ASQ Division Web Sites

I am part of the ASQ advisory team for Internet activities. Here is my recent contribution to the group:

You asked about "must haves" for Division websites (portals). I reflected on my past experiences with member unit sites (both Division and Section). I also thought about member units as a service business. Why do we exist?

Our fundamental reasons for being are 1) companionship (aka networking and community), and 2) knowledge. We provide a sense of place and association. We also generate and distribute knowledge. Some are better at the former; some are better at the latter.

Here's my list of the topics every Division should cover on their Internet portal:

1. About Us: What is our focus and why do we exist?
2. Administration: Who are our leaders and how can you contact us?
3. Content: What do we make and how can you get it? This would cover our library of QBoK(tm) stuff.
4. Education: What do we have to make you smarter? This would include conferences, symposia, courses, and other opportunities to interact with others.
5. Outreach and Inreach: How can you form a deeper relationship with us and contribute to our success? This would, of course, include blogs, wikis, social networking, and other collaboration platforms. Most of this area would be short descriptions and links.

Others will suggest different names for these topics, which is good. The above list is small (K.I.S.S.) but powerful.

As we roll out our new presence on the dotnetnukes platform, two human factors forces need some thought:

• People will pay attention and click the links on whatever is in the middle of the screen and close to the top. As our Division activities change throughout the year, we need the ability to say to our visitors, "This is important right now." It won't be static all year long.
• Everything is converging toward tablet machines and smart phones. Right now, these are both small and lightweight. I think they will remain small. Processing power will, of course, increase. This means our information must fit on small screens. It will be challenging as we shift from desktop to mobile platforms.

“I’m part of the ASQ Influential Voices program. While I receive a variety of quality resources as honorarium from ASQ in exchange for my commitment, the thoughts and opinions expressed on my blog are my own.”