations of fellow ABC soaps, All My Children and One Life to Live within the past year, the only vestige left of "Love in the afternoon" (the tagline for ABC soap opera lineup back in the 80s and 90s).  Although writers and producers approach soap operas as romances (and certainly, romance is central to their plot lines), that they are structured around families, explore relationships among family, friends, and co-workers, and use social issues as plot points suggests that their overall impact goes well beyond the basic romance.  In a recent commentary in the New York Times, author Patrick Healy shares some of the lessons he’s learned from soaps.  I’ve mentioned many of the lessons that I’ve learned through soap operas in the classes I teach. Some focus on behind-the-scenes lessons (even before the advent of the soap opera press, I paid close attention to the writing staffs of soaps), such as the roles of contractual and staffing issues guiding the plotting of Bill and Laura’s star-crossed romance on Days of Our Lives in the 70s, how annoying the authorities ultimately has serious consequences (like headwriter Harding Lemay who, fed up with the ad-libbing of an actress on Another World, killed off Mary Matthews, acknowledging that she died for no other reason than the headwriter wanted her to),  and how sometimes "outlandish" is needed to gain attention, as headwriter James E. Reilly demonstrated when using the demonic possession of Marlena to compete with O.J. Simpson and the rise of reality TV (also on Days of Our Lives)—but it has to be an "in-character" outlandish rather than "out of left field"outlandish, as learned from Guiding Light turning Reva into a clone.  And the powe Others focus on the lessons learned on-screen, such as the cognitive dissonance caused when Dorian’s first on-screen kiss with Mark Toland started in the cliffhanger (closing) scene of one episode, in which Dorian was played by fill-in-actress Dixie Carter, and she completed the kiss the following day, played by regular actress Nancy Pinkerton, who had just returned from a medical leave.  Other lessons learned include that of Jill Abbott on the Young and the Restless, who—after being twice screwed over royally by Mrs. Chancellor—learned how to protect herself by becoming the screwer-overer, while Nina Webster and Bridget Reardon who, also having had been screwed over, ended up discovering and flexing their spines. In their day, soaps launched conversations (nothing could bond Americans trekking through Europe like the latest updates on All My Children) and inspired others to act (I remember reading years ago that one reader followed Mrs. Chancellor’s trips on and off the wagon, matching her drink for drink when Mrs. Chancellor was drinking, then going on the wagon when Mrs. Chancellor did) or the stories of characters who went for cancer screenings when Bert Bauer was diagnosed with cervical cancer.  Although talk and lifestyle shows address similar topics, that they start and end most of these conversations in 15 or 30 minutes usually means they lack the emotional and intellectual impact that comes from unfolding the story in 5 to 15 minute bites over a period of 3 to 18 months.  They pack a whollop when they reach their climax in a way that no talk show interview can.   As fans of General Hospital  celebrate this anniversary, many worry that the show won’t live to see its fiftieth.  ABC loudly signaled its intentions to cancel a year ago when it signed Katie Couric for a talk show, then scheduled it during the time slot for General Hospital—after years of quietly signaling its intentions by letting the show degenerate into a repetitive mob story and destroying its most beloved characters in the process, stories that ostensibly showed the characters as three dimensional but merely made them unmotivated, unlikeable, and most of all, barely watchable.  Circumstances other than story might salvage the show, but its continued longevity is only assured if it returns to the core of what makes soap operas so special: the opportunity to watch, feel, and learn about relationships and life.  For Patrick Healy’s heartfelt ode to the life lessons learned from soap operas, visit http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/arts/television/one-life-to-live-and-lessons-for-real-life.html?_r=2&ref=patrickdhealy&pagewanted=all

Despite high levels of engagement, facilitative delivery styles, and even attempts at user-generated content, most training is still a fairly one-way communication vehicle; the trainer shares information, guides some discussion, and builds the group’s knowledge… all of which is important. But learning professionals are exposed to a lot of valuable data and input in the classroom: off-handed comments about customers and the culture; diatribes about working conditions; angst over lack of resources, tools, or equipment; frustration about work processes (or lack thereof). What if we found a way to systematically gather this input and funnel employee ‘intel’ back into the organization for careful consideration? What if: Workshop summaries highlighted the obstacles participants face to optimal performance… as well as their reactions to the training? Learning and development professionals systematically debriefed the work-process insights gained during training with line managers? The training function closed the loop with employees, reporting back the organizational response to their concerns and issues? Expanding the role of trainers and holding them accountable for being this critical feedback link could allow learning to travel in both directions, informing employee-centric changes that would enable performance, elevate engagement, and tap discretionary effort in the process. Image: By Cassowary (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons The post A Challenge to the Training Function: Is Learning a Two-Way Street? appeared first on Julie Winkle Giulioni.

Ross Mason posted a blog postConnectivity: The Backbone of Innovation"Hell is a place where nothing connects with nothing." --T. S. EliotWho would have imagined just ten years ago that better connectivity would turn our phones into mobile power tools capable of accessing the Web, taking photos and video, sending text messages to friends, giving us driving directions and so much more?Who foresaw that social media would not only connect us with friends and business associates, but also open up new possibilities for interacting with customers and creating more effective business strategies?Who knew that the cloud would overhaul the way we interact with everything, from music and photos to data storage and business applications?What’s really interesting about each of those examples is that you could point to a predecessor that hinted at the revolution to come, but didn’t usher it in. For smartphones, it was feature phones. For social media, it was forums and bulletin board systems. For the cloud, it was everything from hosted storage to the first rudimentary online video services. At some point, each of those technologies reached a tipping point in adoption and sophistication that turned it into something much greater—something that caused a fundamental shift in the way we lived our lives. The Connected Age Is Just Getting StartedThe point is, more connectivity always leads to more innovation. And at some point, that innovation accelerates in amazing and unexpected ways. I believe we’re about to hit another one of those inflection points now, thanks to the growth of the cloud, the abundance of open APIs and the emergence of the Internet of Things. We’re about to move from a merely connected world to a hyperconnected one.Connectivity is just getting started. We’re not even close to realizing the full potential of integration for creating new capabilities, services and competitive advantages. In fact, we’re just entering a new phase of connectivity—an era focused on bridging siloed assets within the enterprise and integrating them with the resources of business outside the four walls of the enterprise. This new dimension of connectivity links systems, data and applications with those of partners, suppliers, customers and even employees—and the result is a new breed of service offerings and capabilities.  Consider the airline industry. In the past, each airline had silos of proprietary data: reservations, ticketing, seating charts and so on.  Today airlines compete not by hoarding and walling off that data, but by opening it up to trusted partners—exposing it in real time to online and mobile travel sites, such as Expedia, Hotwire and Kayak. And the most forward-looking airlines are now realizing that the more they expose and share, the more capable they are of creating new services that are truly differentiating. By sharing customer preference information with partners they can facilitate everything from faster check-in and boarding processes to customized on-board meals to personalized in-flight entertainment systems for selected customers.  Or look at the possibilities in healthcare. Leading-edge companies are realizing that by aggregating and connecting patient data—securely and in compliance with HIPAA and other regulations—they can create groundbreaking new services that improve patient care. For example, by combining data from patients’ electronic medical records and personal health devices with diagnostic databases, it is possible to offer personalized healthcare recommendations to patients—and even send them proactively to their mobile devices.So let’s hit the accelerator on connecting the unconnected. Because if you can find a way to simplify and fast-track integration—among devices, applications, clouds, and networks—you can boost innovation and create new business opportunities. You can design new services that draw on data from a broader range of sources. You can deploy new services sooner than your competitors. You can re-architect the customer experience. You can make changes to apps and services without re-coding for thousands of devices. In short, you can focus on innovating, iterating and differentiating.We are farther along the road to this vision than you might think. The core technology trend enabling this shift is the API, which enables organizations to provide their ecosystems with standardized access to data and application functionality previously only available internally. When APIs can be more easily aggregated and delivered to developers on demand, the move to the new "connected enterprise" - an enterprise that lives outside its own four walls - can accelerate.Yesterday’s integration issues were a source of angst, expense and delay, but we’re in a much different environment today. Connectivity is now a source of possibilities, opportunities and advantages. Because the sooner you shift your focus to exploring new ideas, the more effective you’ll be at competing and winning.Ross Mason is founder and VP of Product Strategy at MuleSoft.See More

Check out Avoid Making Assumptions  That Backfire!, recently published online in Learning Solutions Magazine.The article explores three of the most common assumptions that instructional designers make when writing—about knowledge, feelings, and culture—and suggest how to avoid them.  It is the first of several I am writing for that magazine that explores issues in writing e-learning programs.  Visit this link to see the entire article: http://www.learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/833/avoid-making-assumptions-that-backfire.

Saylor Frase posted a blog postParalysis Defines Washington’s Progress on Cybersecurity IssueIn his recent State of the Union address, President Obama urged Congress to pass legislation to meet the evolving threat of cyber-attacks, combat identity theft and protect our children’s information. "No foreign nation, no hacker, should be able to shut down our networks, steal our trade secrets, or invade the privacy of American families, especially our kids," he explained.Let’s hope the President succeeds because up until now, the federal government has been tragically paralyzed. While a few regulations have emerged, none of effect have been adopted and those that have are underfunded or poorly enforced. Consider the Cybersecurity Act of 2012, proposed in July of that year. It would require companies operating "key infrastructure" for the nation to employ "best practice standards" for protection from cyber-attacks.The bill failed to pass the Senate, even though it received support from military and national security officials. Among opponents, the politically potent U.S. Chamber of Commerce worried it would create a financial burden for businesses. Even though massive breaches cost companies millions, and lead to loss of consumer trust and corporate reputation.Another avenue that has gone nowhere is the proposed improvements or augmentations of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GBLA), which would add further requirements for disclosure of security breaches by not only financial institutions but all industries that touch consumer financial information by accepting credit card payments (which are not currently under the regulatory umbrella of GLBA).These two regulation paths have stalled. But even if enacted as is; they still lack the teeth and funding to deliver real enforcement that would get companies to act in a meaningful and timely fashion. Then there is the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2014, or CISA. This proposal, which would improve cybersecurity through enhanced sharing of information about threats and breaches, languishes in the Senate. The House passed similar proposals in 2012 and 2013 but not the Senate.Even the latest proposal would do little to prevent an attack or mitigate the damage. And as the recent Sony hack (by North Korea, contends the Administration) illustrates, determining where the penetration came from, after the fact, did little to alter its effects.One piece of legislation does look promising. The Personal Data Notification and Protection Act seeks to improve security of consumer data and improve the communication around data breaches. Few details are available but, the prospect of adopting a national standard seems possible - and that could be a step toward other sorely needed legislative protections.Frankly, it’s a puzzle why the spate of massive data breaches the past 18 months hasn’t triggered Congressional action. The sheer scope of the cyber-thefts, including some organized by foreign states, has served as a huge wake-up call. Still, lawmakers don’t seem to hear the bell.Still, dynamic standards for security infrastructure and the process by which those standards are employed are needed. Well-funded enforcement capabilities and stiff penalties are required to encourage adoption.In the end, though, no matter how good the proposed legislation; people and organizations must be moved to act. The road block is as much financial as it is technical. So, how do we as everyday citizens affect this situation? Aside from the obvious - educate yourself on the position of your representatives, petition them and vote accordingly - t here is actually another way you can vote that can be more effective than the ballot box: vote with your wallet.The main opponents to recently proposed legislation are convinced these new regulations would cost businesses too much money. If consumers change their shopping habits and refuse patronage to companies that have not adequately protected their customers’ data, Washington could begin to understand that doing nothing is more costly than investing in protection.Real effectual change will require foundational improvements to the way we employ cyber-security. Don’t put up with the loss of thousands of personal records, even if it was at the fault of your favorite retailer.It’s summed up nicely in the words of President Obama in the most recent State of the union address: "If we don’t act, we’ll leave our nation and our economy vulnerable. If we do, we can continue to protect the technologies that have unleashed untold opportunities for people around the globe."Saylor Frase is co-founder, president and CEO of Nuspire Networks, a state-of-the-science managed network security service provider.See More

I ran for and was elected to one of three open local school board seats earlier this month. The experience was filled with learning… about politics, our community, campaigning, and myself! As a Type A, highly driven, excellence-oriented achiever, I’m accustomed to setting my sights for the top. The highest A in a class, sales leader, #1 utilization rate, off-the-charts end-of-class ratings. Like so many others (you included, I would imagine), I have spent a lifetime developing an unconscious habit of striving for the top… in all things - those that matter and those that don’t.  School. Work. Words with Friends. So, imagine my discomfort when earlier this summer, I realized that in this political contest, I could simply not earn the most votes. Two factors were working against me: a very full fall business and travel schedule, and a decision to ask supporters to donate to our schools rather than to my campaign. With my time and funds greatly limited compared with other candidates, I had to reframe my goal. With three open seats, I didn’t have to be #1… I just had to be in the top three. As simple as that awareness was, it was also profound, liberating, and challenging. Coming off ‘automatic pilot’ was a daily struggle. Reminding myself that a wider swath of performance could still translate to success became a mantra.  Stepping back to determine where 100% effort was necessary (and where it wasn’t) built a new mental discipline. What do we lose when success is myopically defined as one point (the highest one) along a continuum of results? The creativity that comes from a mindset of growth versus performance. The ability to savor and celebrate a broader range of successful outcomes. Perspective and the ability to focus on the bigger picture. A full range of experiences that are passed up because of the excessive effort invested in reaching the pinnacle. So, election night came and supporters gathered to await results. People took turns refreshing and updating the election results site. Finally, the first batch of ballots had been counted… and I was in second place. At another time, in another context, I would have been devastated, humiliated, and completely dissatisfied. But I wasn’t.  My goal was to be in the top three… and I was right there, right in the middle.  I couldn’t contain myself and happily yelled out "I’m number 2!"  My reaction quickly spread and the celebration was kicked into high gear. Now, I’m not suggesting that we all become slackers or slugs (not that those of you reading this could ever do that anyway!). But I do find myself wondering about the opportunity cost associated with allowing ourselves to get drawn into the habit of unconsciously striving for the top when there’s a wider corridor of performance that actually could define success. What have you lost out on as a result of that battle (mostly with yourself) for #1? Time with family? Better working relationships? Interesting opportunities and experiences? As I turn the page on this campaigning and election experience, I take with me several lessons: The democratic process is pretty cool. We need to trade our habitual (sometime lazy) way of thinking about success for greater mindfulness as we define our goals. Broader satisfaction and happiness comes from becoming open to expanding our definitions of success from ‘one point’ at the top to a range, corridor, or swath of performance or results. Sustainable success comes from understanding that time and energy are limited resources that must be consciously invested toward authentic and genuine goals. And here’s my challenge… that I share with you: How can we bring greater consciousness to our goals and greater mindfulness to their pursuit?  Because I can tell you from personal experience, there’s a certain sweetness in second. Image: www.istockphoto.com The post Striving for Second… or Maybe Third appeared first on Julie Winkle Giulioni.

Background: To introduce the community of authors for the IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication to the nature and methods for creating integrative literature reviews, we are holding a second introductory workshop.  The first one, was a success, but many people who wanted to participate could not, because of scheduling conflicts and asked for a second session.About the Workshop:  The goal of the workshop is to not only teach participants how to prepare an integrative literature review, but to help them start one and receive feedback on the work-in-progress (with the hope that the finished review will be submitted to the Transactions).  Some reading before the first four class sessions; research occurs in the gap between the fourth and fifth session and participants prepare an early draft before the sixth session. The workshop leader is Saul Carliner, Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication, Director of the Education Doctoral Program and Associate Professor at Concordia University in Montreal, and a past recipient of back-to-back Frank R. Smith Awards for Best Article in the peer-reviewed journal, Technical Communication. Who Should Attend:  Faculty, Researchers, PhD students, and advanced master’s students (who have completed a research methodology class) in Technical and Professional Communication or a Related Field.  Schedule:  The next 6-session workshop is scheduled:Thursday, April 26  11 AM - 12:15 pm EasternThursday, May 3, 11 AM - 12:15 pm EasternThursday, May 10, 11 AM - 12:15 pm EasternThursday, May 17, 11 AM - 12:15 pm EasternThursday, June 7, 11 AM - 12:15 pm Eastern Thursday, June 28, 11 AM - 12:15 pm EasternLocation:  Webinar using Adobe Connect.  You’ll need a computer with a live internet connection at the time of the class.  (Sessions are not recorded.)Fee:  No cost, but a commitment to (a) preparing a draft of a literature review during the course of the workshop and (b) submitting a completed integrative literature review to the Transactions for consideration within 9 months of the completion of the seminar.   To enroll or receive more information:  Contact David Price, Editorial Assistant, IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication: tpc.editorial@gmail.com.