Do you work with code, data, or words? Do you need someone who does?

Introduction
Upcoming events
Other ways to participate
Past events

Introduction & motivation

We are organizing a “knowledge worker network” to help San Juan County knowledge workers succeed.

Programming, editing, graphic design, data analysis, and similar jobs are frequently done remotely by individual freelancers or small consulting groups; however, they often require contributions from other types of knowledge workers. For example, web development projects often require coding in various programming languages and managing databases, as well as graphic design, content writing, and editing. Other projects—such as those involving research or data crunching—may require a combination of statistical analysis, writing, illustration, and other skill sets.

San Juan County has many opportunities for growth in knowledge worker jobs. The county has a highly educated populace. In addition, people in diverse industries and types of jobs intermingle extensively on the islands. However, one challenge we have is that there are few existing structures for finding local people who have specific desired skills, and it can be difficult to travel off island. We want to explore ideas for making it easier for local knowledge workers to team up to do more and bigger projects.

For more info or to join our knowledge worker group on Slack, please contact us: mickey at sanjuansedc dot org.

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Upcoming events

Please Stand By.

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Other ways to participate

Networking: Join our online Slack group to connect with local knowledge workers and interested parties across San Juan County, and an email list to keep people apprised of events of interest.

Directory: We have also begun a directory focused on San Juan County businesses, organizations, and individuals who work in information-focused industries or related industries. If interested in joining, please contact us: mickey at sanjuansedc dot org.

Making: Also see our series of events on creating a makerspace system in San Juan County. A makerspace system will further local entrepreneurship, innovation, and training opportunities in a wide variety of areas. The connections between makerspaces and knowledge workers include digitally-controlled machinery, CAD, and engineering, among others.

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Past events

Software and Web Professionals Meetup

Dec. 17th, 5:30PM: San Juan County software and web professionals, including retired or aspiring professionals, are invited to a virtual meetup hosted by the Economic Development Council (EDC).

Our archipelago is home to many people in information-focused professions who work remotely or in local businesses. The goal of this event is to help people make connections with neighbors working in their industry, connections that will facilitate professional and business success in San Juan County.

This event will focus on software and web design/development; future events will focus on other information-centered industries. After a brief introduction about EDC programs for workers and businesses in information-focused industries, attendees will get a chance to meet and learn about others who work in tech and related industries.

Cross-Industry Symposium

We held a free event to connect knowledge workers with San Juan County businesses on November 20th at the San Juan Island Library* . This was an opportunity for people who work primarily with information – be it in the form of code, data, words, images, or another form – to meet people in other types of businesses, such as manufacturing, transportation, or tourism.

By bringing together members of different industries, we hoped to help local businesses find the resources they need to succeed within San Juan County. We envision that cross-industry interaction will make existing businesses more vibrant and spark new ventures.

We thank the businesses and their representatives who gave short presentations about their companies. Presenting businesses included Island Air, Luxel, Pelindaba Lavender, Roche Harbor Resort, San Juan Canvas, SIN Motolabs, and Windermere Real Estate San Juan Island.

Running a freelance or small consulting business

A panel and discussion on navigating challenges faced by freelancers and similar small businesses, November 7th, 2019 at the Orcas Island library* from 12:00 to 1:30 PM. This event was aimed at anyone interested in starting a new freelance or consulting business and those already running one.

Panelists Selby Lighthill of Lighthill Law, Mary Ann Sircely, of Sircely Marketing and Design, and James Bach of Satisfice gave short presentations on their areas of expertise, including legal, marketing, and pricing issues. Panel presentations were followed by discussion among all attendees.

Handouts

From Mary Ann Sircely: 10 Steps for Marketing (as PDF) and Marketing Strategy (as PDF)

From Selby Lighthill: Example Consulting Services Agreement (as PDF; 7 mb)

From James Bach: Running a Small Consulting and Training Company (as PDF)

Ferry Meet-up

On July 30th, we experimented with meeting on, or co-working on, the inter-island ferry to encourage cross-island networking. We talked about San Juan County industries and startup ideas.

Lopez Island Meet-up

San Juan County “knowledge workers” meet-up at the Lopez Island Library* on May 6th. We invited a panel of participants to discuss challenges they had solved or were working on solving in their business, organization, or professional development.

Orcas Island (01/16/2019) and San Juan Island (02/06/2019) meet-ups

We held our second meet-up at the Orcas Island Library on January 16th, 2019. There was a lot of enthusiasm for some form of knowledge worker directory, and some discussion ensued about how to implement such a directory. Other areas of interest included co-working spaces, mentoring activities, and organizing workshops for knowledge workers or for the larger community.

We also had a well-attended get-together at the San Juan Island Library on Feb. 6^th to give people a chance to chat one-on-one and make new connections.

San Juan Island meet-up (10/24/2018)

We had our first “knowledge workers” meet-up on Oct. 24^th, 2018 at the San Juan Island Library*. It was well attended, and we appreciated those attendees who came to San Juan Island from other islands despite the challenging ferry schedule. We tentatively proposed a meeting on Feb. 6^th, 2019, with the option of another meeting at an earlier date.

A few of the things that were discussed at the Oct. 24^th meeting, or came up afterwards, include the following:

One of the main themes was networking to find clients and share skills. To aid in networking among knowledge workers (to find clients, collaborators, etc.) regular informal meetups, quarterly meetings, or online discussion platforms were suggested. One problem that was identified as hampering local knowledge workers ability to collaborate or to refer each other to clients is the fear of losing clients to competitors. Encouraging the use of finder’s fees among local knowledge workers might ameliorate this. There are several approaches that might work for doing this.

Some suggestions to specifically facilitate finding clients/employers included: a registry of skill-sets, holding meetups with recruiters from the mainland, or organizing meetups with representatives of local businesses.

Some suggestions to facilitate both skill-building and networking included: organizing coding bootcamps or user groups (e.g. for computer languages). Another possibility might be to start an open-source project that would simultaneously benefit the SJC community and provide outlets for people to demonstrate their skills and learn new ones.

The challenge of learning about regulatory and other requirements facing freelancers (including things such as business licenses, accounting, etc.) was also brought up. Solutions might include workshops geared towards freelancers, an online information portal, or more frequent networking events to share information among freelancers.

Some attendees expressed a desire for physical or virtual co-working spaces to help maintain one’s motivation; some options that were suggested included using existing spaces such as coffee shops and libraries, or opening a new low-cost space for coworking.

Please feel free to share your thoughts about what might help you as a San Juan County knowledge worker or a client of San Juan County knowledge workers by contacting us at: mickey at sanjuansedc.org.

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*Note, these events are not affiliated with the San Juan, Orcas, or Lopez Libraries.