WIRED Watch Newsletter May 1, 2009

In This Issue
NCI WIRED is Seeking Project Proposals
Generation F and the Civic Space
2009 Industry Outlook
Upcoming Events
WIRED Opportunity Forum      
Thursday, May 14, 10:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Pastarrific Restaurant, Kokomo, IN   
RSVPs required to: Peggy Hosea phosea@purdue.edu, 765.236.0955

Regional Innovation during Boom and Bust
Sponsored by Purdue Center for Regional Development
South Bend Hilton Garden Inn  10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Contact PCRD for more details 877.882.7273 

NCI WIRED is Seeking Project Proposals
The Background: Just a few weeks ago we thought 2009 would be a wind-down year for our WIRED efforts. The original 3 years was over, all funds were allocated, and we went into maintenance status with an eye toward buttoning everything up by the end of 2009. While everything still has to be completed by year end, we recently became aware of additional funds that would be made available for Programs, not Administrative Costs. 

The Opportunity: An RFP (available here)is being issued to call for proposals that will further NCI WIRED’s four original strategic initiatives:

   1.      Creating Globally Competitive Industries

   2.      Building a Culture of Entrepreneurship

   3.     Developing a Workforce with 21st Century
  Skills

   4.    Weaving Supportive Civic Networks

These programs must be able to be completed by year end and in the spirit of continuing to build our region, multi-county partnerships are essential.

An “Opportunity Forum” will be held on May 14^th at Pastariffic in Kokomo. All those

interested in submitting proposals should attend this session. Come prepared to share your top three strategic assets that will help the regional economy. You will be able to link, leverage and align with partners, flesh out proposals and leave with a draft in hand. The finished proposal will need to be submitted prior to May 25^th.

All proposals will need to be submitted by May 25^th with announcements expected to take place on May 29^th. See the full RFP for more details.

Please contactphosea@purdue.eduto reserve your spot at the Opportunity Forum. Share this invitation with others you feel would be interested in attending.

Generation F and the Civic Space ~ Interesting points about online civic communities

There is a great article (available here) on the Wall Street Journal site by Gary Hamel about the expectations Generation F(Facebook Generation) have/will have of potential employers.

Those of us who work within the civic space need to be thinking about how these post-bureaucratic online communities built by Generation F relate to the ways we do the work of community. Hamel gives 12 characteristics of online life that Gen F will use to evaluate whether a company is a place where they will want to work. They also relate to the civic communities in which they will, or will not, choose to engage.

1. All ideas compete on an equal footing.
On the Web, every idea has the chance to gain a following—or not, and no one has the power to kill off a subversive idea or squelch an embarrassing debate. Ideas gain traction based on their perceived merits, rather than on the political power of their sponsors.

2. Contribution counts for more than credentials.
When you post a video to YouTube, no one asks you if you went to film school. When you write a blog, no one cares whether you have a journalism degree. Position, title, and academic degrees—none of the usual status differentiators carry much weight online. On the Web, what counts is not your resume, but what you can contribute.

3. Hierarchies are natural, not prescribed.
In any Web forum there are some individuals who command more respect and attention than others—and have more influence as a consequence. Critically, though, these individuals haven’t been appointed by some superior authority. Instead, their clout reflects the freely given approbation of their peers. On the Web, authority trickles up, not down.

4. Leaders serve rather than preside.
On the Web, every leader is a servant leader; no one has the power to command or sanction. Credible arguments, demonstrated expertise and selfless behavior are the only levers for getting things done through other people. Forget this online, and your followers will soon abandon you.

5. Tasks are chosen, not assigned.
The Web is an opt-in economy. Whether contributing to a blog, working on an open source project, or sharing advice in a forum, people choose to work on the things that interest them. Everyone is an independent contractor, and everyone scratches their own itch.

6. Groups are self-defining and -organizing.
On the Web, you get to choose your compatriots. In any online community, you have the freedom to link up with some individuals and ignore the rest, to share deeply with some folks and not at all with others. Just as no one can assign you a boring task, no can force you to work with dim-witted colleagues.

7. Resources get attracted, not allocated.
In large organizations, resources get allocated top-down, in a politicized, Soviet-style budget wrangle. On the Web, human effort flows towards ideas and projects that are attractive (and fun), and away from those that aren’t. In this sense, the Web is a market economy where millions of individuals get to decide, moment by moment, how to spend the precious currency of their time and attention.

8. Power comes from sharing information, not hoarding it.
The Web is also a gift economy. To gain influence and status, you have to give away your expertise and content. And you must do it quickly; if you don’t, someone else will beat you to the punch—and garner the credit that might have been yours. Online, there are a lot of incentives to share, and few incentives to hoard.

9. Opinions compound and decisions are peer-reviewed.
On the Internet, truly smart ideas rapidly gain a following no matter how disruptive they may be. The Web is a near-perfect medium for aggregating the wisdom of the crowd—whether in formally organized opinion markets or in casual discussion groups. And once aggregated, the voice of the masses can be used as a battering ram to challenge the entrenched interests of institutions in the offline world.

10. Users can veto most policy decisions.
As many Internet moguls have learned to their sorrow, online users are opinionated and vociferous—and will quickly attack any decision or policy change that seems contrary to the community’s interests. The only way to keep users loyal is to give them a substantial say in key decisions. You may have built the community, but the users really own it.

11. Intrinsic rewards matter most.
The web is a testament to the power of intrinsic rewards. Think of all the articles contributed to Wikipedia, all the open source software created, all the advice freely given—add up the hours of volunteer time and it’s obvious that human beings will give generously of themselves when they’re given the chance to contribute to something they actually care about. Money’s great, but so is recognition and the joy of accomplishment.

12. Hackers are heroes.
Large organizations tend to make life uncomfortable for activists and rabble-rousers—however constructive they may be. In contrast, online communities frequently embrace those with strong anti-authoritarian views. On the Web, muckraking malcontents are frequently celebrated as champions of the Internet’s democratic values—particularly if they’ve managed to hack a piece of code that has been interfering with what others regard as their inalienable digital rights.   

2009 Industry Outlook

Deloitte has just published its 2009 Industry

Outlook.  For a more in-depth look at the

trends,  this report reveals potential industry-

specific challenges and opportunities for

2009. See it here.

May 1, 2009

Corporate Sponsor:






IndianaWIRED -
Workforce Innovations in Regional Economic Development -- is a three year, $15 million initiative that combines the resources of 14 north central Indiana counties. 

The IndianaWIRED counties include:  Benton, Carroll, Cass, Clinton, Fountain, Fulton, Howard, Miami, Montgomery, Tippecanoe, Tipton, Wabash, Warren and White.

IndianaWIRED is investing in new ways to integrate education, workforce development and economic development.

Activities fall into four areas:

• Creating Globally Competitive Industries
• Building an Entrepreneurship Super-Region
• Developing a Workforce with 21st Century Skills
• Weaving Supportive Civic Networks

To learn more Contact:
Peggy Hosea
IndianaWIRED office (765-236-0955) or
visit the Web site:  www.indiana-wired.net

“This product was funded by a grant awarded under the Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) Initiative as implemented by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment & Training Administration.  The information contained in this product was created by a grantee organization and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Labor. All references to non-governmental companies or organizations, their services, products, or resources are offered for informational purposes and should not be construed as an endorsement by the Department of Labor.  This product is copyrighted by the institution that created it and is intended for individual organizational, non-commercial use only.”