I’ve been at Melbourne Water for over six months but haven’t yet blogged about what I actually do there. So, thanks to the end-of-year holiday season that has given me the time to get back into blogging, here goes.
What Do I Do There?
My job title is ‘Websites Manager’ and that role sits in the External Affairs team which itself is part of the broader Communications & Community Relations group.
My tasks include:
- Managing all of Melbourne Water’s websites (i.e. the main site and various sub-sites)
- Developing and implementing a Web & New Media Strategy for organization (this includes getting the organization involved with social media)
- Helping knowledge specialists from across the business create and maintain their web content
- Proactively seeking content to place on the web (this includes content that site visitors want to see and content that we want site visitors to see)
- Liaising between our web solution provider and the rest of the business (including, sometimes our own internal IT department)
- Managing the Website Advisor (who focuses primarily on the online needs of the Waterways group)
More generally, my job involves three things:
- Tactical management: Managing web content and being the go-to guy for everything related to the web (and, increasingly, multimedia and social media).
- Strategic management: Finding out what our current online presence is, determining what we want that online presence to be over the coming years, and figuring out how we’re going to get there. This includes doing things like a complete site overhaul and pursuing new online models of stakeholder engagement (specifically, social media).
- People management: Overseeing work done by the Website Advisor and managing the web team’s relationship with the rest of the organization.
That’s a lot to do but I’m having an awesome time doing it. If it didn’t keep me so busy, I almost wouldn’t call it “work”.
What’s it Like to Work There?
It’s awesome. I love the people, I love the culture, and I love the commitment everyone has to their work, to Melbourne, and to the planet in general. It’s really great to work alongside people who are experts in their fields (many of them are geeks like me) and who love the work that they do.
I really appreciate the fact that the organization truly cares about, and cares for, its employees. And I love that we don’t have to leave our lives (and the rest of the world) at the doorstep when we step into the office.
I love the range of work that the organization does – everything from:
- sourcing and storing water,
- treating and providing water (to Melbourne’s private water retailers), and
- taking care of our rivers, creeks, wetlands, and (soon) coastline,
- to collecting, treating, and safely disposing of our sewerage.
Finally, I am impressed by the importance and emphasis the organization places on good communication and stakeholder engagement. Indeed, excellent stakeholder engagement is a core strategic objective for Melbourne Water. I am particularly empowered by this focus because so much of that communication and engagement is moving into the online space (including social media) and that’s specifically what I am responsible for (and really enjoy doing).
So, You Like it, Then?
Yes, very much so!