I recently met Don Tapscott, a leading author and speaker on technology and innovation. He graciously invited me to contribute to the blog he writes for Huffington Post. My article there appeared on March 23, 2012, and I am including a brief excerpt below, with a link to the original article for those who would like to read the rest.
Excerpt:
Many alumni associations stubbornly cling to the idea that alumni relationships should be hosted on a .edu website. But we've grudgingly populated Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.
And many of us haven't yet acknowledged that online social platforms aren't broadcast outlets. People join Facebook to share their interests, ideas and activities with friends and family, to tell stories about what matters to them. They don't join to download a PDF of the press release announcing this year's teaching awards.
[Associations cling to the idea that alumni relationships
should be hosted on a .edu website]
Communities like ours must learn to maintain slightly more modest expectations about how alumni will interact with us online.
And yet, things are changing at last. Several signs point to a more effective accommodation between alumni associations and the online ventures that have usurped their roles...
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To read the full article, click through to: