Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:39:00 GMT
This week’s Groupsite Success story comes from Keith Losoya in Maryland. Here’s what Keith shared:
“The Green Building Network was initiated by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and is now administered and supported by the Green Building Institute.
We are an ad-hoc group of architects, builders, contractors, developers, planners, landscape architects, related professionals and interested individuals. The network focuses on promoting and facilitating design and development in a manner consistent with efficient and appropriate use of natural resources, environmental protection, and the promotion of sustainable communities.
Before Collectivex we hosted monthly networking meetings and sent out a monthly newsletter. Attendance at meetings was variable (10-40 people) and growth was anemic at best. While we had a large subscriber list for the newsletter there was not much excitement in our networking events.
When we went live with Collectivex we were cautiously optimistic about the success we would have given our demographics and set our expectations low.
Since inception we have experienced a 60% acceptance rate from our subscriber list and have over 800 members networking now! This group represents the brain trust of Maryland’s green building industry and it is exciting to see the discussions, referrals and general content thrive with the Collectivex platform.”
Thanks Keith. We love all of the green groups that are making things happen on CollectiveX. Keep up the good work!
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 19 Mar 2008 14:02:00 GMT
What is Motor City Connect?
It depends who you ask.
Some people would say MCC is a networking group. Others would say MCC is a community service group. We’ve also heard social group, mastermind group, business builder group, personal improvement group and a bunch of nuts. We think they’re all a little bit right—but our mission statement says it best.
Motor City Connect shines a light on great things happening in Metro Detroit. We are top professionals who gather both online and offline to meet, understand and connect with business leaders. Motor City Connect is a welcoming place to network, take an active role in the community, and grow your business.
In short – we are a catalyst for great things happening for our members and our community.
In the beginning…
Motor City Connect started as a small group getting together for lunch and to trade referrals. We chose Yahoo Groups to help us stay connected in-between our lunches.
Before too long, a couple hundred of our closest friends had joined us online. The Yahoo message traffic became overwhelming! We were starting to scare away some of our best people and our events were getting lost in the shuffle.
Saved by Cx!
We moved to the Collective X platform a month ago—and like an old house plant that gets repotted, Motor City Connect blossomed!
Our email traffic went from 200+ a week down to 5 targeted messages. Our membership has bloomed—nearly 50% in less than a month. Our calendar is full of vibrant events. Attendance is up at face-to-face meeting. And the profiles section is helping us to learn new things about each other.
Most importantly, participation levels are also on the rise. Cx’s threaded discussion forums, homepage summaries and weekly what’s new blasts help members find relevant conversations—turning our lurkers into active participants.
We’re continually surprised by the popularity of the kudos/endorsement feature. MCC is looking like a mutual admiration society. We couldn’t be happier.
What’s next for Motor City Connect?
Nothing less than changing the economic future of Michigan and who knows, maybe even the world.
We don’t have a lot of rules and rituals—we’re still working on our secret handshake—but Collective X adds a framework that helps MCC grow and achieve our mission.
At Motor CIty Connect, we think business should be fun. Together with Collective X, we’re making a positive impact every day.
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 05 Mar 2008 08:38:00 GMT
This week’s Groupsite success story will be told in 3 parts and comes to us from The Executive Leadership Council (ELC) in Alexandria, VA.
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The Executive Leadership Council is “the preeminent organization that strengthens the success, contributions, and impact of African-American corporate business leaders.” The Council’s mission is to provide African-American executives of Fortune 500 companies with a network and leadership forum that adds perspective and direction to the achievement of excellence in business, economic and public policies for the African-American community, their corporations and the community at large. Visit their website at www.elcinfo.com for further information about The Executive Leadership Council.
They have been fulfilling this mission for 22 years and currently have over 400 members who are the most senior African Americans in corporate America. The Council is an active community with a purpose. What they were missing was an effective way to leverage technology to enhance their members’ engagement and productivity – until now.
The Executive Leadership Council has selected CollectiveX to power their Online Platform which will be their online member engagement tool of choice. As an Enterprise Client, The Council is using 30 sites powered by CollectiveX for the following initially:
- Secure Member Intranet
- Staff Intranet
- 3 Boards of Directors
- 18 Committees
- 4 Program Alumni Community Sites (for non-members)
- 3 Working Group Sites for Members
In Part 1 of this story we’ll look at some of the key steps The Executive Leadership Council has taken to ensure a successful adoption of this new tool. Here’s what they have done:
1. Initially they took a period of time to learn system capabilities and beta test with their technology committee and a couple other external constituencies.
2. They rolled out their staff intranet first. They even created a custom PowerPoint presentation that walked each staff member through the system’s core functionality. Getting staff members trained and up and running is a great place to start.
3. They then set up their two board groups. By making sure all staff and Board members understand the platform and have begun using it (including completing their member profiles and uploading photos) they were leading by example before launching their member intranet.
4. They also concentrated on making sure each site contained meaningful content (links, RSS feeds, Forums, Pictures, Documents, and Leader profiles) before the first member-at-large was even invited.
5. In addition, they made sure that each committee has a staff member assigned to be a member and key contact for assisting fellow committee members with using the system.
6. Finally, the member roll out will begin with an e-mail from Carl Brooks, President & CEO of The Executive Leadership Council, explaining the significance of the new secure Online Platform, a copy of the updated users guide, and a link to the CollectiveX video. He clearly communicates how the new secure Online Platform powered by CollectiveX enables significant capabilities for Enhancing Member Value, which is one of the five strategic goals outlined in the organizations 2008-2010 strategic plans.
Over the next few days, The Executive Leadership Council will be inviting their entire membership to join and begin using their member intranet. During the following months the amount of usage is expected to increase while the number of mailings and e-mail communications to the membership will be reduced. There is also an expectation that the number of phone calls and e-mail requests to the office will decrease. In addition, they expect greater communications, networking, and involvement with/between members. Thereby the new Online Platform powered by CollectiveX is expected to enhance member value, increase efficiency/effectiveness, reduce costs, and multiply the impact of The Council’s various initiatives.
We will follow-up with Part 2 in a few weeks with an update on the success they are having.
All of the right variables are in place: they have a defined purpose, an active community, they have picked the best tool and most importantly, they have taken the time to get their staff and leadership involved in being an active part of the dialogue right from the start.
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 13 Feb 2008 19:43:00 GMT
This week’s success story comes to us from Amy Holloman in Baltimore, MD.
Here’s what Amy shared:
“I was part of a Yahoo Group for a little over a year that started as 10 people with very little structure and quickly grew to around 50 members. Like most Yahoo Groups, about 50% of our members were active contributors, 25% were lurkers who enjoyed following the conversations, and the other 25% were dead weight.
I attended a local networking group that was demonstrating a new online engagement tool they were planning on using called CollectiveX and instantly knew that this was the future, not just for my Yahoo Group, but perhaps for all groups who wanted to take a basic list-serve to the next level.
After setting up a free Groupsite on CollectiveX to demo to the co-managers of our Yahoo Group, we quickly decided to move to CollectiveX as our new platform.
At the time, we had 50 members. Of these, just over 50% made the switch. But here is what matters, 100% of our active contributors made the switch and none of the dead weight came along. Overnight, we significantly increased our quality %.
We now have grown to 184 members in our CollectiveX Groupsite. 75% are active users (contributing content Daily or at least weekly) up from the 25% when we were a Yahoo Group and the other 25% are “lurkers” who actively value seeing what is happening within the group. Our dead weight has gone to 0%.”
Amy’s group currently has 184 members, 1 pending member and only 9 declined invitations. She has set her Groupsite up to be “Limited” which means anyone can see the Summary page, but to see any other area of the site, you must request to join. All requests to join are handled personally by Amy or her two other manager. All those who request membership are contacted in person, by phone or email first to manage expectations and ensure that there is a meaningful fit with the group.
Great job Amy!
Here is how Amy describes her group on her Summary page intro:
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Thu, 07 Feb 2008 01:41:00 GMT
This week’s Groupsite success story comes from Anne Conderacci who was in Atlanta, GA at the time. Here’s what Anne shared:
“I was working as an intern at the Women’s Economic Development Agency, Inc. in Atlanta, GA. Their mission is to assist women in achieving economic independence through a holistic approach to business development and wealth building that encompasses classroom training, technical assistance, mentoring and access to pertinent resources. When I arrived, they were already an important resource to hundreds of business women.
The Executive Director came to me with a project to develop a “directory” of members that could be used to help facilitate interaction between members. My assignment was to simply compile this information in an Excel spreadsheet.
Being the Facebook-junkie that I am, I immediately thought, “how boring and old school is that? Wouldn’t it be cooler to build a Facebook-like online community instead of just a spreadsheet?”
Of course I had no idea how to actually pull-off such a task so I did the only thing a good intern knows how – I asked my Dad. It helps that my Dad is a certified marketing guru (see www.goodgroundconsulting.com for his expertise).
He suggested I take a look at CollectiveX.
The rest is history. What started out as an assignment to make a “spreadsheet” is now a vibrant online community of close to 400 active members who are engaging to fulfill WEDA’s mission.
Pretty cool.”
Thanks Anne. And thanks to your Dad for recommending us.
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 30 Jan 2008 22:33:00 GMT
This week’s Groupsite success story comes from the home team – the CollectiveX intranet.
The old Hair-Club for Men commercials used to state, “I’m not just the President, I’m also a member.”
With key members of our executive team based in Maryland, Virginia and Atlanta, the CollectiveX team relies very heavily on our corporate intranet to share calendars, manage projects and share thoughts about future direction of our Group Engagement Network.
Of course, we accomplish this all through our own Groupsite on CollectiveX.
Along with email, video conferencing, iphones and plenty of instant messaging, our intranet is a key component of how we continue to stay in the loop with each other and get things done.
By the way, we do also occassionally all sit in the same physical room (It’s hard to eat pizza on a Groupsite).
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 23 Jan 2008 18:47:00 GMT
This week’s Groupsite success story comes from Della Curtis in Maryland.
Here’s what Della shared:
“Targeting a group’s need for both information, time, and efficiency. CollectiveX supports and ensures success for a group manager with a great toolbox and many bonus features! User stats, email blasts, great organizational structure, and as I understand it, some fantastic features to come!
As a busy coordinator of the Office of Library Information Services for the 24th largest school district in the U.S., CollectiveX provides me with the opportunity to work smart, not hard, reduce the number of f2f committee meetings, increase the efficiency and quality of tasks and work assignments, and direct needed/requested information and resources to specific groups. I am using CollectiveX to manage a graduate class I teach, committee collaborative writing projects, network a group of busy teachers who don’t have time during the day for their own professional development, facilitate strategic leadership and problem solving, and much more!
CollectiveX allows me the opportunity to effectively and efficently manage my job responsibilities, and thus my destiny!”
Thanks Della. We are excited to see you using our tool in so many different ways for so many of your groups.
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 16 Jan 2008 05:01:00 GMT
This week’s Groupsite success story comes to us from Gareth Furber from Adelaide, Austrailia.
Here’s what Gareth shared:
“4 years ago, a couple of friends and I started an informal discussion group for psychology students.
The goal was to mix relaxation (good food, good wine) with learning. Over time, we invited guest speakers and new members (students and professionals) and in 2006 we started using the CollectiveX platform to organize the group.
We now have 135 members which is growing each month, and have started to develop a good reputation in SA as providing free but thought provoking discussion groups. We use the many features of collectivex to promote member’s work and professional development opportunities in our local area.
In 2008 we hope to formalize our discussion groups and obtain professional development points, which we believe will help grow our membership considerably. The CollectiveX platform will play a crucial role in the services we offer members:
- advertising and promotion opportunities
- calendar of professional development events
- networking
- file and media exchange
Certainly I had no idea when we started that a group of 10 students would grow to a statewide collection of 135 professionals, students, researchers and clinicians. It has definitely been a success story for me.”
Thanks Gareth. We love hearing how small beginnings can lead to great things. Keep up the good work.
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 09 Jan 2008 18:56:00 GMT
This Wednesday’s Groupsite success story comes from Filip Coertjens who is the Interactive Marketing Specialist for Accenture Belgium & Luxembourg.
Here’s what Filip shared:
“Accenture Belgium and Luxembourg drives progress & performance by developing highly talented people and putting them at the service of our clients to help them become high-performers and at the service of communities to help them grow. One of these communities we nurture is our Alumni network, that connects former Accenture colleagues and friends with our people. CollectiveX enables all these people – more than 400 by now – to actively connect, share and collaborate. It is a perfect environment to keep such a community alive!”
Do you have a corporate or college Alumni group that should be staying in touch to gets things done?
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Posted by Shaun Callahan
Wed, 26 Dec 2007 05:01:00 GMT
This week’s Groupsite success story comes from Jay Zimmerman in San Francisco.
Here’s what Jay shared:
“One of my personal passions is music. My taste is extremely eclectic but I have very little tolerance for the Top 40, American Idol mass-marketing tracks that dominate the airwaves and most of the Internet’s fan sites.
Every once in a while, I would meet a friend who shared my same desire to find cool music that was off the beaten path or maybe was simply made before many of today’s Pop fans were even born.
We would often send emails to each other if we discovered an interesting artist or track or perhaps a great website like SecondHand Songs which shows every cover that has ever been made for any song or The Cowbell Project which is a database of songs that, of course, contain the use of a cowbell.
Then I learned about Groupsites powered by CollectiveX, a instantly created a private Groupsite called Find Cool Music and invited 8 of my friends to join. Now, instead of dozens of scattered emails and each of us trying to bookmark links we share, we have a place we can make our own and share our musical discoveries.
Most of my friends like this way of sharing and communicating so much that they have created their own Groupsites for other groups that they are involved with.”
Thanks Jay. We find that most of our users start by creating their first Groupsite around a personal passion and then, once they get used to the platform, they often create Groupsites for their company intranet, project workgroups and dozens of other reasons where they need to share, collaborate, communicate and simply stay in the loop with their group.
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