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WJ Online Conference

Online Collaboration, Online Learning, WJ Online Conference, Webinar, groups
Webinar: Expanding Your World Through Web Conferencing
June 22nd, 2010 | Permalink | Comment?

WebJunction’s Calendar is filling up with webinars! Join us in the coming months to explore everything from the Federal Workforce System to digitization & preservation, and from trustees to orienting new staff virtually.

Next Thursday’s webinar, Expanding Your World Through Web Conferencing, will showcase success stories of library staff who are using web conferencing tools to host virtual conferences, produce e-learning activities, collaborate with remote staff, and host virtual meetings. As budgets tighten and as technologies improve, more and more staff are gathering together both online and blended with face2face settings to learn from each other and to get work done. Come hear about the benefits of meeting virtually and learn how a variety of web conferencing tools are being integrated with other technologies and in other settings to overcome both cost and distance. Join panelists Karen Burns, Cindi Hickey and Jennifer Peterson on Thursday, July 1 at 1:00 pm Eastern, for a session filled with experience and expertise in online engagement!

And speaking of online conferencing, mark your calendars for WebJunction’s second online conference coming December 1 & 2 focused on Serving the 21st Century Patron. See you online!

Register Now for July 1 Webinar»
All Upcoming Events »
WJ Online Conference
What you told us about Technology Essentials 2010
March 1st, 2010 | Permalink | Comment?
Thanks to everyone who attended our first-ever online conference last month, especially those attendees who took a few minutes to respond to our post-event survey. The main goal for this conference was to give a conference experience to those who would are not able to attend other conferences due to budget issues or other resource constraints. We also wanted to give members an opportunity to try out online learning, social tools, and to collaborate with colleagues from across the miles. Finally, we wanted to pilot the online conference format to evaluate its effectiveness and see if it is something that we could conceive of doing more frequently.

I think we can safely say that we met our goals across the board. Here’s what we learned:

Of the 1160 people who registered, most were from public libraries (47%) and academic libraries (29%), and more than half serve populations of fewer than 25,000 people. We also had students and unemployed professionals in attendance.

The top 5 states in terms of attendance were Indiana, Georgia, Illinois, California, and Minnesota. There were also 39 people from outside of the U.S. who registered.

Average attendance at each of the 10 sessions was 291 people. Some folks went to just a few sessions, while some attended every session. We also heard from libraries who set up a room for multiple staff to watch and listen.

The top responses to our survey question about what went well was that the in-session chat area was informative and engaging and that technical issues were fixed quickly. Also noted were that the presenters were knowledgable and prepared, that session timing was managed well, and that audience participation was excellent. Here’s the full list of top responses:
- chat informative and engaging 45
- technical issues fixed quickly 38
- presenters knowledge/preparedness 31
- time management of sessions 23
- audience participation 9
- management/moderation of conference 19
- polls 14
- online conference format in general 13
- orientation to platform/tools 13
- broad range of topics 13
- archives – quick and convenient 10
The top suggestion for how to improve the experience was to improve the audio quality. Other suggestions were to decrease slide lag time, to show the presenters while they are speaking, and to help minimize chat distraction. Here’s the full list of top responses:
- audio quality 27
- slide advancement 23
- chat distracting 13
- ability to see presenter 11
- fewer technical difficulties 9
- session material in advance 8
- reminders and login information 6
- break time (shorter, longer) 5
- better use of online format 4
- presenter delivery – unengaging 4
- longer sessions 3
- more often 3
- start earlier (ends too late) 3
- add video 3
We also asked what topics you would like to see covered in future conferences. The top 10 topics suggested were:

1. customer service
2. social networking
3. grants and grant writing
4. cataloging
5. CMS options
6. patron training
7. reader’s advisory
8. copyright issues
9. library management
10. marketing

With this valuable feedback, we plan to offer another, even better conference in the future on one or more of the topics you suggested. Stay in touch with Crossroads to learn about this and other events at WebJunction.
Online Collaboration, Online Learning, WJ Online Conference
Participants: Key to success of online conference
February 19th, 2010 | Permalink | Comment?

Thank you to all who attended last week’s Technology Essentials 2010, WebJunction’s first ever online conference. All session archives of the 10 presentations are now posted and include the contributions of ideas, links and resources posted to chat throughout the conference by the over 700 participants! If you haven’t attended one of WebJunction’s online events, you’ve yet to experience the active real-time brainstorming and community building that goes on in the chat feature. Participants are invited to post questions, comments, suggestions and links to help generate learning for all in attendance and for all who review the archives. These contributions demonstrate the sustained influence that online events can have on our library learning. For those who were unable to attend or for those who could only attend one or two sessions, these resources will remain accessible indefinitely!

Two participant generated documents from the conference deserve special recognition:

The Participant Marketing Ideas compiled from the presentation by Cindi Hickey and Janie Rutherford, M&M: Maximum Marketing/Minimum Investment is filled with suggestions and examples on everything from calendar tools to ways of marketing your databases and from partnerships in marketing to leveraging social media tools in marketing efforts. Kudos to Cindi and Janie for putting participant engagement at the core of their presentation!

And longtime WebJunction member, SLO trainer, and Utah State Library’s Library Consultant/State Data Coordinator, Juan Tomás Lee has graciously shared his document collecting Participant Notes, a thorough and thoughtful compilation from all 10 sessions!

We have heard from many of you that you attended the conference along with a group of colleagues and are excited to hear that you are sharing your learning with others via staff meetings and wikis. Please let us know how that experience worked for you or how you are applying new skills, tips or tricks on the job.

And thank you again for your participation. We are thrilled to see that the online conference model sustains WebJunction’s commitment to collaboration and learning and it doesn’t happen without you!

View complete conference archives »
WJ Online Conference
WebJunction’s Online Conference – Welcome to Mission Control
February 10th, 2010 | Permalink | Comment?

We’re patting ourselves on the back! We just wrapped up our two-day free, online conference: Technology Essentials. We hosted 10 great presentations on all types of technology topics focusing on library-specific needs. This was an event that involved months of planning and we were pleased (thrilled, ecstatic, honored) to have so many great presenters and attendees join us.

One of the highlights for me was the very active chat conversations that happened with every session. Attendees were posing questions, answering questions and sharing resources – and it was great! Our presenters shared their experiences and best practices on a wide range of topics and it all added up to a very successful event. If you missed any of the sessions, the archives will be available at the end of the week for you to view.

We’ll be posting more updates and thoughts soon, but for now, here are a few pictures of our team in action. One colleague commented that we looked like “Mission Control” and it definitely felt like it!

Jennifer, Sharon, Chrystie and Kendra in the WebJunction Mission Control room.

Michael monitoring the Twitter feed and also tweeting the conference!
WJ Online Conference
Three ways to attend the Online Conference #WJconf
January 21st, 2010 | Permalink | Comment?

Excitement is building for the February 9-10 WebJunction Online Conference. Registrants represent libraries around the globe, from Illinois to India, and from British Columbia to Brazil. Some are library directors, others are currently seeking jobs – all are invited to attend. Here are three ways to make the most of your conference experience:

1. Pick which sessions you most wish to attend: You aren’t required to attend every session. You will be able to re-enter sessions as your schedule permits, and the sessions will be archived so you can catch up on those you missed.

2. Make it a team event: Set up a computer for your staff to drop in as they’re able. Or, invite your colleagues to each attend one session and share what they learned in a follow-up session.

3. Bring your success stories: We’ll invite folks to ask lots of questions via chat, but please come ready to share stories and links to relevant resources. This online format provides a multitude of ways to exchange ideas and experiences!

Conference details »
Register now »
Conferences, Online Learning, WJ Online Conference, Webinar
WebJunction Online Conference February 9 & 10
January 7th, 2010 | Permalink | Comment?
Welcome to 2010 and what’s sure to be the year of online conferencing! WebJunction has been providing online programming in the form of monthly webinars for the past few years and we’re thrilled to be piloting our first-ever online conference filled with presenters from our partner communities and beyond! Join us on February 9–10 for this free online conference, Technology Essentials 2010, focused on practical and timely strategies for leveraging technology in sustaining your library. Conference sessions and presenters include:
- Sandra Nelson with The Planning Puzzle: Integrating your Strategic Plan and your Technology Plan
- Stephanie Gerding with Library Grants 101
- Joshua Dodson and Laura Slavin with WordPress for Library 2.0 and Beyond
- Pat Carterette with Learning When There’s No Time (or Money) to Learn
- Karen McCoy with Implementing Reliable Instant Messaging at Your Library.
You won’t want to miss this valuable learning opportunity for you and your staff. Full program and speaker information is now available and registration is free and open to all.