Legislative Tangents: By Jeff Sikes

Moving AAC technology into the 21st Century – in order to help YOU! Member-driven website offers powerful features

Let’s talk about the internet; specifically your Association’s website at www.arcounties.org (for those who haven’t visited!). We are, currently, in the process of upgrading and improving our website. It has been over seven years since the last upgrade and, although the site is still functional, it has become a little dated. In addition, technologies have changed and that means we have to change in order to keep up. But, we want to do better than simply keeping up with the Joneses; we think your AAC website should be a leader, not a follower. To this end we are endeavoring to change not only the look of the website but the whole mission of our site. Your Association is, in a broad sense, in the “information” business. Our mission is to find the information you need to be successful as county and district officials or employees. Once found we need to get that information to you in a timely fashion. When I first started at AAC we did this using the postal service, telephones and this new fangled invention known as the “fax” machine. Later we added email and finally our own AAC website. All of these steps were natural with one building upon the other. Now it is time for the next step in this evolution.

In October 2009 the AAC Board of Directors authorized a new direction for the Association as regards our website. In brief, your Directors approved a 180-degree shift in our current internet-website philosophy. Tat shift can best be summed up by the term “member driven”. What was once a passive site providing information to members and the general public will be converted to a password protected, more dynamic site focusing on member services. We want our website to provide a “one stop shopping” experience to our members. We will still have a lot of public information; however, we will have some areas that are “Members Only” and focus on your needs. Te following is a broad outline of the project:

1. Re-design website so that it is a dynamic, interactive site focusing on member services as opposed to the provision of purely public information. Your Association Board of Directors has authorized a sizeable investment in the site and that coupled with an ongoing commitment to keeping the website current as to technology and fresh, “what’s in and what’s out”, as regards website design and functionality. We don’t want to get behind as we go forward. Te new site should evolve with the times and technology.

2. Integrate an active legislative component that provides real-time (if possible) information, bill tracking AND an advocacy module with built in email, mail and telephone advocacy components as well as a mechanism for tracking and measuring response to advocacy. To this end we have contracted with Capsearch to provide the necessary software and data manipulation.

3. Create a separate section for benefits programs such as the AAC Risk Management Fund and the AAC Worker’s Compensation Trust. In essence this will be a sort of “site within a site” for members who also participate in these programs. It will reside behind a password protected firewall and will provide secure online forms, product information, etc.

4. Create a dynamic, searchable legal information section for all members containing answers to frequently asked questions from the staff at AAC as well as legal research capabilities.

5. Provide a system of automated press releases for quick action regarding AAC and county issues.

6. Take the new product to our membership in the form of “handson” training seminars as to the use of each of the site’s components.

In summary information is the stock and trade of the Association of Arkansas Counties. Te key to success in providing this “information” to county members is the effective use of technology. Te goal is to “retool” the AAC information machine by re-designing the existing website, as nearly as possible, to be a “one-stop-shopping experience” for our members. If we do this correctly we hope to have an effective, informative website that will be used by all of our members. I will provide you with an update on our progress in next quarter’s issue of County Lines. JEFF SIKES AAC Legislative Director

“We want to do better than simply keeping up with the Joneses; we think your AAC website should be a leader, not a follower.”