virtual voad: creating and operating virtual social media teams for voads
DESCRIPTION
VirtualVOAD session description: Social Media operation, monitoring and use during disasters can be overwhelming. No one person can manage social media alone during a disaster. It’s best to have a geographically widespread virtual team ready to assist each other, providing mutual assistance and surge support during disasters when needed. This interactive workshop will demonstrate how virtual social media teams have been set up and operated before, with real examples of tools, platforms and techniques. The group will do an exercise to learn to set up and operate a virtual social media effort/exercise during the NVOAD conference. Course participants will be asked to connect up via social media prior to the conference so that they can be involved in exercise setup. Worshop participants should come to this course knowing social media basics, and should already understand basic concepts regarding how facebook and twitter are used during disasters.TRANSCRIPT
#VirtualVOADat the National VOAD
conference 2014
Virtual Operations Support Teams:
a great example of how VOADs can utilize virtual teams can
operate in disasters
• VOST teams have been operating for +3 years
• tested on wildfires, floods, tornadoes, earthquakes & more
• concept has grown from U.S. to Canada, New Zealand, France, Spain, Australia, U.K. and more
• virtual teams used successfully by Oregon VOAD in 2012 & National VOAD during Hurricane Sandy, Colorado floods by COVOST, midwest tornadoes by OKVOST
• can be very helpful for disaster recovery coordination
Importance of having both local AND non-local team members
Local team members have strong location & cultural knowledge, yet in times of disaster, team nonlocal members often needed &
called upon to assist.
VOST Instance Cycle
Concept
What happens when we activate?Set up incident base and gather
team
Set up incident base and gather
team
Set up incident workbook
Set up incident workbook
Set mission tasks
Set mission tasks
Monitor & Report
Monitor & Report
Set up and/or maintain incident
specific sites
Set up and/or maintain incident
specific sitesAmplifyAmplify
crowdsourcinglisten – identify needs/trends – build tools to help
HelpHelp
OOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOO
Coord-
inate
Coord-
inateOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOO
ListenListen
OOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOO
What is a VOST?
•Trusted agents organized and directed by Emergency Management agency or disaster organization.•VOST will help expand the EM’s ability to engage with the public before, during emergencies, and as part of the recovery phase.
Engaged Communit
yResources
How can VOST assist EM Agencies?
Tasked•Information finding•Spot Trends
•Information disseminationAutonomous
•Monitoring public voice•Amplifying official message
• Monitor• Curate• Amplify
Workflow
SkypeSkype Workbook
Workbook
Incident docs & records are
in shared workbook
Ongoing text chat is in the VOST “work
room”
OOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOO
Workbook
Workbook
All major actions
tracked & logged in workbook
OOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO
Search
tools
Search
tools
Search for helpful info on social media
& net
OOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO
SkypeSkype
Communicate, collaborate, coordinate
OOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO
Info actionInfo
action
Info used according to
mission
OOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO
virtual virtual workroomworkroom
(chat)(chat)
website/blogwebsite/blog
monitoring/searmonitoring/sear
ch:ch:
blogblog
facebookfacebook
pinterest/flickrpinterest/flickr
crowdmapcrowdmap
google google form/sheetform/sheet
twittertwitter
rumors/rumors/misinformationmisinformation
actionable actionable postsposts
shared shared workbookworkbook(google (google sheet)sheet)
sentiment sentiment analysisanalysiskeyword/keyword/
geosearchesgeosearches
twitter liststwitter lists
socialmention.csocialmention.comom
analyticsanalytics
youtubeyoutube
!!
team team lead(s)lead(s)
org. leaderorg. leader
team activated!team activated!(text/call)(text/call)
incident!backchannel tools/resources:backchannel tools/resources: public-facing sites:public-facing sites:
message message amplification:amplification:
aar/aar/archivingarchiving
Workflow
SkypeSkype Workbook
Workbook
Incident docs & records are in
shared workbook
Ongoing text chat is in the VOST “work
room”
OOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOOO
Workbook
Workbook
All major actions
tracked & logged in workbook
OOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO
Search
tools
Search
tools
Search for helpful info on social media
& net
OOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO
SkypeSkype
Communicate, collaborate, coordinate
OOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO
Info actionInfo
action
Info used according to
mission
OOOOOOOO
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO
OOOOOO
•Log in to your Skype account and connect with team lead on Skype (reuter.scott)
•I’ll accept invitation to connect & invite you to the Virtual Voad Skype room
•Skype isn’t the only place you can operate a virtual team , but it’s reliable, works on most devices and used by majority of VOST teams, and we’ll use it today.)
the skype chat work room
the team workbookin google docs
•You need a free google account for this part of the exercise. If you don’t have a google account, go get one at google.com
•Share your google account info in the Skype room so that we can invite you to the shared team workbook, which is a shared google spreadsheet with all team resources
read the ICS 204 tab
key websites & resources tab:save active/relevant accounts
here
enter when you can help on the
availability tab
run searches from the
websites & resources tab
hashtag searches
shared tweetdeck account for twitter
monitoring
twitterfall monitoring
facebook page
social mention search
(blogs, facebook, twitter)
social mention search
crowdmap•Add your disaster locations worked
to the sample crowdmap
•Ask others to add disaster locations worked
rowfeeder hashtag tracking
google forms:VOAD coordination
reports
google forms:VOAD coordination
reports
google forms:VOAD coordination
reports
agencies/organizations who are now using virtual teams to assist with social media efforts during
disasters•Red Cross DigiDOC (Digital Operations
Center)
•FEMA External Affairs Cadre now utilizes “Digital Communications Specialists” (DCSPs)
•Some National Forest Service PIOs have been working with VOST for 3 years on wildfires
•New Zealand VOST, Canada VOST, Australia
Red Cross DigiDOC (Digital Operations Center)
FEMA social media efforts
First Virtual NVOAD effort for Hurricane
Sandy •(note: Slide to be altered for final version)
- Small virtual team supported National VOADsocial media accounts
-monitoring, responding to questions & comments,-reporting to NVOAD staff
other virtual teams:
humanity road
humanity road
humanity road
humanity road
getting comms back
up quickly:•ITDRC
•Cisco TacOps
•DisasterTech Lab
ITDRC
Cisco TacOps
Let’s continue this work after the conference!
• on the #VirtualVOAD hashtag
• in the Virtual VOAD skype room• at
virtualvoad.wordpress.com• on
facebook.com/VirtualVOADWe can team up to help each
other in disasters
thanks!Thanks to those who’ve volunteered their valuable time, skills and knowledge to help put this effort together, and whose material I’ve
drawn from or borrowed:
Especially: Caroline Milligan of NZVOST
Marlita Reddy-Hjelmfelt of PNWVOSTJeff Phillips of VOST
Cheryl Bledsoe of CRESA and VOST - Brian Dailey - Tim Howson - Neil Cox, ReadyVOST - Daniel Eshuis - Sara-Jayne Terp - Pascal Schuback – Kyle Nelson - Joanna Lane, VOSG.us - John Wilson,
Alabama VOAD - Eric Frank, CRESA and CRESA VOST - Kuulei Funn, Church World Service - - Charlie Heflin, Patoka Fire Dept., #SMEM
- Scott Huffman – Lloyd Colston, OKVOST – Jeff Phillips, Los Ranchos EM & many VOSTs
If I missed thanking you for your help and input my apologies – thanks so much for all who have helped. Scott Reuter ( @sct_r )