Back in November we held a VRM Hub conference which was brain-stretching to say the least. Naturally, being gluttons for that kind of punishment we’ve decided to have another event, but this time it’s even more brain-stretchy in that it’s a free-for-all ‘open space’ event.
In the briefest summary, ‘open space’ is where the attendees choose what they want to talk about as well as what they want to listen to. If you’ve got something you want to have a chat about, you can stick your hand up and start a discussion. Heard enough? Just move on to another discussion. Heard something inspiring and want to take the conversation further? Just start your own discussion on that topic. Naturally this appeals to my way of doing things 
And the craziest thing of all is that somehow it just works. I think it is the closest you can get to ‘organised chaos’.
OK, well maybe that summary wasn’t so brief, but there’s a better explanation and all the details about the event on the VRM Hub site.
I’m already thinking about what discussion I’ll be starting, and you can bet it will be something to do with the way VRM can be applied in the ‘public sector’, which is what occupies an increasingly large corner of my brain. I’m completely convinced that The Future is about people having control of their lives – and not just in terms of buying stuff, but in terms of their lives in the broadest sense. That’s sort of related to why the term ‘vendor relationship management’ has never really sat well with me – I want to have all sorts of relationships on my own terms, not just the ones about buying stuff (but maybe that rant is for another day!)
My pet hate is when ‘the government’ talks about ‘empowering’ people. Actually, government, I think you’ll find that WE empower YOU through free and (not quite) fair elections. For me, VRM is one way to even out that balance of power or, heaven forbid, actually shift things in citizens’ favour. Anyway, more of this sort of thing at the open space next week.
April 5, 2009 at 9:43 pm |
[...] that a relatively small group of people brought to the table. Topics discussed ranged from public sector to mobile operators, from social media to privacy, identity and retail! My take-away [...]