Skunkworks might speed RSA networking

Does progress on RSA online networking have to be slow - or could we help staff in speeding up developments? Over on the RSA networks site Mike Amos-Simpson writes in advance of Thursday's workshop:

Next week will be my first RSA event and despite this I already feel bogged down by how much mention is made of how long and slow the process has been - whether in fact there really is a process or if this is just something started on a whim and is now far off the radar. I wonder why a 250 year old tanker takes time to turn? If it has plenty of space and good drivers what's slowing it down? I know the discussions I've been involved in are biased towards change but there doesn't seem to be much discussion towards not changing (or is this happening elsewhere?).

Meanwhile another recently-joined Fellow Dave Briggs has offered (see comment) to help with online tools, and floats the idea of "skunkworks" by posting his recent blog item on this topic to the OpenRSA Google group discussion.

In his blog post Dave is talking about small teams working in "stealth mode" within the public sector, to get things done. He attracts support from other public sector techies in comments.

Dave is one of the most enthusiastic and skilled people using social media to help public service innovation - so I'm delighted that he might help on the RSA front. RSA staff are open to the idea of a connection toolkits for Fellows - so we all seem to be on the same track. Hopefully on Thursday we can find a challenge or project around which to organise some skunkworking.

Here's Dave's post:

My good friend Robert Brook - one of the most active and entertaining people I follow on Twitter - was recently interviewed by Chris Dalby, and it was caught on video.

In it, Robert discusses the work he does at the UK Parliament as a ’skunkworks’ - for those that don’t know, this is:

typically developed by a small and loosely structured group of people who research and develop a project primarily for the sake of innovation

Sounds like fun. The origin of the phrase is from Lockheed Martin, in case you are interested.

This way of fostering innovation and getting things done - by taking it under the radar - is an interesting one and something I have heard from others, who have spoken about organisations having a ’splinter-cell’ for social media, or describing innovative web stuff being done as ‘black ops’.

It ties in with a lot of the stuff that Cisco’s Guido Jouret said at the Cisco Public Sector Summit that I covered late last year. Some of the things that can stife innovation in large organisations, said Guido, include:

• too much money - projects lose focus
• too much time - projects drift
• too many people - not everyone believes in the project as much as they need to
• too much love - people get too attached to failing projects and
• too much hate - jealousy elsewhere in the organisation kills projects

As a result, innovation projects have limited budgets, timescales, small teams, spend a lot of time in ’stealth mode’ (skunkworks?) and people on teams are kept close.

A lot of the good work that goes on in the public sector with the web happens on the quiet, guerilla style. If thing are really going to change, then this needs to stop and we need these projects out in the open, not to have people worried about talking about them openly.

However, that needs a culture shift and it might not happen soon. In the meantime, we need to get stuff done, and if it has to happen in a skunkworks style, then so be it.

Update: Posting a comment to Dave's skunkworks blog post led to ponder what to call activities on the edge, getting stuff done in a challenging way. Badgerworks?

RSA dashboard shows a wealth of online activity

In researching background for the workshop with RSA staff this week I've discovered just how far RSA has come recently in creating great public-facing content online. I've pulled it together on a startpage here, that acts as a sort of dashboard for online RSA activity. The page automatically updates with feeds from RSA sites and also OpenRSA.
Chief executive Matthew Taylor leads the way with top-quality blogging on his work and issues of the day - even managing to post from his holiday in Aviemore on the three massive challenges facing the UK: recession, protecting public services and climate change. Matthew says:

There is so much that the talented and committed Fellowship of the RSA could do. We here at John Adam Street are ready to support Fellows’ efforts; let’s see the whole of this great society step up to the plate.

There are also project blogs listed here on Arts, Civic Capitalism, Connected Communities, Design, Education, Environment, Pro-social behaviour, and public services. The events programme has listings, and audio and video of past events. I'm sure there's more I have missed.
The research made me think that the public-facing events and projects programmes could be a very fruitful area of engagement for those of us involved in OpenRSA who want to promote more collaboration between staff, Fellows, and others online and off ... and maybe help meet Matthew's challenges.
So far a lot of our attention has been on the closed RSA network site, and there's certainly lots of potential there. I'm enthusiastic about the idea of creating an online toolkit for Fellows and regions, providing additional tools and support.
However, I wonder if it might be possible to make faster progress working with some of the project and events teams where there is a commitment to blogging, audio, video, and interactions with both Fellows and others? By engaging with their activity - and adding more - we could demonstrate to the wider Fellowship the benefits of online collaboration, and hopefully feed that back into the networking.
Just a thought. I'll pop a linking comment on to Matthew's blog and see if resonates there.

Update: here's what I've posted as a comment on Matthew's blog, where it is awaiting moderation:

I think many Fellows would like to work together and rise to the challenges you highlight: the question is how best to collaborate among ourselves, and with staff.

A group of Fellows and RSA staff are meeting on Thursday to discuss just that, with a strong focus on the scope for working online. In researching background for the workshop I’ve been struck by how far RSA has come over the past year in developing great public-facing content. I’ve pulled it together on a dashboard here, and also blogged about the potential here.

What would help in the collaborative effort, in my view, is some initial help from RSA staff in convening around the challenges or other projects. Should we look to project or Fellowship departments? It’s quite difficult for Fellows to self-organise … though it may get easier once the new RSA network site is fully launched. At present we can’t find who might be interested, and space is tight in JAS.Clay Shirky has highlighted this new convening role for nonprofits - where self-organising meets organisation. Could you help us in the next round of innovation?

Anyone else got ideas on how best to work with RSA staff on these issues?

Starting discussion on future RSA networking

Here's some of the issues those attending the workshop later this week want to talk about - please add a comment to this post if you have some of your own.

• Gathering lessons from the past eighteen months of development of RSA networks, and OpenRSA.
• Creative exploration of how RSA networking can develop in future.
• How to collaborate online in developing projects.
• Building working relationships with other professionals through RSA.
• Finding out what will be offered to Fellows by RSA in future - and what might be expected of them.
• Developing communication toolkits to help Fellows connect with each other and develop projects.
• The impact of social media on leadership.

About 30 Fellows, friends and RSA staff will be attending the workshop on February 19 - details here. There are a few places still available, and you can sign up here.
I've pulled together some background material here, about RSA network development over the past 18 months, and OpenRSA.
Laura Bunt and Laura Billings will introduce discussion from the RSA staff perspective;
Malcolm Forbes, who helped start OpenRSA, will give his view of developments; and we'll also hear from Eleanor Ford, who will give the main points from NESTA's study on the RSA/Fellowship and networks, offering the practical recommendations from the report.
NESTA supported RSA networks with £100,000 of funding, and their evaluation - by Sophia Parker and Eleanor - offers some valuable principles for networked organisations. Here's the summary from NESTA's site, where you can download the full report.

Principles for networked innovation

• Start with relationships not transactions
• Be clear about the invitation
• People need to be seen and heard
• Follow exciting leads
• The online presence is integral to the mission
• Understand patterns of participation
• Not every networked idea is a good idea
• Revel in reflected glory
• Let networked innovation models change the hierarchy
• Don’t lose the human touch when going to scale

Principles for managing disruptive change

• Embrace chaos
• Co-design change
• Prototype, incubate, learn
• Mix mavericks and managers
• Go beyond staff compliance

We've also posted the principles in more detail on our wiki.
We aren't aiming to set the agenda for the workshop beforehand, but it would be really useful to have a sense of what other's are interested in at this stage of RSA networking.
I'm particularly keen to explore how Fellows and staff might work together to develop communication toolkits, which add additional tools to those available on the main RSA networking site.
In order to help with that I've used Pageflakes to create a page where you can see feeds from all the main RSA blogs, and from Open RSA: you'll find it here.

2008, here we come. Where next for RSA networks...

Hi all

On an earlier blog I said that we would share our initial thinking of the RSA networks project priorities in the next three months or so. So - I apologise in advance for the length of this posting, but I hope it generates some fruitful discussion about how we are proposing to go forwards.

Before getting into the specifics, I'd like to say a huge thank you to everyone who is contributing, creating, and generating with us. We always said this was going to be a learning process, and I hope you feel that there is a genuine openness to collaborating in new and exciting ways. That said, we need to be careful that 'learning by doing' doesn't become a veil for 'making it up as we go along', so the following proposed priorities and areas of work are offered in the spirit of trying to give some structure to what needs to happen next, if we are to build on everything we've done together so far.

A major priority between January and April 2008 has to be to get some of the rich discussions happening on the RSA networks platform to turn into more substantive pieces of work. A number of early ideas are gathering real momentum, with meetings being fixed and connections being made. Our network facilitators will be really focusing on this in the new year. By the way, if you're interested in joining our staff team of facilitators, we'd welcome you with open arms! See here for more information.

But the RSA networks project was never simply about getting new collaborations off the ground. There's a bigger game to play here too, and that is to fundamentally remodel the relationship between the Fellowship and the organisation. Many of the ideas that emerged on the 22nd, and in conversations around that day, were focused on the 'how will it work?' part of the Open Space question we used.

Looking across all these discussions, we think that we can spot some common themes, and between January and March we want to set up 'developer groups' around each of these themes, made up of interested Fellows and key staff members, in order to imagine how things might work differently in the future.

These themes include:

• Offline interactions - remodelling existing meetings e.g. lectures, and introducing new ones, e.g. the 'let's do lunch' idea. There's a meeting arranged for this on 25th January, to bring together Fellows and staff interested in discussing ideas. To find out more, check out this page on the platform.

• Use of space - what can the RSA do to facilitate spaces and places to meet, both in London and beyond. Malcolm Forbes has volunteered to arrange a meeting to explore this theme, so watch out on the platform for more information.

• Online tools for collaboration - a developer group began the work that led to the platform in this first phase of the project, and we want to maintain that group as we move towards the launch of the new website, and the growth of the platform. Anshuman is organising the next meeting for this theme, and will post on the platform when he's found the right date.

• Fellowship recruitment and welcome - what kind of Fellows do we want, and what experience should they have in their first year of Fellowship?

• Fellow-to-Fellow opportunities - there were lots of ideas around mentoring, sharing experiences and offering support, ranging from meetings, to Fellows funding other Fellows' ideas

• Links between emerging networks and the Programme - what kind of quality framework should the RSA have in place to determine which ideas to support more substantially? Laura Bunt has started a discussion here about this question.

As we hit 2008, we will be working up more detailed plans for the sequencing of these workstreams and will of course share information and updates on these for those Fellows who don't wish to get directly involved. There's an awful lot of work implied by these themes, and it's very important that we get the pace right as well.

A really central principle of the RSA networks project is that we want to 'eat our own medicine' - in other words, that the project itself is a co-created effort between Fellows and staff. I'd be very interested in your thoughts about how to make these proposed 'developer groups' work most effectively. Some thoughts we've had from you already is to set up wikis for each; others have suggested that we set time limits for conversations to provide some clarity about the terms of engagement; and of course it's essential that everyone is clear about how any final decisions are made, and by whom.

I know that we haven't always got this attempt at co-creation right, but I hope you feel that this proposed way forward chimes with our aspiration. And I'm sure if you disagree, you'll let us know!

So all that's left for me to say for now is a very Happy Christmas to all of you. I'm really looking forward to working with you all in 2008. All the best
Sophia

Membership in a networked society

The RSA Networks site is really taking off, and I've dived into the flow with a joint proposal with Simon Berry to look at what social networking will mean to membership organisations. That's led to additional discussion on what it may mean in future to be a member ... of an organisation, political party, or trade union. You can join in here - site registration is currently open. Here's the proposal, also on the wiki.

Membership organisations and associations are at the heart of civic life, but research suggests few recognise the coming challenges of a more networked society. Organisations may be bypassed as members use social media and networks to find information, services, and ways to organise. Or - like the RSA - organisations can rethink their current structures and relationships to members.
This project will invite forward-looking civic organisations to join RSA Networks in exploring the implications of social networking for civic institutions, and the practical implications of using social media, creative events, and new ways of organising for civic innovation.
We will draw on work already undertaken by the NCVO Third Sector Foresight Unit, and with their agreement invite the Unit, and practitioners involved in their technology network, to join us.
Some of the greatest opportunities for innovation lie in rural life. Ruralnet UK has pioneered the use of online systems for the past 10 years, and chief executive Simon Berry FRSA is a co-sponsor of the project.
We will run a workshop early in 2008 to co-design project plans in more detail. However, from discussions to date we would expect the project to involve:

• Collation of current research and thinking about membership organisations in a networked society, in association with NCVO Third Sector Foresight
• Development of briefing and workshop tools to help organisations think what the future may hold, and what they can do.
• Events - hosted initially by RSA if possible
• Collaborative work on online systems, skills development, and organising creative events.

If you think it is a good project idea, do throw on a comment here - or even better register on the site through the above links. It is currently open to non-Fellows.

The RSA Networks site is rubbish!

There. That's the elephant in the room dealt with.

But you wouldn't know how flaky this first version of the site is from reading the brilliant discussions and project ideas that over 150 patient, benevolent fellows have been posting to the site, and then discussing with passion. Warts and all, the site does seem to be buzzing!

After the event on the 22nd, Andy and I were amazed by the levels of participation and activity that exploded on the site - so at least the prototype we built didn't obstruct that! To be honest, we didn't expect that kind of success immediately, and so it's taken us a bit of time to collate that feedback and respond.

So I am very pleased to echo Anshuman's announcement, and let you know that we are going to be starting the next few rounds of development tomorrow - fixing some of the niggly problems and usability issues that have frustrated many users. There are also a few obvious bugs that we hope to squash, and some basic gardening work like creating an FAQ and some help files - all of which we hope to do before Christmas.

I have written a few posts on the RSA Networks site laying out the three stages of this plan:

1. A pre-christmas bug-squashing fest, where we aim to get the most obvious design and usability issues fixed.
2. An early January development cycle, during which we aim to implement some feature requests and try out some experimental collaboration processes.
3. A hand-over to a production team, who will take the prototype into production.

We are also going to be organising an event in late January, where we are hoping to reconvene some of the groups who met on the 22nd to take stock of the development so far, to look at which features should go into production, and to make decisions on other key issues that have been flagged up during the consultation process. As soon as we have a date for that, we'll send out an announcement with more details.

Of course, as with the first development cycle - which was great fun, we are again asking for your help in shaping the process itself as well as the technology.

We are still looking for the magic combination of factors, and the right way to ask the questions that will start to really activate projects, to move from 'discussion' to 'action', and to 'mesh the cogs' of the RSA - as Don calls for in his post.

Your ideas on those fronts, and comments on the three development phases, as well as your continued use and feedback on the site are much appreciated!

Are RSA Fellows co-creators or just users?

The key issue for development of RSA Networks, as I see it, is what staff mean by collaboration and co-creation. Clarification is crucial as decisions are, I believe, currently being made about development of the online system that could set a pattern for the future. There's some discussion on an earlier post which I think is worth flagging up more visibly here.
The briefing paper for November 22 said:

If Fellows are to move from the periphery to the centre of the organisation, then it is essential that as Fellows, you are fully engaged at every step of the process, as collaborators and co-creators along with the staff of the organisation.

RSA web manager Anshuman Rane has responded quickly and helpfully under that post, but for me it leaves open the issue of whether Fellows are seen essentially as system users - with development decisions taken by staff - or as co-creators.
Dominic has contributed some ideas here on a model which would enable Fellows to make more strategic input.
I think co-creation involves being in the same place at the same time to develop ideas and make decisions together. Will that happen? If so, how and when?
I feel it is worth pushing the issue not because I think there is any bad faith involved: far the reverse. I believe RSA staff are doing everything they can, within the current context, to start doing things in a very different way. RSA developments are fascinating because I believe many membership organisations will face similar issues.
The problem arises, in my experience, because terms like consultation, engagement, co-creation can mean one thing if you are sitting within what's traditionally been a hierarchical organisation (give members a bit more of a say but keep control). They mean something entirely different if you are outside the core, yet want to make a system-changing contribution. It's not just a matter of language, but culture and mindset.
The only way to make progress is to talk about it ... and that can't be done solely online. Do RSA staff have any plans to invite Fellows back to follow through on the co-creation promise?

More videos from November 22 event

RSA has now posted some excellent videos, including some project presentations.
See also videos on this blog.

First thoughts on RSA Networks system

I believe RSA staff and developers of the RSA Networks system may be taking stock this week, with a view to further development, so it could be useful to feed in some first impressions and issues. It's been an enormous achievement by Saul, Andy, their team and RSA staff so far - so this is all meant in a wholly positive spirit. Here's my thoughts (please add yours):

• It's currently difficult to see where new discussions are taking place, and what's the difference between a project and discussion - but I'm sure that can be dealt with.
• We need ways to message people privately, to follow up issues/ideas that may not be of interest to everyone. Again, easy to implement I believe.
• More facilitation and hosting is needed, to respond to issues raised about the system, but more importantly to help join up conversations which are inevitably spread around the place. Online communities need community development. It's not clear if anyone is responsible for overall development as well as specific project support.
• While the system looks as if it could develop into a good place to fly ideas and find interested people, moving from discussion to action needs a lot more attention. How about getting together a small group of people (already discussing this issue on the system) to think through what that would involve? I think it is more than more online tools and meetings: it needs formats - systems to bid for funding or support, a market place, mentoring - or whatever. NESTA have already indicated their possible interest.
  

Beside these specifics I believe there are two strategic issues that need to be resolved quickly: degree of openness, and system ownership.

• It's currently not clear whether the system will be open only to Fellows. If that is the case, it will be a good place to gather support from Fellows - but many projects will have to move "off system" to involve other parties essential for real civic innovation. If it is to be open to others, on what terms? Maybe we could have a system where only Fellows can propose projects and invite others in, then project leaders decide how private or visible their projects are. Meanwhile there's not much motivation to propose a project if you don't know who will be able to participate in the longer term.
  
• The over-arching issue: who's system is this? RSA staff have put a lot of emphasis on the RSA Networks programme being by and for Fellows. If that's the case, shouldn't the online system - and associated processes - be "owned" by Fellows, or a Fellows/staff partnership? That partnership would then decide on issues of open-closed, hosting, system developments etc. If Fellows are just being asked for comments, with decisions taken by staff, nothing much will have changed from past practice.

The strength of the system is that it is pretty intuitive to use, and can be developed in many different direction because of the underlying modular structure (Drupal, I believe). So - great architect, more features needed .... but who is the client that makes the decisions?

Fast follow-up: see the project ideas

RSA staff made an enormous effort after the RSA Networks event to organise and upload reports of all the project ideas that were developed.
In an email to all involved, RSA chief executive Matthew Taylor provides a link to the reports for anyone with a login to the RSA site, and also urges project proposers to add their ideas to the RSA Networks site. This currently allows anyone to register.
As Matthew explains, RSA staff acting as network facilitators will follow up with offers of help. Matthew writes:

Dear Fellow
I'd like to say a huge thank you to all of you for making yesterday such an inspiring and energising event. I, for one, haven't seen the house buzzing in such a way since I started here. I hope that all of you had a similar experience, and that you left the building with some new contacts and lots of new ideas.
Of course, in many ways, yesterday was the very beginning of a new journey for the RSA. The challenge for all of us now is to find a way of holding onto that energy and passion, to combine it with patience and determination to build on the ideas that you began to develop yesterday.
You can see all the project ideas that you worked on, and those of all the other groups, by following this link http://www.thersa.org/projectideas. They are listed alphabetically under broad theme headings, and assigned to the project leaders. We would like you to log in to the networks platform that was discussed at the Tech Sessions yesterday http://networks.thersa.org, add your profile and, if you were the project leader, to upload your project proposal. That way you can tag your project in the way you want, which will be better and more accurate than what we have done so far.
The RSA networks project is all about giving you new tools to work together as groups of Fellows. That's what we started yesterday and we want to encourage you to continue the conversations over the next two weeks, to develop the thinking and ideas generation that you began at the event. The kind of questions you should be thinking about are: Is it a strong, clear idea? How much interest did it attract from other Fellows? Is it really different; are other organisations doing something similar and, if so, who should you link with? Are there other project ideas listed on the site with similar interests and is it worth collaborating with them? What is the next action? How can the RSA best help you as groups of Fellows to move forwards?
When you have developed your thinking please input your idea into the networks area of our website http://networks.thersa.org. Follow the link, log in and then click on to the ‘Propose’ box to get started. Next week, one of the network facilitators that you met yesterday will be telephoning you to see how things are progressing. We know that this initiative is all about what you as Fellows want to do together but we also want to do as much as we can to remove barriers to this new kind of collaboration, as well as providing you with new tools.
Of course, yesterday was not just about generating ideas about what you could do together. It was also a really important staging post on our journey to find a new kind of relationship between the Fellowship and the staff. Some of the sessions you posted under the 'How it will work' theme will inform our thinking here, and today we will be posting some of our own projects on these issues on to the platform for you to comment on. As our thinking progresses, informed by your views, we will keep you posted.
In keeping with the spirit we began to create yesterday, we want your thoughts to be shared as a discussion of many Fellows, rather than a closed dialogue with just me. We are sure that you will keep us on our toes on this but, in the meantime, we look forward to seeing what the seeds you sowed yesterday grow into!
Matthew Taylor
Chief Executive

At present reports are all Word documents that have to be downloaded, which makes it difficult to scan through the ideas quickly. However, it was a terrific achievement to get everyone concerned to complete reports, get them uploaded, and then categorised, within a day. The new networks site is designed to make it easier to see project summaries, and who is involved.
For me this immediate follow-up shows a real commitment to help Fellows move from a buzzy event to action. It could develop into a great demonstration of how to mix Open Space event technology with online follow-up and support from network facilitators.

Charles Leadbeater says it is time for we-thinking

Charles Leadbeater is developing a book on collaboration, collaboratively - so who better to offer some opening philosophy on RSA Networks day? Charles explained that the book is called We-think ... emphasising "we think therefore we are" rather than the more familiar "I think..."
People are contributing ideas and comments, Charles is re-drafting, and the whole enterprise is due for publication in 2008.
However, Charles warned us against believing that collaboration can be wholly a bottom-up,self-organising process. Large projects need a core of people at the heart, with development processes broken into smaller parts that people could work on. It was, he said, a bit like putting together a lot of Lego bricks.
You also need a governance structure, said Charles. He quoted Jimmy Wales, the founder of the Wikipedia,which is written by thousands of contributors, as follows.
Wikipedia is one part anarchy - in that anyone can contribute. It is one part democracy - when there is a dispute, people vote on it; one part meritocracy, because the best ideas win out; one part aristocracy because the people who have been around longest count for more; and one part monarchy - it's me.

Anthropologist enthused by developing networks

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Ellie Ford is an anthropologist, filmmaker and entrepreneur who is capturing the story of the development of RSA Networks on behalf of NESTA, who are investing £100,000 is the networks process.

Ellie explained that she and a colleague were filming during the day, to capture the opinions of Fellows and how they related to RSA staff. She remarked on the risk involved in trying something so different - and the braveness of the Society in experimenting. More similar events, with some designed for new Fellows, would be a good way to develop the new culture neded for innovation.

More RSA Spaces needed: offline too

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One of the recurring themes throughout the RSA Networks day discussion was how to match the plans for new online spaces, with better facilities for Fellows to meet face-to-face, particularly out of London.

In addition, could spaces within RSA headquarters at John Adam Street be used more effectively?

Malcolm Forbes, who has been closely involved in the development of OpenRSA, was one of those developing fresh ideas. These ranged from a directory of "branded" spaces that could be used by Fellows, to an online fundraising exercise, and returning the Tavern Room to its original sociable purpose. 

Network facilitators will support project development

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The RSA Networks day produced lots of buzz and plenty of ideas - but how will these be turned into action?

Susan Butler, RSA Head of Marketing and Communications, explained that a key element in this will be the role of networks facilitators, who have been trained to support people proposing projects through research and brokerage of contacts.

However, Susan made it clear that it will be up to Fellows to drive projects forward. 

Making better use of RSA events

Alhough the RSA Networks online site drew a lot of attention, people were perhaps even more concerned to improve face-to-face networking and make better use of the many lectures and other events offered by the RSA.
Just how this might be done was discussed in one group by Frank Spring, National Director of RSA US, and Fellow Fiona Coffey - who does quite a bit of event organising herself. As Fiona said, this could mean changes for RSA staff as well as for Fellows.

RSA chair Gerry Acher

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The chair of RSA trustees, Gerry Acher, was very much part of the conversation at the RSA Networks day, and explained to me how he saw the role of the RSA in today's society.

At a time when political parties are clustered together in the centre ground, people are not offered many alternatives - and increasingly want to work things out for themselves. Gerry explained this was very much in line with William Shipley's original vision for the RSA in 1754 - small groups of people getting together to talk about the future - and plan what to do.

RSA networks site raises the issue of openness

As conversations buzzed around the RSA house in John Adam Street, Saul Albert and Andy Gibson were tucked about in the theatre demonstrating a new online system that will be at the heart of helping Fellows develop project ideas, discuss them with others, and move them forward.
Saul and Andy have only had a few weeks to develop the prototype - yet during that time have been extraordinarily open and collaborative, as you can see from postings on this blog.
The site was well received - and the key issues raised were not about the technology, but about openness: for example, how far it should be for Fellows-only? This might seem logical in a membership organisation, but could be a handicap in developing projects that will inevitably involve a wide range of interests beyond the Fellowship. It's an issue already raised here. For the moment the site is open, so I urge you to click across and sign up to try it out. 

Sean Blair and Sophia Parker

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The RSA Networks event was facilitated by Sean Blair, and Sophia Parker is working on Fellowship engagement and network development.

They found a few moments to talk about how networking can move from conversations and connections to action, and how more Fellows can be involved

Matthew Taylor launches the Networks event

Yesterday's RSA Networks event brought together some 250 Fellows, and generated both an extraordinary buzz of conversations as Mick Fealty reports, and also something less tangible but equally important - a terrific feeling of togetherness. It was, as Tessy Britton says, a sense of fellowship.
The idea of the day was to fill out the vision of chief executive Matthew Taylor for the Fellowship as a network for civic innovation. Before the event, that was a little sketchy. However, as things progressed, with a mix of presentations and Open Space discussions facilitated by Sean Blair, we produced both a rich mix of project ideas and the means to take them forward.
I took a camera along, and will be posting videos. Here's the first one, of Matthew Taylor welcoming us to the event.

RSA Networks preview meeting

Last Friday evening at 6:30pm a group of five fellows, five RSA staff, and two or three interested individuals gathered in the Shipley room around the Talkaoke table for a very early preview of the RSA Networks prototype website.

The event was also an opportunity to test out the non-technical (offline) process of project development and discussion we had whittled down from all the ideas, requests and discussions we had dug amongst the RSA's diverse communities. We attempted to do this by mirroring the process outlined in my first three blog postings (the ideas, the flow diagram and the wireframes).

As you may now be bored of reading me say, that process is to propose ideas, discuss them, then support them through to execution. We thought that if we set up an equivalent process 'offline' - in a convivial environment (provided by Oddbins and Anshuman's generosity) we could think through how we might be able to augment the process online.

We were not disappointed. The evening began with a presentation of the prototype - which was still quite broken and bare-bones at that stage - of course the first thing that happened was that I forgot my password in the bustle to get ready but that was swiftly glossed over and I presented our working model so far.

Unfortunately, I had failed to take the advice of our facilitator for the 22nd - Sean Blair to make some 'response' cards to capture people's thoughts about the prototype as it was demonstrated. Immediately afterwards, some really great questions came thick and fast, and quickly turned into a heated discussion about the broader issues: what is civic innovation in this context? Should the RSA's website be open to the public? What's the point of building another social networking site when Facebook is already doing a very good job? Luckily we have this all on video (up on youtube later today)

Rebecca Daddow coordinator of the RSA Risk Commission gave a fascinating powerpoint presentation about a new research project she's working on to help develop an online 'Behavior Change Tool' to help young children learn to make more informed decisions in their daily lives. This was a great example of an RSA project: multi-disciplinary, socially applicable and requiring the participation of multiple organisations and individuals.

Nico Macdonald talked about his research into the poverty of debating standards on and off-line, and the tantalising possibilities offered by RSS syndication in further cross-linking blogs, turning the infrastructure of the blogosphere into a loosely coupled adversarial debating floor.

Richard Millwood then gave a very inspiring presentation about his work with the Ultraversity, an online degree course in technology and research - during which he showed an incredible video of two enthusiastic women at their graduation ceremony, explaining the wonders of network-assisted learning at home beautifully - as if, (he said), they'd been given a script for a student recruitment commercial.

There was some debate about the projects, but far more about the mechanics of project assistance and development within the RSA, and how it relates to the RSA Networks project. I am very grateful to the presenters for offering to put their projects forward knowing this was likely to be the case. However, some connections were made - particularly between Richard and Team Everything - who were well represented at the gathering.

Sunny Hundal really hit one of the many nails of the evening on the head when he was talking about his work on Comment is Free. When he develops projects, it is impossible to imagine only involving fellows - there has to be some way of bringing in other people to work alongside them. This issue - of access and openness of the platform became one of the most interesting discussions of the night, with David Wilcox bringing up some very good questions about the incentives for fellows (or anyone) to use and participate without the terms of engagement being completely clear.

This theme - of degrees of openness, picking up on many of the threads on this blog and on the RSA Networks blog really became the core of the evening, and revealed some of the paradoxical issues inherent in a members-only organisation embarking on a process of opening access to its networks and resources. However, there were some interesting suggestions made about variable access granted by project initiators, depending on the stage in a project's development.

On the whole, the evening was very rich with bigger picture ideas of what the debates and issues are surrounding the RSA Networks project - and we came away with many new ideas to work into the prototype and our report.

Which I now have a prototype to launch!

The videos from the evening will be online soon.