VRM Workshop 2008
The first ProjectVRM Workshop (tag pvrmw2008a alternative tag VRMworkshop2008 discuss?) will be hosted by ProjectVRM and the Berkman Center at Pound Hall at Harvard Harvard Law School, on Monday-Tuesday 14-15 July The event will go from 9AM to 5:30 on Monday and 8:30-5:30 on Tuesday.
The purpose of the workshop is to bring people together and make progress on any number of VRM topics and projects. The workshop will be run as an "unconference" on the open space model, which means session topics will be chosen by participants. Here is the Wikipedia page on open space.
In open space there are no speakers or panels: only facilitation with no agenda beyond helping participants make progress on their topics.
Registration
The workshop is free. You can register through this EventBrite link. Feel free to also add your name to the VRMWorkshop Attendees list.
Proposed Schedule
Sunday
Non-hosted Dinner
- Location: TBD
- Time: TBD
- Attendees (please add your name here if you plan to attend so we can get reservations):
- Keith Hopper
- Iain Henderson
- Doc Searls
- Mark Scrimshire (tentative)
- Joe Andrieu
Monday
9AM to 5:30PM
After opening remarks, we'll each introduce ourselves to the group. After that we will have short briefings by people working on VRM projects. These briefings are required by the purpose of the workshop: to move VRM projects forward. We plan to keep these briefings under 5 minutes apiece, though some may go a bit longer. There is a lot of parallel work being done already with VRM, not just on specific projects but also in committees and conversations around various hot topics. It is essential that we get to know a few basics about who's doing what before we break off into the workshop discussions.
In open space workshops, topics are suggested by participants in an opening session attended by everybody. Participants write the title of their topic on a sheet of paper with a bold marker, add their name, then describe the topic to the group and post it on a large "spreadsheet" of times and session locations, located on a wall for everybody to see. Once up, these sessions can be combined or moved around as the sheet fills up.
One person in each session will take notes, either directly (or eventually) on the workshop wiki. At the end of each day somebody from each discussion session will report progress to the group.
7:00PM: Non-hosted Dinner
- Location: TBD
- Time: TBD
- Attendees (please add your name here if you plan to attend so we can get reservations):
Tuesday
8:30am-9:00pm Opening and Agenda Making -- same as in Day 1
9:00am-4:00pm: Sessions
4:00-5:30pm:
Closing - Reports from all discussions, listing of Action Items and community conversation about what is next for various VRM projects
Space
We have three classrooms booked. All have a power outlet at every seat, and seating is arranged in a horseshoe shape, so everybody can face everybody else. (We'll also put details here for wi-fi connecting as well. Some advance work is required there.)
If we need additional small session spaces, there are plenty of those out on the lawns and in the halls and public seating areas amongst nearby buildings at the Law School. We'll make room on the session "spreadsheet" for these, so we're ready if the need arises.
As the workshop approaches, we encourage people working on projects to get ahead of the workshop curve by sharing some of their work with the ProjectVRM list and on their own blogs.
Possible Topics
There are many. Here is a list to get us started. Add whatever you like...
- The Mine!
- Personal Address Manager
- RelButton (and first use challenge: a biz model for public media)
- User-driven Search
- r-cards (relationship)
- VRM and health care
- VRM standards, policies and practices
- VRM + (rather than vs.) CRM