Track 1

Internal Communications Connect with employees

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7:45 to 8:15 a.m. *

Breakfast and welcoming remarks

8:15 to 9:00 a.m. *

Opening keynote
Getting on the Cluetrain: Why social media is changing the way we work, communicate and live.

Today's blogging trend stems from a deep urge to connect and to speak in human voices after 100 years of the broadcast regime. Blogging is just one example of a larger and more important phenomenon: People joining together to make their environment their own. This is shaking up not just the media but any organization whose value comes from its claim to authority. As companies discover that the best use of their information asset is often to let it be taken over by customers and third parties ("meta-businesses"), the very shape of business is being transformed.

David Weinberger is a technologist, author and commentator A philosopher by training, Weinberger holds a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto. He is an avid blogger and has written frequently for Wired, Harvard Business Review and many other publications.

Dr. Weinberger is a frequent commentator on National Public Radio's All Things Considered and Here and Now, was senior Internet adviser to Howard Dean's 2004 presidential campaign, and is a research fellow at Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society.

9:00 to 9:15 a.m. *

Morning coffee break

9:15 to 10:15 a.m.

Opening session
Tracking the evolution (or revolution!) of employee communications

We've come a long way, baby. From boring, printed "house organs" to companywide blogs and free-flowing conversations. From stilted Page 2 "Executive Letters" to online town-hall meetings. From an age when employees were kept in the dark to an era when the good light of candid information shines on everybody. Don't miss this entertaining and informative session from popular speaker and writer Steve Crescenzo. You'll learn:

	How social media is dramatically changing the way companies communicate
	How smart companies are using technology as a way to bring leaders and employees closer together
	How to use Web 2.0 tools to harvest thousands of ideas for your organization
	How to start using the latest new media -- without frightening your executives
	Why your employees have already left you behind if you're stuck in the Stone Age of employee communication
	How to make sure that employees who don't sit at a computer all day aren't left out of the Revolution

Steve Crescenzo is a research fellow and a member of the advisory board of the Society for New Communications Research. Steve is principal of Crescenzo Communications, a top-rated speaker and writer for Ragan Communications, and author of the blog Corporate Hallucinations.

10:15 to 10:45 a.m. *

Conference Expo and refreshment break
Got questions about social media and the technologies that enable them?

This is the place to get answers.

Our speakers aren't the only experts at NewComm Forum. Head over to the Conference Expo during the half-hour refreshment breaks and take advantage of a room full of expertise.

We've asked the top service and technology providers engaged in social media to share their innovations and expertise during three extended breaks on Day One and one on Day Two and an Expo reception.

Our Expo contributors will be on hand to show you the latest in technology, software and services that will help you in your social media efforts.

Be sure to make the rounds; the Expo features live demos, tutorials and hands-on product presentations you won't want to miss. Stop by the registration desk for a full listing of the exhibitors and their locations.

Spend as much time as you like with any of our Expo sponsors and exhibitors. They're ready to answer your questions and follow up with you on any special requests. And they'll be happy to provide you with product literature and contact information.

10:45 to 11:45 a.m.

New Frontiers: How top companies are using social media to engage employees

You cannot attend a communications conference, open the business section of a newspaper or read a trade publication without being told about the potential benefits of social media. But how are leading organizations actually using these communications tools? Drawing on primary research and case studies, this session will share how top organizations are employing social media to increase the effectiveness of internal communications, attract and retain the next generation of talent, and boost employee productivity.

In this engaging and informative session, you will:

	Look inside leading organizations and see how they are using social media to communicate with employees
	Compare perceived obstacles to working with social media with the realities of working with these new communications channels
	Explore innovative uses of social media and where the technology is headed
	Build a business case for why internal use of social media provides the greatest return, while minimizing risk.

Jeffrey Treem, an analyst in Edelman's Change and Employee Engagement Group in Chicago, is the principal researcher for Edelman's 2006 "New Frontiers in Employee Communications" study. Treem also maintains the "Inside the Cubicle" blog.

11:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. *

Lunch keynote panel
Winners and sinners in social media

Social media made great progress and took a few hits in 2006. Join our panel of experts over lunch as they take a good-humored stab at who made the grade and who missed the mark in this new landscape of viral marketing and consumer-generated media.

Here's a preview:

	Winner: More than 100 million videos are viewed everyday on YouTube, changing the way a generation gets their media. In a deal reminiscent of the dot-com era (remember that?!), Google purchased YouTube for $1.65 billion.
	Sinner: Edelman bloggers were caught with their pants down and their hands in Wal-Mart's cookie jar. Edelman and Wal-Mart paid the PR price of bad press and worse credibility with bloggers.
	Winner: Sun Microsystem's CEO Jonathan Schwartz pulled off a techheavy, but personal blog - popular with consumers, traditional media and other bloggers.
	Sinner: HP ignored the blogging community during allegations, which later proved true, that the company violated internal privacy. The scandal led to the resignation of CEO Patricia Dunn. At the height of the crisis, when you searched online for HP, negative blog posts showed up higher than HP's home page.

Moderator: Jen McClure, executive director of the Society for New Communications Research

Panelists: Steve Crescenzo, Jeremy Wright, David Strom

1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

How collaborative mapping can help you direct relevant messages to the right people

More than ever, today's work force struggles against a powerful threat: information overload. Across industries and hierarchies, employees must navigate massive volumes of information across a multitude of channels. For communication professionals, providing employees with relevant and insightful information can be daunting. Bonfire Communications has developed an audience-centric methodology for communications planning based on more than a decade of research. Highly collaborative, Bonfire's process allows participants to project themselves into the minds and hearts of both "sponsors" and "customers," creating messages to address their primary concerns. In this strategy-filled, interactive session, Bonfire CEO Gordon Rudow will give you:

	Tactics that helped Harrah's Entertainment create a global engagement strategy, allowed Sun Microsystems to understand and integrate its brand, enabled Starbucks to roll out a newly evolved HR function, and helped Genentech become America's best place to work.
	A method to view challenges through the lenses of change management, advertising and marketing, and strategic development.
	Strategic planning principles to help inspire the collective action needed for successful business initiatives
	Real-time input into your own programs

Gordon Rudow, CEO of San Francisco-based Bonfire Communications, is a recognized expert on organizational communications and strategy implementation.

2:30 to 3:00 p.m. *

Conference Expo and refreshment break

Enjoy morning refreshments and take advantage of hands-on tutorials and demos of the latest tools and technologies from our conference sponsors.

3:00 to 4:00 p.m.

Kill the water cooler: An experience in electronic town halls

Confidentiality is a core concern for corporations, so much so that executives often keep critical information from employees to protect it. Everyone knows the scenario. A department is getting reorganized, but it's not yet time to announce it. The buzz starts at the water cooler and creeps around hallways, lunch tables and sounds in whispered tones in cubicles. Misinformation, paranoia and fear are all benefactors of the rumor mill, while facts and decisions are left for the official announcement. Learn how to kill the water cooler and free your information in this hands-on demonstration of an electronic town hall. You will:

	See the town hall tool in action in a live demonstration
	Embrace anonymity to solicit frank employee feedback
	Learn how to coach executives to answer employee questions right the first time, so they don t have to ask again
	Sustain the town hall tool through anticipated criticism
	Sell the tool to even the most skeptical executive

Nova Newcomer is a freelance communication consultant who helps companies develop internal communication strategy and deploy communication tools for employees. Nova helped a multibillion dollar global business launch and support an electronic town hall that is still going strong almost five years later.

4:15 to 5:15 p.m.

Breaking down the blog barrier: Getting executives to blog for internal audiences

Getting an executive to buy into a social media program can be one of the most difficult steps in your path to better communication. Learn how to open up new lines of communication with your internal audiences via corporate and executive blogs. Bob Evans Web Administrator Jamie Chabra shows you how to break down the barriers to informal internal communications inside a conservative organization and motivate leaders and employees to join the conversation. You'll hear about Chabra's struggles and successes as she pushes and prods her leaders to stretch their thinking about communications, understand the company's position in the blogosphere and create a successful internal blog. You'll learn how to:

	Make social media relevant to your internal audiences and why you need to get involved NOW
	Create and launch a credible blog that is more than trendy
	Bridge the age barrier in your organization with an internal blog and keep those audiences engaged
	Chip away at the internal blog barrier through effective research
	Overcome the challenges of a decentralized organization

Jamie Chabra, Web site administrator of Bob Evans Farms, was instrumental in creating Bob Evans Farms' internal blog to introduce new CEO Steve Davi and to reinvigorate BEST, a corporate culture program initiated in 2001.

5:30 to 7:00 p.m. *

Networking reception

Come to the conference cocktail party Kick around the day's events and continue chatting over hors d'oeuvres and drinks before you head off into the Vegas night.

8:30 to 9:30 p.m.

The importance of corporate culture to the success of social media programs

A healthy and trusting corporate culture is a crucial foundational aspect of any organization's social media program. Conference Calls Unlimited has a solid corporate culture, which plays a key role in its corporate blogging program. Join us for a conversation with Zane Safrit of Conference Calls Unlimited and SNCR research fellow John Cass to discuss:

	Which cultural factors make for an easy transition to social media
	How successful companies have done it - beyond Silicon Valley
	The business case for a strong, open communication program

Zane Safrit is CEO of Conference Calls Unlimited. John Cass is a marketing and PR expert and a research fellow and a member of the Best Practices committee of the Society for New Communications Research.

9:30 to 10:00 a.m. *

Conference Expo and refreshment break

Enjoy morning refreshments and take advantage of hands-on tutorials and demos of the latest tools and technologies from our conference sponsors.

10:00 to 11:00 a.m.

Two-way talking: How to create an intranet forum for employee voices

Blogs that allow people to voice their opinions are nothing new in the blogosphere, but they are still quite rare in corporate America. Find out how one company adapted the technology to its intranet so that any employee's voice can be heard. Employees weigh in on each day's intranet articles, pose questions and participate in a virtual discussion. Among the many benefits: Employees feel it's safe to say what they think, while executives take the real pulse of the company's climate. This tool has truly changed the culture of the conservative, 100-year-old California State Automobile Association. The lesson? It doesn't take a high-tech company to make this tool work. Get the tips you need to develop this two-way communication at your own workplace. Learn how to:

	Build a business case for an internal blog and sell the idea to management
	Develop the intranet tool so it runs itself
	Generate buzz about the program and get employees participating
	Promote the forum as a way for employees to communicate and solve problems
	Make the discussion thread your company's most talked about communication - for employees and executives

David Kligman is strategic publications manager for the San Francisco-based California State Automobile Association.

11:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. *

Conference closing keynote
Start making sense: Shel Holtz sums it all up

Leave that to our closing keynote speaker, SNCR Fellow Shel Holtz, ABC. In this highly interactive session, Shel will lead a discussion to identify the key learnings participants have acquired, assess their implications, and package them into a simple, usable data set to take back to the office (or wherever you go when you leave Las Vegas). Call this the "But what does it all mean to me?" session. Bring your key take-aways and pressing questions for one of the world's top social media experts.

Shel Holtz, an accredited business communicator, brings 30-plus years of experience to his job as vice president of new marketing for crayon, a New Marketing company. He is the author of several communications-oriented books, including Blogging for Business, Corporate Conversations and Public Relations on the Net.

A regular on the speaking circuit, Shel served as director of corporate communications at two Fortune 500 companies and as a senior consultant and practice leader at one of the world's largest management consulting firms. He blogs and is co-host of the communications-focused podcast, For Immediate Release.

Early-bird deadline: Register by Jan. 12, 2007 and save up to $200!

* Session shared by all tracks