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Salvador Dali was a Spanish painter, writer, and member of the Surrealist movement. His paintings featured dreamy imagery of everyday objects which took unexpected forms such as his famous limp watches in The Persistence of Memory, 1931. Today, we have a persistence of a lack of time! Time is our most precious resource! Technology planning can be overwhelming because it can feel like yet another "add-on" to our already overburdened schedule. Who has time to do a technology plan? The challenge is: How can we seamlessly integrate technology planning into our organization's daily practice? Here are some tips that can keep your technology planning process ticking along without going limp. 1. Use the Salami Method: To avoid getting overwhelmed, break down all planning tasks into smaller chunks. Don't bite off more than you can chew. It is also helpful to spread out the various assignments and keep meetings to no more than two hours. After each meeting, provide a brief written summary of decisions and assignments and be sure to identify what has been accomplished. There is nothing more fulfilling than crossing something off your technology planning to do list! Don't forget to create a clear roadmap upfront of assignments and tasks that are doable and realistic to accomplish between meetings. It also helps if you set up a listserv for communications between meetings. 2. Keep it Fun: Technology can be frustrating - but try to keep a sense of humor. Keep it light. If you are leading the team, be aware of the deer in the headlights look that may surface and try to dispel it. Having a technology cartoon or a joke in your back pocket can help. Some good resources: E-Mail
This Book from the Cartoon Bank (collection of New Yorker
cartoons) 3. Meetings: For your technology team, don't leave a tech planning meeting until you have scheduled the next meeting time. Also, try to infuse other organizational meetings with technology planning issues. For example, set aside a small amount of time, 10-15 minutes, in every staff meeting to talk about technology or provide an update of the tech team's work. It is also a good idea to do the same thing for board meetings. For tips about effective meetings, see effectivemeetings.com. It also helps if you provide good food during the meeting. 4. Permission to Breath: Sometimes there may be a major organizational event or deadline that may make everyone's stress meter go over the top. Understand when these pressure points occur and try to plan your tech team meetings accordingly. Okay, better said than done. If you need to delay an already scheduled meeting - give tech team members permission to breath, but don't cancel meeting altogether - simply push it back a couple of weeks. (Or have the meeting anyway, and put some of this in the watercooler and share this web site for stress management tips for overworked people.) 5.
Integrate Technology Planning with Annual Program Planning:
Keep technology on the radar screen of every program plan and staff
member. Circulating interesting "quick read" articles
can also be useful. When it comes time to plot out the annual budget,
make sure that staff includes thinking about technology. Include
a set of accounts or line items for technology and ask them to come
up with a wish list. 7. Telling Your Story: If your organization has a newsletter, annual report, or other publications, use the opportunity to discuss accomplishments using technology or describe a model project. 8.
Filling Staff Positions: If you are hiring a new staff person
for an existing position or have a create a new position, use the
opportunity of writing the job description to incorporate technology
skills and knowledge needs. And, it doesn't have to be for the tech
position. 10. Get Inspired: Make the process of technology planning so inspired it becomes a natural part of your organization's culture!
Inspired by the Technology Planning Message Board at TechSoup moderated by Marc Osten. |
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