2011 has been a good year for PTSC-Online. Many valuable articles have been published by our dedicated contributors and we have experienced an increase in interest from organizations that want to use PTSC-Online over the last few months. Our members and viewers continue to increase but our networking potential is significantly under utilized. We need to change that in 2012.
We are thankful to those who have helped PTSC-Online over the past year. Public Safety Canada's financial support helped us set up PTSC-Online but that ended in March 2011. Sean Tracey and NFPA's financial support as a gold sponsor has been critical for our continued operation and we are pleased that his NFPA Canada group space has enabled Sean to improve communication with organizations which use NFPA standards in Canada. We appreciate Patrice Cloutier and Barry Radford for their excellent articles on social media and emergency management throughout the year and new authors such as Phil Gibson, Paul Peters and Melissa Elliott for their recent contributions. We believe our students and suppliers sections can be valuable parts of PTSC-Online and we thank Lynn Newhall, Stephen Sauder and other students for using the students section and contributions to the employment blog and we thank Krystal Hobbs and Mark Tymecki for seeing the potential in the suppliers section.
As we look ahead to 2012 I believe PTSC-Online's biggest opportunities involve developing Networking Partnerships with organizations and associations in which we can use the communication and collaboration capabilities of PTSC-Online to help these organizations achieve their own objectives and in the process, contribute valuable content to PTSC-Online. A partnership has already been set up with the Ontario association of Emergency Managers, one will be announced shortly involving the Canadian Red Cross and more are in the development stages. Consider how your organization might want to network with us.
Although I am pleased with the progress which has been made, I am somewhat disappointed so much of our potential is being under utilized. Please consider how you as members and viewers can use PTSC-Onine to help achieve your business / organization or personal objectives in 2012. If you are not sure how to do that contact me and I will help you get the most out of PTSC-Online or sign up for one of our on line training sessions. If you have some thoughts on the direction PTSC-Online should take and would like to help as we rebuild our steering committee, please also contact me.
I wish you all a Happy New year and lok forward to networking on line with you in 2012.
6 Comments
I would have to agree with the under-utilized potential; having recently been unsuccessful in a bid for a very prominent EMC position in the maritimes, I can't help but feel that had I been a touch more conversant in the lingo of current management techniques and issues in the field (as opposed to the actual abilities to get the job done which is not what most panel interviews assess) I might now be in that job!
Thus I am guilty of not having taken full advantage of the opportunities for education and information that PTSC provides, a mistake I hope to overcome this year. I would encourage others looking to work (or hire) in the field to not underestimate the serendipity that may come of such a network.
Happy Solstice to all!
Fraser D. Mackay ACP, HBSc
Thank you for your comments Fraser. I agree that on line networking can help keep one up to date with the current lingo etc. but I think it can do much more. It can be about building relationships and building a reputation which can happen as a result of networking on line, just as it can happen as a result of networking in person.
Most emergency managers I know are very willing to share their expertise and help their fellow emergency managers and students who are aspiring to become career emergency managers. Our challenge is to get the ball rolling so that can happen. It only takes a few minutes to post a question or a suggestion on line so someone else has an opportunity to answer it or share something you have found that works well or is helpful in a blog or by posting it to the wiki knowledge base. These things are good first steps to building an on line network and reputation.
When hiring someone it is reasonable to ask others what they know about a particular candidate. In today's age of social media it is reasonable to see what one can learn from a google search and other on line sources. I don't know how many times someone I don't know has told me they follow my emergency management tips on Twitter (memci)
I hope PTSC-Online can help you in 2012.
Bill,
I think PTSC is a great opportunity to support our EM community. I will also utilize it more in 2012.
The big challenge I have faced is first and foremost creating the stellar resume with proper keywording techniques which govt competitions require. It has taken me several months working with an employment coach to get mine to the point in which I am happy and confident to submit.
The second challenge I have found is finding employment opportunities. I noticed others on PTSC were asking about sourcing a recruiter for help in finding jobs. I have definitely done my legwork in networking and know that eventually the right opportunity will arise that will be a perfect fit. During the time prior I think it is natural to want to know we are doing all that we can and not missing any opportunities as well. During this time of economic challenge many are in the same position and not only want to do all that they can but also want to know and feel confident that they are. For now I continue to build upon my skills and find volunteer opportunities as well because my main objective is to help others by providing my skills to make for safer environments.
Happy New Year to all and I can't wait for all the new opportunities of 2012!
Thanks ReBecca for your comments and especially for identifying your challenges as that may result in others providing you with information that could be be helpful. (OK Other PTSC-Online members, don't prove me wrong, lets see if we can help ReBecca)
Now that you have a resume that you are happy with I suggest you post it to the employment blog where we can promote it and others can see it. Please consider writing an article about your employment goals to our members in that blog and attach your resume and any other related material you may want to add that you would not necessarily include in a formal application. This blog is about telling others about yourself so they can help you find that ideal emergency management position.
When it comes to using volunteer opportunities to build your skills and increase your visibility, I have some opportunities within PTSC-Online where we may be able to find a project that matches your skills and interests. Please contact me if you are interested.
The Ontario Association of Emergency Managers on line community has a "Learning Opportunities" feature built into it which helps match member's learning opportunities and they are also working on a mentorship program. These features are not yet available to all but you may want to keep an eye on them for the future.
Thank you again for your comments and have a Happy New Year.
A couple of brief commenst.
I see the benefit of beingable to capture other's thoughts - blogs, articles and on-line learning.
While I appreciate the Canadian Fire Chiefs have sponsored this site, please do not let it become a "fire focus only" site.
That is a good point Guy and I believe an explanation about how PTSC-Online is operated will help address your concern. Although CAFC sponsored PTSC-Online, and it would not have been developed without their support and cooperation they do not control or moderate the content. The fire service has responsibility for emergency management in some communities and supports emergency management programs in all communities. CAFC supported the development of PTSC-Online to foster improved networking and sharing among all stakeholders involved in our emergency management programs and to help raise public awareness about emergency management.
The content on PTSC-Online (calendar entries, blog articles, discussion forum topics. wiki knowledge base entries) are contributed by PTSC-Online's members and membership is open to anyone involved in or with an interest in emergency management. My wish for 2012 is that more of them would take advantage of this opportunity to share their expertise in the interests of improving our overall state of preparedness. Thanks for your comment.
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