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Each week, my inbox fills up with emails from communications professionals inquiring if I’d consider including their client in my “3 Questions” series.
Almost always, I ignore these emails.
I want to share how I choose my conversational partners, to reduce wasted emails and increase the frequency of these Q&As.
The three questions I ask myself in deciding who to work with on a “3 Questions” piece are:
- Am I already somehow connected to the interviewee?
The world of online education and academic/learning innovation is both big and small. Big, because the online/innovation ecosystem is rapidly expanding. Small because those of us in the ecosystem tend to know one another, and we talk. I use the word “ecosystem” because the online/innovation community spans the boundaries of universities, companies, associations, foundations and government.
When I decide to work on a “3 Questions” piece with a colleague, that decision is almost always driven by my desire to deepen an already existing connection.
A “3 Questions” piece is not a one-off but a continuation of a collaboration. As I’m leveraging the IHE platform to strengthen my network and deepen relationships, a communications professional’s request to interview someone I’m not currently connected with (in some way) is almost always a poor fit.
The good news is that there are hundreds of colleagues to whom I’m connected in some way—as our online/innovation community is highly affiliative—who have not yet participated in a “3 Questions” piece. If we have connected in some way or if there is an opportunity for future collaboration, please get in touch.
- Will the conversation be useful for the online education and academic/learning innovation community?
The most interesting, durable and revealing aspects of the work of online education and academic/learning innovation can be found in the people who do this work.
What is a university without the people who work there? What is a company?
People’s ideas, vision, experimentation and hard work move our innovations and organizations forward. However, too few of these people have the opportunity to publicly share what they are working on.
The people who get the ink at universities and companies are the people at the top. The focus on leaders is fine; they represent and speak for their universities, companies and organizations. But if you want to understand where higher education is going, you need to listen to the people doing the hands-on work.
There are only so many places where the people who make up our online/innovation community get to tell their stories. We don’t have enough places to read about the career paths of alternative academics, learning designers and online education leaders.
The real story of higher education change is not about universities or companies; it is about people. I’m convinced that the “3 Questions” series has become popular because it fills a gap in media (and social media) platforms. There are just too few places in the online/innovation world that provide a place where we can learn the stories of the people doing this work.
- Will the Q&A be helpful to the colleague providing the answers?
As I look at the “3 Questions” series as a method to strengthen relationships and build networks, I want to make sure that participating in the Q&A will benefit the colleagues answering the questions.
Very few people who participate in a “3 Questions” piece have tenure. Every alternative academic is professionally vulnerable. Public communication in any form—from being interviewed to writing—is terrifying.
My goal is to present the people I interview for IHE in the best possible light. Their individual career progression and overall well-being matter most to me.
I only publish Q&As if I think the piece will help the colleague I’m working with on the piece. The process can take some time, as I will ask that the interviewee work with their organization’s communications professionals to ensure that everyone at the school/company/organization they work for will be happy with how things turn out.
The construction of the Q&As is a highly collaborative process. We work together on a Google Doc. If a communications professional at the university/organization can be involved in developing the Q&A, that is fantastic. The goal is to have the interviews be as conversational and authentic as possible. The more the interviewee’s voice and passions come out in the answers, the better.
Colleagues, please reach out. I have questions.
