When he was hired as the technology director for Kansas City Public Schools, Dr. Joe Phillips was given a directive by his boss: raise the profile of his department.
That’s a tall order. When they think of their local school district, most people probably don’t think of the IT department. They think of teachers, principals, coaches and students. It may not occur to them that there’s a team of people, working behind the scenes, to make sure all the district’s computers and systems are working correctly.
What did Joe do? He didn’t hire a PR agency (he probably didn’t have the budget). His background is in human resources and information technology, not social media or marketing.
So he did what came naturally: He told his department’s stories.
A Simple Approach
Joe’s approach was simple. He simply shared stories about the people on his team, and the work they did, on LinkedIn.
He used video, images, and text. He showed that his team was made of people who loved the work they did. The content was fairly simple. There wasn’t a grand strategy behind it, and only occasionally was produced by videographers employed by the district.
Joe did most of it himself.
It may not have been strategic or “professional,” but it was authentic and heartfelt.
And the result?
His posts connected the dots between a behind-the-scenes IT department and the vital work that teachers do in the classroom.
He was able to foster loyalty and a sense of purpose among his team.
And the profile of his department was elevated. Not only in the Kansas City area, but far beyond. The quality of candidates for job openings increased. Companies contacted Joe, wanting to partner with him.
All because he told some stories.
You Never Know
There are a lot of lessons we can learn from Joe, but I think the main one is to publicly celebrate your people by telling their stories. After all, they are people with dreams, passions and ideas, and they are interesting to your audience. You never know what doors that will open for you.