Agenda - 03-13-2012 - 5a - Laserfiche WebLink

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2 • Identification of priorities that lead to concrete steps that can be taken (e.g. funding, new technologies, process, etc.) and items that can be implemented in the coming year(i.e. not just a plan) • Discussion of new ways to make Commissioner meetings accessible to public (i.e. through Hillsborough meeting room, telecasts, etc.) • Clarification about the County's role in delivering information technology access to rural parts of the County • Definition of the role of information technology in communications plan (exploration of that internally and externally) • An aspiration that Orange County move toward using cutting edge technologies (including helping the public sector, incorporating technologies into County business, and educating staff and elected officials on what those new technologies are) What do you(Commissioners) have to give at this retreat? • A willingness to understand technology (2) • Continued interest and passion to strategic communications planning • First-hand experience (i.e. interaction with the public) about County's communications and public's inability to access information • Professional writing/communications skills • Belief and commitment that information technology solutions can help the Board better communicate with the public • An open mind and listening ears 4. COMMUNICATIONS PLANNING BOCC thoughts on the 1999 Strategic Communications Plan • The Commissioners agreed that objectives listed in the 1999 Strategic Communications Plan were still applicable and valid. While some of the tools mentioned in the 1999 Plan (i.e. press releases, telephone access, website, intranet, etc.) may have evolved, the Board agreed that the strategic objectives still hold. • The Commissioners discussed the difference between public relations and communications, emphasizing that the February 10 planning retreat would focus on communications strategies and tools and that the public relations element (i.e. the desired branding, marketing, and messaging) would be discussed at a later date. The Board recognized that communications strategies and tools need to be planned, agreed upon, and in place before the County spends time crafting messages about what the public gets for their tax dollars and the value of County government. • The Commissioners discussed another tool in the 1999 plan --the creation of a countywide style guide—specifically, whether such a guide currently exists. Commissioners shared that, in 1999, County departments' external communications varied widely (including different letterheads, for instance). Now, with the emergence of communications tools like social media, the Commissioners reiterated a concern for message uniformity. County staff clarified that a countywide style guide currently does not exist.