Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/323328
ActivatingOnlineCommunitiestoMaximizeImpact 9 EngagementPathwayActivity Inanefforttoexploreunderlyingpointsofcommonalityanddifferenceinthemodelsof engagement,organizationswereinvitedtosharetheprocessbywhichindividualsfirstengageand ultimatelytransitiontoleadershipwithintheirrespectiveimpactco ntexts.Asanintroductiontothe exercise,TakingITGlobalshareditsownmodelasapointofdeparture,whichwasusedbyseveral organizationsforwhomtheexercisewasnovel. Interestingly,themajorityofmodelsinvolvedalinear perspectiveonengagem ent,suchthatanindividualwasunderstoodtomoveindefinedstepsfromone leveltothenext.Aminorityofmodelswerenon linear,reflectingtheviewthatanindividualcouldenter frommultiplestartingpointsandmoveiterativelythroughtheprocess .Theseunderlyingtheoretical assumptions,whilelargelyheldincommon,providedanopportunity toexplorehoworganizations conceive,assessandtrackthosereachedbytheirprogramsandprojects. Whiletheideaofclear delineationsisstipulatedatbe st,theobjectiveofframingamoreconcreteapproachtotrackingwas seenasbeneficialoverall. Theterms,'a wareness ' and ' engagement ' werethemost frequentlyoccurring wordsused when describingthepathways. Interestingly, ' t rials ' , wasalsoa term thatwasobserved,highlightingan interestamongsomeparticipantsintheperceivedimportanceofcreatinganinitialuserexperiencethat connectsanindividualtotheorganization,programorprojectoutcomedirectlyandimmediatelyto establishinitial commitment. Thepotentialofframingcommunityoutreachintermsthatenablea readily measurable 'trial'approachcouldbeaneffectivetrendforthesectormovingforwardas contrastedwithmoretraditional'informationaloutreach'.