Unconferences are great places to learn new things and network. There's a great event coming up aimed at people from the emergency services. It's also free.Unconferences are great places to learn new things and network. There's a great event coming up where you. It's also free.
You would be forgiven for thinking that data doesn’t have much to do with communications. If you work as a communication professional in the public sector, however, it’s not such a leap.
Data drives everything we do.
As a police press officer, my decisions on communications were ultimately defined, informed and shaped by data. The information I was given meant that I had to look at the impact on the public, stakeholders and staff – what exactly was the data telling me and what did I need to communicate about this?
So much of what is discussed and worked on at BlueLightCamp straddles both the data and tech side of the emergency services with the communications aspect.
The many problems that communications professionals experience can often easily be solved by taking a logical yet creative look at the underlying technology that drives it. Can we be more efficient in getting the information? Can we look at a way to ensure that it is clean and reliable? Can we accurately assess and evaluate the outcomes of a comms campaign or media strategy based on the data available to us?
In addition to the hackathon, the unconference element of BlueLightCamp offers fantastic opportunities to forge alliances with your colleagues in other agencies and also look at common issues.
My own experience was that I felt less isolated when I realised that my counterparts in other agencies were experiencing the same blockages and issues as I was – small and large, we bonded over common frustrations. The difference in this environment, however, was that we could then work together to do something about it.
The set up and atmosphere of BlueLightCamp allows for a more supportive and unfettered space to discuss and explore the possible solutions that would otherwise be considered to be a frivolity in the usually structured world of public sector comms.
Creativity and tech are natural bedfellows and it’s possible to step outside the usual way of doing things without the fear of scrutiny. By offering a communications perspective to solving problems you can really help a team of passionate people shape the more technical side of things – which is ultimately A Good Thing for all of us.
More information: www.bluelightcamp.org.uk
To book: blc14.eventbrite.co.uk
Sasha Taylor is co-organiser of commscamp and works as a web manager with a police force.
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