Setting up a committee on public information requires organizational and management skills as well as a strong focus on what information your committee will share and how they will share it. Whether your committee will be a Committee of One or a large group, clear boundaries, work flow and responsibilities are crucial for efficient work. Also, it helps to have someone with basic knowledge of the laws governing information as part of the committee.
Set deadlines for recurring tasks. Meet with committee members, discuss the time needs of each core function, negotiate and then write down the deadlines and distribute to all members.
Define roles. Set up subcommittees if you have a large group. If you have a small group, put individuals in charge of the core functions. Those core functions are gathering, producing (writing, photographing, making videos) and editing. "Gathering" is different than producing: it involves working with sources outside of the committee to acquire raw material or taking contributions from outside the committee. Gatherers also urge the making of decisions and clarifying of information so that the information committee will have clear information to share.
Enforce deadlines. Monitor the deadlines and allow committee members to work together flexibly. Intervene if trouble arises, and be willing to go without key content in recurring publications if individuals do not turn in work on time repeatedly.
Find members. Seek out committee members with specific strengths in gathering, organizing and producing the public information you will share. Expect some attrition in your ranks over time, so aim to recruit more members than you expect you will need.
Plan for the future. Turnover and attrition will happen in any organization. Figure out how to continue to recruit and train new members, saving the most efficient and best methods of the past but allowing for new ideas from new members.
Save work that can be reused. By archiving and reusing specific content, including visual and audio elements, committee work can be streamlined over time.
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