Learning and Evaluation/Program Toolkits/GLAM/Learning Circle 1

Pitching GLAM-Wiki Partnerships: A Learning Circle

Event: GLAM-WIKI 2015

How to pitch for GLAM partnerships is a commonly asked question for learning and evaluation. This workshop will include a panel of presenters who will: present their best practices for how to identify a good potential partnership, share the important steps and strategic points for planning and launching a successful pitch, and call out any mistakes to learn from. Following panel presentations participants will be asked to reflect on the shared learning, plan for next steps, and taking action.

• https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Grants:Evaluation
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/programevaluation/

Host(s)

• Jaime Anstee
• Co-Facilitators: Beat Estermann, Maria Cruz
• Panelists: Barbara Fischer (WMDE); Whiteghost.ink (WM-Au); Mylee Joseph Mylee (Aliaretiree) State Library of NSW

Session Description

How to pitch for GLAM partnerships is a commonly asked question for learning and evaluation and we would like to take the opportunity at the conference to bring a handful of our successful GLAM leaders together to share what they know about it. The proposed workshop will include a panel of presenters who who will provide brief presentations of their process of pitching for GLAM partnerships by focusing on three key points in the context of one or more of their successful partnership pitches. Specifically panelists will present their best practices for how to identify a good potential partnership, important steps and strategic points for planning and launching a successful pitch, and mistakes we can all learn from. Importantly, the panel will have both GLAM Wikimedians as well as institutional partners so that we might capture both the external and internal pitching activities that take place when developing a new partnership.

The workshop process around the panel presentations will include thorough capturing of key elements in the panelists reflections so that participants will be sure to notice key messages through live capturing. Beyond the live capturing of key leader reflections on their process and successful practice the panelists presentations will be followed by capturing of a session dialogue in which participants will reflect to learn about common themes and outliers across strategies for pitching for GLAM-wiki partnerships and plan ways that the shared successful practices can be integrated into their pitching practices and which practices might be a challenge, and how to proceed.

Workshop participants will learn useful strategies for pitching GLAM-Wiki partnerships, tips for issues to avoid in negotiating new partnerships, and discuss ways to integrate the lessons learned into future efforts. All that is shared across the workshop process will be documented in our evaluation portal in our learning pattern library and be shared and developed further at a follow-up workshop at Wikimania in July.

Etherpad: https://etherpad.wikimedia.org/p/glamwiki15-pitching

Post-it Note Capture

Critical Steps

• Relationship building: “careful dating” vs “blind date”
• Providing responsive support
• Develop understanding of wiki culture and practices
• Identify the win-win (mutual benefits)
• Communication. Clear expectations; understanding of needs.
• Agree on strategy.
• Establish trust.
• Survey. Know potential risks and mitigation.
• Copyright policy and maturity.
• Organization capacity and staff availability (time commitment)
• Information outreach “GLAM” + what is not clear to institutions.
• Develop capacity to make it a sustainable project.
• Patience (+ “diva” patience)
• Create a platform to meet and a learning network
• To build credibility, it helps to “name drop” other GLAM partnerships.

Green Lights

• Engagement to do an event for GLAM.
• Mission alignment between Wikimedia organization and GLAM.
• Commitment from senior management
• Management competency (both sides)
• Have a liaison you can work with on a daily basis.
• Trustful relationships
• Possibilities for the future and a shared understanding of needs.
• Clear proposal and well scoped
• Institution has a digital agenda.
• To prevent deletion: use OTRS process, create a project page, transparency through category use.
• Metrics for GLAM institutions on how their reach and access will grow.
• Platform where wikipedians and GLAM staff can meet.
• Media coverage (like with name-dropping, press can be good for growing support)
• GLAM monitoring of content (watchlist watching)
• Outreach to many GLAMs at a time.
• GLAM interest in Wikimedia as a mode of access.
• Alignment of goals. Articulate the win - win. (+1)
• Internal catalyzation and skill building.
• GLAM prepares for long-term engagement with Wikimedia / Wikipedia.

Red Flags

• Surprise proposal - “need to scramble”
• Big promotion of one event is not the same as specific activities and long term projects.
• Paid editing and conflict of interests
• Unclear goals
• Big expectations.
• Activities with lack of planning (comprehensive planning)

Blockers

• Attribution and identity (and issues of paid editing)
• Be and appear “serious”
• Use OTRS. Communicate with the community
• Deletion.
• Excessive expectations.
• “Name dropping” → Reference to peers (+1)
• Not knowing what or where to look for information.
• Communication: internal and external
• Sustainability. Scaling of resources.
• Different time and language
• Misunderstandings.
• Must be patient!

Into a SWOT for developing and pitching GLAM-Wiki partnerships:

Strengths	Weaknesses
Engagement to do an event for a GLAM. Mission alignment between Wikimedia organization and GLAM. Commitment from senior management Management competency (both sides) Have a liaison you can work with on a daily basis. Trustful relationships Possibilities for the future and a shared understanding of needs. Clear proposal and well-scoped Metrics for GLAM institutions on how their reach and access will grow. Platform where Wikipedians and GLAM staff can meet. Outreach to many GLAMs at a time. Alignment of goals. Articulate the win - win. (+1) Internal catalyzation and skill building. Create a platform to meet and a learning network Develop capacity to make it a sustainable project.	Attribution and identity (and issues of paid editing) Difficult to be and appear “serious” Excessive expectations. “Name dropping” → Reference to peers (+1) Not knowing what or where to look for information. Communication: internal and external Sustainability. Scaling of resources. Different time and language Misunderstandings. Must be patient!
Opportunities	Threats
Institution has a digital agenda. GLAM interest in Wikimedia as a mode of access. Media coverage (like with name-dropping, press can be good for growing support) Use OTRS. Communicate with the community/To prevent deletion: use OTRS process, create a project page, transparency through category use. Relationship building: “careful dating” vs “blind date” Providing responsive support Develop understanding of wiki culture and practices Identify the win-win (mutual benefits) Communication. Clear expectations; understanding of needs. Agree on strategy. Establish trust. Survey. Know potential risks and mitigation. Copyright policy and maturity. Organization capacity and staff availability (time commitment) Information outreach “GLAM” + what is not clear to institutions. Patience (+ “diva” patience) GLAM prepares for long-term engagement with Wikimedia / Wikipedia. To build credibility, it helps to “name drop” other GLAM partnerships. GLAM monitoring of content (watchlist watching)	Surprise proposal - “need to scramble” Deletion. Big promotion of one event is not the same as specific activities and long term projects. Paid editing and conflict of interests Unclear goals Big expectations. Activities with lack of planning (comprehensive planning)