From Thought To Action at the Speed of Dial Up

So here I am, I'm supposed to have a great idea for a qualifying project and written up and ready to go. Now the problem isn't in coming up with an idea, it's in coming up with an idea that is a) Useful b) Practical c) Doable in a timely manner e) Will be approved by three branches of the US Military There are so many things I would like to do and create. Technology, especially Web 2.0 and Open Source tools. can address so many communication, knowledge management and functional problems within an institution, and yet, the knee-jerk reaction by many IT departments is a simple No. Too many security issues, not enough control. IT people aren't the only ones to shy away from these tools, especially social media. The fear from many in leadership positions is that people will behave badly. Well guess what, they will. They will behave badly even if you don't have a social media site and a netiquette guide, but by having one you can have some control. Often the best way to avoid bad behavior is simply to ignore it, or address the issue head-on in a calm rational manner. But when poor behavior occurs on social media sites you as an institution never see you have no way to address it. Denial is not a way forward. Unfortunately I can yell this from the roof tops but it won't get me any closer to a practical qualifying project. I'm not the ideas guy, I the one you come to when you have an idea and want to know how to make it reality. This is a big leap for me, and I'm not sure it can be managed without the help of a lot, a whole lot, of chocolate and frustration.

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