Social

Media in Crisis Management | Stephanie Lamy

When we change the way we communicate, we change society. Clay Shirky - Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing without Organizations (2008)

Libyan Lessons

The secret of war lies in the communications. Napolon Bonaparte - Maximes et penses de Napolon, No. 47 (1838)

With the end of NATOs Operation Unified Protector (announced in a Tweet) the mission packed up its base in Italy and personnel started dispersing. A remarkably successful military operation had concluded. The legacy is a body of critical and highly valuable expertise, which we need to analyse while memories and data are still fresh. Capturing key insights at the earliest possible stage is the smart way forward (the potential costs of undervaluing institutional memory is well attested). The Libyan conflict saw a rapid evolution of strategic communication via online networks, in particular: social media, the value of which is only just being fathomed. How to tap into the talent pool, which exists in the networks of activists? How to influence entire communities? As an insider who deployed social media to considerable effect during the Libyan conflict, here are only a fraction of my insights into how social media could potentially be a powerful tool in future campaigns.

All Change?
The world is evolving very, very fast, driven by a digital revolution that is reinventing the communications landscape. That change is so rapid, in fact, it can be difficult to comprehend quite how recent the new developments are. The US Department of Defence, for example, published its first Joint Doctrine on Information Operations barely a decade ago in 1998 (a year after Google registered its name). The Arab Spring is less than a year old. Yet for all the undoubted excitement about the role of new social technology, the so-called Web 2.0 world, the French proverb plus a change, plus c'est pareil (the more things change, the more things stay the same) still holds water. People in conflict scenarios in government, the military, insurgents, the media, activists or as civilians, have the same needs as before. However, social media acts as a short circuit, and the networked world brings profound new challenges and opportunities to innovate for all participants.
COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Stephanie Lamy & Web Community Management sas 2011

Establishing Peer-to-Peer Authority

Social media platforms are, by definition, places to gather and publish information. The majority of profiles accomplish both tasks simultaneously. They are also hangouts for interested communities. Facebook, Twitter and Youtube (the majors in the Libyan conflict) are generic platforms populated by humanitys wide spectrum of profiles. To effectively collect information, it is a pre-requisite to establish a mix of channels to mobilize special interest groups and pool incoming data, but also recruit sources, disseminate information and control the conversation. People must swarm to the effort. They go to the content to contribute their piece to the whole. This act of going to the content to contribute is a fundamental shift in behaviour that enables the scale of mass collaboration. In parallel, unofficial channels provide access to priority information and connect to high value individuals.

Super-Connectors
In fluid and critical situations, such as military or political conflict, social media data is fast becoming indispensible. It provides instant feedback or sourced information, from a network of various (potentially highly influential) networks, of many thousands of people. The flow of information never sleeps due to time zone distribution of active profiles (social media accounts) and their level of involvement in the conflict (passion). Not only can hard facts be delivered via this tool, but also soft information such as how military actions are perceived, what the networks and bridges are and who or what influences these communities. Social media tools and platforms are formidable bridges, and those who control them, or at least establish rights within critical communities using them, can act as super-connectors. For example, in the Libyan conflict, one of the many challenges, more or less overcome by government agencies, was creating a direct contact with leaders on the ground. As official contact was frowned upon, establishing a productive connection proved extremely challenging. Most opposition leaders (political or military) did not have an online presence, and were otherwise unreachable. By using online tools to connect with the networks of people directly linked to these leaders, civilians managed to create information channels frequently beating intelligence agencies to the end-goal: knowledge.

Planning the Exit Strategy

The endgame, of course, is the resolution of the crisis - but not only that. A time of crisis, or fundamental change, is a formidable opportunity to enable innovation, which leads to a fruitful post-transition period. The understanding of the dynamics and evolution of on-line communities and their members, the acquisition of pertinent information, the dissemination of messages and the creation of valuable networks to support physical operations, will all be key assets not only in the strategic planning and execution phases of crisis management, but also in leaving positive footprints throughout the mission, facilitating long-term partnerships.

COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Stephanie Lamy & Web Community Management sas 2011

 Diversity in council, unity in command

Social Media & Conflict

Cyrus the Great Persia (576-530 BC)

The modern trend in military and crisis communications has been from command and control approaches, broadly using new communications technology internally to enhance effectiveness against threats, through awareness of cyberspace (and cyberwar), and now towards information engagement, in which the public information war is increasingly recognised as mission critical. Because of the scale and speed of events in complex crises, mass collaboration via social media should increasingly be regarded as an integral part of the response mechanisms. Key tasks include: o Establish & manage your Social Media presence o Identify, collect, represent & distribute contextual and hard data. o Enable information dissemination through productive networking. o Create meaningful relationships and build partner communities. o Plan the exit strategy; pave the way for a post transition environment. o Maintain the balance between transparency and security

These core elements can be designed and/or implemented as an ensemble, as individual modules, and during planning and/or the operations phase. The skills and tools to successfully implement and operate these core actions can be provided through staff training, one-to-one consultancy, strategic reports or participation in reflection groups. During mission operations, on-call consultancy can also be delivered. Information-rich insights and methodologies both tried and tested, as well as emerging from first-hand experience of the Libyan conflict underpin each of these elements. Capturing them through sustained analysis represents a real but urgently necessary commitment of time and effort. Understandably, I look forward, with optimism, to an opportunity to share these critical insights.

COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Stephanie Lamy & Web Community Management sas 2011

The important thing is not to stop questioning; curiosity has its own reason for existing.
Stephanie Lamy worked in luxury retail and luxury real estate for almost 20 years. Her skill set includes client service, relationship-driven sales, project development and team building. She has also contributed to industry studies and blogged the luxury industry with a particular emphasis on new technologies. Her work as a consultant includes innovative projects such as defining sustainable policies for eco-luxury and building online communities among filmmakers. Stephanie also played an instrumental role during the Libyan conflict, which among other activities included providing a high level back channel for mission critical information, co-founding Global Relief Libya, a humanitarian aid organisation (and one of the first NGOs to bring medical aid to, and raise public awareness on, the sieges of Misrata and the Nafusa Mountains), as well as providing support services to an impressive array of journalists and media organizations. Stephanie continues to advise Libyan associations as well as decrypting the evolving situation in Libya for European organisations. Today Stephanie is supporting Yemeni groups by creating a joint strategy for the Yemeni Diaspora and broadcasting their message. The experience and methods developed during each of the above successes involved an intense level of engagement, a build-as-we-learn skill set, and new, responsive iterations throughout. These are currently being captured for use in a future White Paper.
Albert Einstein (1955)

COMMERCIAL IN CONFIDENCE Stephanie Lamy & Web Community Management sas 2011