Friday, November 12, 2010

Minnesota River Watershed Alliance Communication Survey - please take the survey!

Please see the previous blog post for some background on the survey.



Survey Instructions:

There are 21 multiple choice questions on the survey. The form can be completed electronically by copying the questions into your word processing software, using the highlight tool on your computer and emailing the document to Jenny Gieseke [jennygieseke (at) gmail (dot) com], or by printing the survey out, circling your answers and scanning and emailing the document back to Jenny. If you cannot submit the document electronically you can mail it to Jenny. In order to complete this project on time, Jenny is requesting that surveys be completed and returned to Jenny by November 15, 2010. All responses will be confidential.



Please return completed surveys to jennygieseke (at) gmail (dot) com or mail to: Jenny Gieseke

40322 541st Ave
New Ulm, MN 56073



1.) What is your affiliation with the Minnesota River Watershed Alliance?

NPO    Government Org     Citizen     Farmer      Other ________



2.) Are you a current member of the Coordinating Team?

Yes   No



3.) Are you a former member of the Coordinating Team?

Yes    No



4.) How long have you been active in The Alliance?

1 year or less         2-3 years          more than 3 years



5.) How many quarterly Alliance meetings have you attended in the past year?

0      1      2      3      4



6.) How did you receive notice of the meetings you attended? Circle all that apply.


Phone call        Personal email           list serv generated email             River Talk

Minnesota River Weekly Update            Web Site          other __________



7.) How many smaller group meetings have you attended in the past year to work on Alliance related projects or issues?

0     1     2     3     4     5    6    7     8     8 +



8.) How did you receive notice of those meetings?

Phone call      Personal email         list serv generated email          River Talk

Minnesota River Weekly Update              Web Site         other ______________



9.) Do you receive the River Talk Newsletter? Do you read it?

Yes No                                                           Yes No



10.) What format would you prefer to see the newsletter in?

Electronic           hard copy              posted on website



11.) What features of River Talk do you enjoy the most? (Circle or highlight all that apply)

Reflections          Organizational Spotlight         What’s Happening

River Ramblings            Water Quality Features



12.) Do you receive the Minnesota River Basin Weekly Updates? Do you read them?

Yes No                                                                                         Yes No



13.) Which features of the weekly updates do you find most useful?

Event notices          job opportunities          environmental article links            other_________



14.) How often do you visit the Alliance website?

Weekly          twice a month        monthly      quarterly         never



15.) Which features of the website do you find most useful?

Meeting notes         meeting announcements       calendar         alliance info

Links             other



16.) How often do you receive list serve generated notices and emails?

Weekly      twice a month         monthly         quarterly       never



17.) How often do you read the notices and emails?

Every time      most of the time      sometimes      rarely     never



18.) How often do you post messages or respond to list serv messages?

Rarely      weekly     twice a month       monthly      quarterly      never



19.) How often do you contact other members of the Alliance in regard to Alliance activities?

Daily     weekly      twice a month     monthly      quarterly     rarely



20.) Which methods do you use most often to contact other alliance members?

Face to face     phone call     personal email         list serv



21.) For each communication channel listed below, please circle or highlight the number that best represents the amount of information you receive now, and the amount of information that you feel need to receive.

Key for Scoring Items: VERY LITTLE = VL (1); LITTLE = L (2); SOME = S (3);
GREAT = G (4); VERY GREAT = VG (5)

Amount of information I receive now             Amount of information I would like to receive

Communication Channel VL L S G VG         VL L S G VG

Face to Face                   1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5

Phone                              1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5

Personal Email                 1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5

Listserv                            1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5

River Talk                        1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5

Weekly Update                1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5

Web site                           1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5

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Watershed Alliance Communication Survey - Background

Here is some background information on the Communication Survey that the Minnesota River Watershed Alliance is conducting. Please see the next blog post for the survey form.


My name is Jenny Gieseke and I am currently a graduate student at Minnesota State University, Mankato. I am pursuing an MS in Communication Studies, and as part of the coursework for Organizational Communication 512, I am required to complete a communication audit on an organization. I chose the Minnesota River Watershed Alliance for the audit because I thought the voluntary nature of the organization was unique, and I thought the audit would also provide beneficial information to the Alliance. On October 19, 2010, I attended a quarterly meeting of the Alliance, and was given approval by members to complete the audit.




What does a Communication Audit provide?

A communication audit provides an objective picture of what is actually happening in regard to an organization’s communication processes compared to what an organization thinks is happening. It is a diagnostic tool that can be used to pinpoint what is working and what is not working in regard to the communication practices of an organization.

The 21 question survey and instructions are provided in the next blog post. I am requesting that all responses be returned to me by Monday, November 15, 2010. I realize this is a short turn around time and that everyone is busy, but the survey should only take between 5 to 10 minutes to complete. All responses will be treated confidentially. I know how easy it is to just ignore a survey like this, but I'm hoping that the dedication of the Alliance members to improving their organization will prove an exception to the rule.

I will provide a copy of the Audit Report to the Alliance by December 15, 2010.

How will a Communication Audit benefit the Minnesota River Watershed Alliance?

The purpose of this audit is to identify the most commonly utilized channels of communication between Alliance members. The questions chosen for the survey were developed based on input from coordinating team members during a conference call on October 27, 2010. The survey is being sent to all members of the Alliance. Please consider donating 5 to 10 minutes of your time to complete the survey. The reliability of the data collected for the survey is dependent upon a sufficient number of surveys being completed and returned. With enough input from Alliance members, the audit will provide information regarding which channels of communication are successfully utilized, which need additional efforts, and which areas can be eliminated.

Qualifications

I have over 10 years of experience working in the area of Water Resource Management, specifically for the Crow River Organization of Water (CROW) Joint Powers Board. Prior working for the CROW I worked in the area of wetland management in both the private and public sectors. I have a B.S. in Ecology/Environmental Science. My objective in obtaining a MS in Communications is to continue to work in the field of Natural Resources but to focus my efforts in areas such as organizational development and capacity building.

Thank you very much for taking the time to complete the survey, I appreciate your assistance.

Jenny Gieseke

507-276-5119

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