All About SKIL2

You can download a pdf of the SKIL2 info pack from my April 20 2008 blog post - or - at the Forum 'Viewing the elephant'.

For some reason this Notes section isn't enabled to attach files - hmmm.

SKIL2 is an acronym for -

Spaces for Knowledge+Information + Learning

                         &

Service Knowledge + Innovation Leadership.

That's where the 2 comes from.

And - after I developed the acronym I realised it was a kind of play on Web2 - the next phase of web development and the next phase of learning development.

All about collaboration + creation + connection + communication + curiousity.

The first part of SKIL refers to the internal learning development of the workforce.

The second part of SKIL is the external impact an organisation can have when it has an always learning workforce.

SKIL2 has 4 key components -

P2 (profitable partnerships)

CII (creative inward investment)

PC (project coordination)

KIS (knowledge information spaces).

P2 - profitable partnerships - will see a national non profit; third level & private sector organisations being invited to develop the first SKIL2 project in 2008 and 2009 in Ireland. I define profit as encompassing - economic, innovative, social justice & profile.

CII - creative inward investment - will see 3 strands of resourcing for SKIL2 - Buy In; Build Up; & Free. This will include all resource types - buildings; people; ideas; expertise; hardware; software; & money.

PC - project coordination - will be developed on a 3 legged platform - values; structure & process.

KIS - knowledge information spaces - will be the result of the work undertaken in the other 3 areas. KIS is about the collaboration, connection and cooperation between people and utilising learning technology. A learning intranet utilising all current social media and learning technology will be developed.

People will be involved in creating podcasts that rattle the cage of current service practice. They will have spaces to explore, share and challenge themselves and each other about the work they do and the people they serve. A knowledge space will be created that constantly evolves and updates information on key service areas. There will be live chat and video with the CEO and project workers on service and good practice. Real time spaces will be created for gatherings where people learn together.

They will be just a few of the SKIL2 service offerings.

And folks - it's not about having fun with all the tech toys.

The core question I always ask the non profits I work with is:-

Who do you serve?

Every service initiative should be driven by their needs.

And - in order to deliver the best services you need a confident, skilled and always learning workforce.

That's what SKIL2 is aiming to be a part of - creating a range of learning spaces for workers as close to their workplace as possible.

Currently, many non profits in Ireland tend to focus their resources on workshop style training which can have a low transfer of learning rate and is relatively expensive in terms of time and money. Non profits also tend to be a little (or a lot) technophobic and really don't prioritise technology as a learning opportunity.

To be fair - non profits are pretty busy doing their work and trying to raise the funds to stay in business. They also get very confused and frustrated with the special language of the whole social media and technology field.

I see SKIL2 as an opportunity to not only provide a range of interactive and collaborative learning spaces for workers in non profits - but also a space to improve their confidence, awareness and knowledge of social media and learning technologies.

This social network is one way that I want to:

• share the information I gather
• tell the story of SKIL2
• invite other people to give their insights & get their support when I feel frazzled
  
• test how social media & networks really work

You are very welcome to join in or just keep an eye on what I'm doing with SKIL2.

Take good care.

Liz