Web 2.0 - Questions and a Plan .....

Today's on-site EIT class was terrific. The information being presented continues to be exciting and it was great fun to officially meet my fellow students, whom in many ways I was already getting to know through their posts and online dialogue. One of the highlights of the day was listening to CoolCatTeacher. Her mastery of web 2.0, her communication style and her obvious talent as an educator was impressive and inspiring.

As the day progressed and the class worked through tools and strategies, I couldn't help but think of potential implementations for the organizations that I am affiliated with. After years of experience delivering on-site technologies, web 2.0 and cloud computing adds a completely new dimension for me to consider. As always, new possibilities come with new questions and challenges to work through. Some of the questions currently racing through my mind include: What are appropriate and acceptable uses in a business environment? What are the criteria for determining what qualifies for cloud computing and what doesn't? What are the legal implications of storing data off-site and do service provides offer the protection necessary for compliance?

Being the (uncontrollable?) planner that I am, here is the beginning of my high-level strategy to answer these questions and to start the implementation process.....

1. Create a Personal Learning Network (PLN) to begin researching, discovering and reaching out to learn how others are implementing these technologies in the same environment.
2. Gain experience with web 2.0 learning communities by working with colleagues to build an IT focused learning community.
3. With the knowledge gained, establish best practices, including appropriate uses and boundaries, for web 2.0 implementation in a business environment.
4. Using the established best practices, identify and implement web 2.0 solutions for each of the organizations supported. Examples may include RSS feed for employment opportunities, learning communities for staff development, social bookmarking for athletics staff, etc.

Are there other strategies and/or tasks that should be included in this plan? What other questions need to be addressed prior to implementation? I've many questions to answer and am anxious to begin!