Last week ACPO brought some people together to look at the way we are addressing Social Media. Or should we call it Social Networking? I will use SN/M) Either way the Social comes first.
Gordon Scobbie DCC from Tayside has done some excellent work trying to bring ACPO Policy forward and it is good to see that it will be discussed at the forthcoming ACPO Conference.
ACPO itself has a range of policies but perhaps has no strategy.
The point of this blog is to address whether there should in fact be a strategy or whether the whole SN/M environment is moving so fast that a traditional strategy approach, including consultation, risk assessments and assorted policy option, will work.
In a recent presentation to SASIS I offered a few questions as my final slide these are:
• How do we use Social Media AND prevent abuse?
• How do we engage AND reflect before informing?
• What can you do to keep us safe to protect you?
• How can I keep my staff technically able?
So some comments on each
How do we use Social Media AND prevent abuse?
I think the issue here is how much do you trust your staff? And how risk averse do you want to be? Police officers, particularly, walk or drive the streets of the UK with Guns, CS Gas, Expanding Batons and have the power to seriously mess up a citizens day.
Yet many of us prevent them from accessing Facebook or Twitter. Mostly for fear that our staff will either waste time or do something to bring them, or us, into disrespect.
Simple management could prevent the former issue backed up with analysis and a ruthless determination to prevent abuse. The latter issue is managed by developing the trust relationship with staff
How do we engage AND reflect before informing?
This is the thinking gap between the construction of a comment and the posting. Simply, you can’t manage it through the normal organisational management rules. However, you can be considerate to those who make honest mistakes, and to offer sensible advice to those who may write something that is a little “different” and potentially insulting. The policy of “Just do It” is one that needs to be balanced against simple guidance to keep people out of trouble.
What can you do to keep us safe to protect you?
Posting SN/M is no good as a one way process. Many commentators on police tweets criticise us for being too “corporate” or not replying. It must not be one way flow. Web sites are here for the corporate message and the one way communications. However as we move into the SN/M environment we need to learn to be interactive and respond ASAP to questions and queries. Sometimes that is not possible. But we should at least acknowledge the question then seek and answer.
Likewise we need the advice and guidance of better informed commentators and sometimes commercial providers to keep us safe to provide opportunities to protect our citizens.
How can I keep my staff technically able?
I think that the use of SN/M will provide staff with technical and communication skills that would otherwise have to be delivered in a classroom or simply ignored. I think getting our own staff to use contemporary communications tools is not just important, it is invaluable, if we want to keep policing relevant to our citizens
So, in trying to fulfil the criteria I set out in the first blog. My thoughts are that we should do everything possible to get our staff using SN/M. This brings a host of risks and problems. To allow and encourage use requires a different kind of leadership. Perhaps a leadership that is reasonable in addressing risk, yet supportive when criticism is made.
I hope that this blog creates some comments and some response.
If you want to respond, just do it.
Thanks for reading this
I think we all like the immediacy the internet and online social networking provides. Even if I cannot answer queries straight away I think people feel like they will get a quicker response as they are asking a real person rather than contacting an organisation. I have regular questions via Faceboook, most of which I cannot answer myself but people don't mind waiting for me to find out and they appreciate the honesty that 'live' social networking promotes.
ReplyDeleteRebecca, Barrow CDRP
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteSir, as you are well aware one of the services major ambitions is to effectively engage with the community it serves, social media appears to enables us to both develop and inform our communities, in an instinctive way.
ReplyDeleteRebecca (Barrow CDRP) also makes a very good point when she speaks of the “immediacy” aspect of such types of communication. For instance the service sometimes speaks of its difficulty in reaching so called hard to reach groups; this is where SM really comes into its own, allowing total flexibility as to when and how the contributor responds / accesses such forums .
Most people are now accessing social media via smartphones or similar devices, this allows for almost immediate connectivity, something younger generations not only understand but positively demand. Popular analysis seems to support the idea of being forward thinking now, in order to have any chance of capturing/maintaining communication with this group in the future.
I think the service sometimes forgets just how interested the wider community is in what we do and how we deliver services, particularly at times of difficulty. There are now increasing numbers of senior officers such as yourself who are playing a major role in expanding this area of public engagement. Personally I think this style is in keeping with today’s demands and personalises our desire to be approachable, accessible and transparent.
So what do the police get out of S/M, answer (in my opinion) lots, with the main areas being, fast time connectivity with both its public and staff, the ability to seek feedback with regards to how we deliver services / initiatives, to communicate information relevant to threat/ harm including information requests and finally and importantly inform the wider community of our successes which ultimately supports community reassurance.
I accept however, as always there is a flipside to such an open style of communication, which obviously and rightly allows us to be criticised when appropriate. I believe this to be a positive thing as it allows for genuine feedback with regards to the work we do. Personally I am thankful for the Constabulary’s style of leadership which allows staff to feel empowered to make effective use of social media / networking.
Social Networking and Media is a very powerful tool that is sadly underused by most police forces. Sure, they may have a "corporate" feed but there's no feeds relevant to various areas.
ReplyDeleteThis could be incredibly useful for Neighbourhood Policing, especially now that the funding for it is being greatly reduced. Lines of communication can be established through sites such as Twitter and Facebook. The user can also choose how "seriously" they use the lines, too. They could use it for important things such as informing about crimes, or they could use it just to chat with their local CBM or PCSOs and build rapport.
Both usages are important, but what is more important is that it is on the user's terms, unlike a phone conversation where there is a set purpose.
Police Officers and Staff are given the powers of investigation and arrest... I think they can be trusted writing on a SN/M website sensibly!
Sir, as you are well aware one of the services major ambitions is to effectively engage with the community it serves, social media appears to enables us to both develop and inform our communities, in an instinctive way.
ReplyDeleteRebecca (Barrow CDRP) also makes a very good point when she speaks of the “immediacy” aspect of such types of communication. For instance the service sometimes speaks of its difficulty in reaching so called hard to reach groups; this is where SM really comes into its own, allowing total flexibility as to when and how the contributor responds / accesses such forums .
Most people are now accessing social media via smartphones or similar devices, this allows for almost immediate connectivity, something younger generations not only understand but positively demand. Popular analysis seems to support the idea of being forward thinking now, in order to have any chance of capturing/maintaining communication with this group in the future.
I think the service sometimes forgets just how interested the wider community is in what we do and how we deliver services, particularly at times of difficulty. There are now increasing numbers of senior officers such as yourself who are playing a major role in expanding this area of public engagement. Personally I think this style is in keeping with today’s demands and personalises our desire to be approachable, accessible and transparent.
So what do the police get out of S/M, answer (in my opinion) lots, with the main areas being, fast time connectivity with both its public and staff, the ability to seek feedback with regards to how we deliver services / initiatives, to communicate information relevant to threat/ harm including information requests and finally and importantly inform the wider community of our successes which ultimately supports community reassurance.
I accept however, as always there is a flipside to such an open style of communication, which obviously and rightly allows us to be criticised when appropriate. I believe this to be a positive thing as it allows for genuine feedback with regards to the work we do. Personally I am thankful for the Constabulary’s style of leadership which allows staff to feel empowered to make effective use of social media / networking.
Sir, as you are well aware one of the services major ambitions is to effectively engage with the community it serves, social media appears to enables us to both develop and inform our communities, in an instinctive way.
ReplyDeleteRebecca (Barrow CDRP) also makes a very good point when she speaks of the “immediacy” aspect of such types of communication. For instance the service sometimes speaks of its difficulty in reaching so called hard to reach groups; this is where SM really comes into its own, allowing total flexibility as to when and how the contributor responds / accesses such forums .
Most people are now accessing social media via smartphones or similar devices, this allows for almost immediate connectivity, something younger generations not only understand but positively demand. Popular analysis seems to support the idea of being forward thinking now, in order to have any chance of capturing/maintaining communication with this group in the future.
I think the service sometimes forgets just how interested the wider community is in what we do and how we deliver services, particularly at times of difficulty. There are now increasing numbers of senior officers such as yourself who are playing a major role in expanding this area of public engagement. Personally I think this style is in keeping with today’s demands and personalises our desire to be approachable, accessible and transparent.
So what do the police get out of S/M, answer (in my opinion) lots, with the main areas being, fast time connectivity with both its public and staff, the ability to seek feedback with regards to how we deliver services / initiatives, to communicate information relevant to threat/ harm including information requests and finally and importantly inform the wider community of our successes which ultimately supports community reassurance.
I accept however, as always there is a flipside to such an open style of communication, which obviously and rightly allows us to be criticised when appropriate. I believe this to be a positive thing as it allows for genuine feedback with regards to the work we do. Personally I am thankful for the Constabulary’s style of leadership which allows staff to feel empowered to make effective use of social media / networking.
Sir, as you are well aware one of the services major ambitions is to effectively engage with the community it serves, social media appears to enables us to both develop and inform our communities, in an instinctive way.
ReplyDeleteRebecca (Barrow CDRP) also makes a very good point when she speaks of the “immediacy” aspect of such types of communication. For instance the service sometimes speaks of its difficulty in reaching so called hard to reach groups; this is where SM really comes into its own, allowing total flexibility as to when and how the contributor responds / accesses such forums .
Most people are now accessing social media via smartphones or similar devices, this allows for almost immediate connectivity, something younger generations not only understand but positively demand. Popular analysis seems to support the idea of being forward thinking now, in order to have any chance of capturing/maintaining communication with this group in the future.
I think the service sometimes forgets just how interested the wider community is in what we do and how we deliver services, particularly at times of difficulty. There are now increasing numbers of senior officers such as yourself who are playing a major role in expanding this area of public engagement. Personally I think this style is in keeping with today’s demands and personalises our desire to be approachable, accessible and transparent.
So what do the police get out of S/M, answer (in my opinion) lots, with the main areas being, fast time connectivity with both its public and staff, the ability to seek feedback with regards to how we deliver services / initiatives, to communicate information relevant to threat/ harm including information requests and finally and importantly inform the wider community of our successes which ultimately supports community reassurance.
I accept however, as always there is a flipside to such an open style of communication, which obviously and rightly allows us to be criticised when appropriate. I believe this to be a positive thing as it allows for genuine feedback with regards to the work we do. Personally I am thankful for the Constabulary’s style of leadership which allows staff to feel empowered to make effective use of social media / networking.
I am seriously thinking about starting a Twitter account for my community response team. Another sgt and I supervise 11 officers and 2 PCSOs and I think that a twitter account would allow us to engage and communicate with our communities and capture audiences that do not read the local press.
ReplyDeleteThe purpose of this would be to; Reassure, inform and engage with our communities.
It would be like a very editted e-pocket note book that officers would update after every visible job they deal with. For example and update on an RTC that motorists have driven by, a warrant conducted in a neighbourhood etc. It could be useful tool. Immediate notice of a temporary road closure, missing person enquiries (especially as most of Cumbris's mispers are teenagers) could be speeded up and messages could be passed with out the delays or filters in the traditional media.
Just as importantly public queries and concerns could be noted and acted upon. A dialogue would be in place each time my shift were on duty with clear tweets given about when we are on and off duty.
As I learnt in our SN/M workshop last week it is best to start off small and grow organically. This would allow officers to gain confidence with a completely new tool and train themselves through practice. Other shifts and depts could be added later.
There are risks especially about releasing information though. Data protection and dislcosure rules must be obeyed. Security and integrity of the account must also be maintained.
I do not think a formulated strategy wil work with SN/M. There will be numerous dead ends, obstacles and hiccups made. I do not know if a set strategy work compliment this. I believe we need to have an emergent strategy that is reviewed regularly that can deal with SN/M. We do not know what the end state is. Understandably, there is no concrete vision of where we want to be and what success looks like.
We do need to engage more. Policing teams in PSNI have followings of 7,000 which is excellent. Cumbria could achieve that but is a high number of followers a success? I think the strategy we need for this idea needs to be fluid and it needs closely reflect the lessons we learn on this new venture. Formed not formulated.
There is huge positive potential.