Paula Colwell and Dean LandrySeptember 26th, 2008 – San José, CA

The Virtual Armchair: Innovative, Informative and Interactive

We are:

• Paula Colwell– Blended Learning and Development

Specialist

• Dean Landry– Armchair Discussion Program

Manager

Background – Armchair Discussions

• Weekly Armchair Discussions– For all Canadian public servants– Opportunity to interact with professionals and

academics– Network with colleagues and fellow public

servants across departments

• Have been offered for last 15 years as an “in-person” event

Why Webcasting?

• Increase accessibility– Public servants working in regional offices– Other government departments– Offer access from work station within National

Capital Region

• Increase number of participants

Our Selection Criteria for Vendor

• Product with strong track record• Available in both official languages (English and

French) • Easily accessible by users both within and

outside of Canada School of Public Service• Good support• Available to test a “proof of concept” without a

lengthy procurement process

Getting Started

• August 2007

– Bandwidth test– Security issues– Dry run on location– Train A/V staff

Behind the Scenes

• Conference and Special Events developed promotional campaigns

• Worked with registration to include webcast choice for participants when registering

• Support

• Training

Showtime!

Sept 6 07

First live webcast

Participant FeedbackSupportive:“…Thanks so much for thinking about us in the regions.” “… I think this is a great initiative, really wonderful for engaging the regions and also

for reducing our transportation burden within Ottawa, as well as making it easier to fit into our schedules”

Mixed Feelings“Yes, I did experience some problems but with something new we have to expect

bumps along the way”“… During the web cast the video froze for a few minutes and then I lost the audio

for about 5 minutes… Other than that, the technology was really neat and the ability to participate in the Q&A session is a wonderful feature.”

Impeding“The sound quality was so poor that I had to abandon the conference”“… There were no instructions on how to troubleshoot...”

• Resolved technical issues identified by participants

• Provided demos for participants prior to webcast

• Offered webcast on a weekly basis

Ongoing

2007-2008 Session Statistics

• Over 50 webcasts

• Over 2,500 participants

• Average of 50 participants per session (30-130 range depending on popularity of event)

• Stayed on-line for average of 50 minutes

• Increase of 114 per cent participation!

On the Road

• Webcast from 3 different regional offices

• Increased regional involvement

• Technical set-up

Overall Success

• Increased regional participation

• Increased visibility

• Able to recycle past broadcasts

• Adoption of methodology by other groups within the Canada School of Public Service

• Greener approach

Challenges

• Technical problems

• Human error

• Interface

Crossroads

• Stay with current provider

OR

• Look to improve based on feedback from participants and staff

New Lobby Page

New Interface

Lessons Learned

• Expect technical difficulties (bumps along the way)

• Match product to needs of participants

• If possible, have team of people:– to administer and host sessions– troubleshoot with participants– provide demos

Next Steps

• Over 50 Armchairs planned for coming year

• Archives accessible on website and iTunes

• Explore integration with ILMS• Explore using webcast as part of blended

learning products• International

QUESTIONS