It will be a first for me. In fact, it will probably be a first for all of the participants, as well as the workers' compensation industry. The first workers' comp “Twitterchat” will happen tomorrow at 2:00PM eastern. This event consists of several industry leaders (I am reticent to use that term to describe myself, but happy to apply it to the other participants) participating in an online Q&A and community discussion over current issues within workers' comp. This will, of course as the name implies, happen using Twitter. The event is being organized and sponsored by GENEX Services.
Participants will include:
Roberto Ceniceros, Risk & Insurance; @rceniceros
Bob Wilson,WorkersCompensation.com; @wcconnections
Mark Walls, LinkedIn's Work Comp Analysis Group; @wcanalysisgroup
Stephen Sullivan, WorkCompWire ; @work_comp_wire
Ron Skrocki, GENEX Services; @skrockiron
Melinda Hayes, GENEX Services; @melindahayes_
Questions put to the group will include current and pressing topics for the workers' compensation industry. The unique thing about this event is that anyone tracking the hashtag #workcompchat will be able to participate.
For simplicity organizers are asking all interested parties to use this link to monitor and participate:
http://twubs.com/workcompchat
What a brave new world we find ourselves in. 5 short years ago no one knew the difference between a “twitter” and a “tweet”. And now we are using twubchat to tweet on the hashtag #workcompchat. I honestly don't know whether we are moving forward or sliding backward into the primordial ooze.
If you have not picked up on it, even though @wcconnections likely has the largest workers' comp specific following on twitter (over 3,000), it is not personally my preferred communication platform. While I am thrilled to be asked to participate in tomorrow's event, I view twitter as homage to the shortening American attention span in a flood of unstoppable information, struggling to grasp any concept greater than 140 characters in length.
For anyone who has ever met me, they know that I certainly struggle to communicate anything in less than 140 characters. I can barely trash talk within those restrictions, let alone fully opine. This should be interesting. It very possibly could be an enlightening dialogue incorporating an entire village, or it could for me be a colossal meltdown when I can't fit my intended point within the prescribed character limitation.
You will know things have gone seriously awry if you see a tweet from @wcconnections that ends with (1/2043). That is twitter-lingo for 2,042 more posts following to complete this single answer.
Be sure to join us tomorrow. Whatever happens, I expect it will be a lot of fun. And someone somewhere may learn something, and for that I truly give a twit.
_________________________________________________
To participate:
Workers' Comp Twitterchat – #workcompchat
2:00PM Eastern
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Location: http://twubs.com/workcompchat