Roles and Responsibilities for Web Council Members

Roles

Web Council members have three primary roles as the representative of their respective organizations on the Web Council:

1. Communications. Web Council members should be able to communicate skillfully in writing and orally with a wide variety of staff and management. They should possess strong editorial abilities and should be able to reshape Web content so that it is in plain language and is written for the Web. Essential skills include corresponding openly and directly, listening, and eliciting and applying technical information.
2. Leadership. Web Council members provide leadership in coordinating the publication of information on EPA's website and should serve as advocates for One EPA Web. Members are expected to be familiar with, communicate, and ensure compliance with:
   • One EPA Web principles,
   • EPA Web policies, procedures and standards,
   • Federal Web policies,
   • and best web practices.
3. Problem Solving. Successful Web Council members are self‐motivated, creative and flexible. Serving as a Web Council member places a high demand on troubleshooting and creative abilities. Web Council members have broad freedom to act using their professional judgment. They conduct assessments, make recommendations, determine direction, initiate planning efforts, and defuse conflicts.

General Responsibilities

Web Council members serve as the primary links between the Web Council and their AAship or Region. They:

• represent their Region or AAship on the Web Council and attend regular monthly Council meetings,
• communicate One EPA Web efforts to staff and management in their Region or AAship,
• coordinate Regional/AAship web development within broader Agency efforts,
• report on One EPA Web progress to their organization and to OPA and OEI,
• ensure that Web content developed by their AAship or Region follows One EPA Web principles, EPA web standards and procedures, and best web practices,
• implement the policy, resource, and priority topic decisions of the Web Executive Board, and
• advise their Web Executive Board representative.

Within the One EPA Web framework and EPA’s Web governance, Web Council members serve as:

• the primary point of contact on day-to-day operational issues for OPA and OEI,
• the day-to-day coordinator of their AAship's or Region's online communications efforts,
• an initial point of contact for other EPA organizations for everything from simple questions to establishing formal collaborative efforts,
• a primary internal communications contact: they will brief their AAs/RAs and Web Executive Board members as appropriate, as well as the next level of managers (typically office directors in headquarters offices and division directors in Regional offices),
• the conduit of information about Web topics to their AAship or Region,
• experts on EPA online communications requirements for staff in their AAship or Region, and
• an initial sounding board for new ideas emerging from their AAship or Region.

Specific Responsibilities

1. Ongoing

   • Participate in Web Council meetings. At monthly meetings, Web Council members are expected to:
     • discuss details and technical issues;
     • raise concerns and develop solutions;
     • put forward innovations to be considered for addition to EPA web standards; and
     • report back on information requested of them.
   • Communicate with Editors in Chief (EICs)
     • review expectations for EIC roles and responsibilities; required skill set
     • refer EICs to training, information in the Web Guide, and other resources for both content and technology (i.e., Drupal Web content management system)
     • review lists of top audiences and tasks before approving a new web area request.
     • ensure that EICs submit the Web Guide form “Request to Create New Web Area In Drupal WebCMS” only for topics that are identified in Regional or AAship annual web plans. If a new area is needed, discuss with the Communications Director (CD) or Public Affairs Director (PAD) to ensure resources exist to support it and then add it to your plan.
     • work with EICs, CD or PAD, and other Web Council members to determine subject-matter experts who will work with EICs on sites for agency-wide topics
     • review draft sites
       1. ensure sites meet microsite format, image guidance, and Web standards (See Web Guide)
       2. ensure content is written for the Web
       3. complete Content Review checklist and submit, along with list of top audiences and tasks, to the Office of Web Communications
     • after sites have been published, remind EICs to:
       1. regularly review and update content
       2. check for and fix broken links
       3. check any advanced features (maps; videos; sign-ups for alerts; features that rely on javascript including slideshows, podcasts, drop-downs) to ensure that they are working
       4. monitor site performance using analytics
       5. report to OPA and OEI as required.
   • Communicate with Management
     • brief staff and mid-level management about One EPA Web
     • manage reporting of Web site statistics and analytics; make those reports available for Regional and AAship staff review
     • ensure that managers of EICs understand EIC roles, responsibilities and required skill set
     • brief PAD or CD on EIC progress / review progress against the submitted Web plan.

2. Periodic (At Least Twice Each Year)

   • Review materials
     • All One EPA Web Guidance and Checklists
     • All Web policies, procedures and standards listed in the Web Guide
   • Take Training
     • Review written materials for any trainings listed on One EPA Web Guidance and Checklists and in the Web Guide that you have not already taken.
     • Participate in any new training sessions offered to Web Council members or as a part of One EPA Web.
     • Note: Web Council members are not required to take training in the WebCMS, but an understanding of the content management and publishing system is helpful in reviewing microsites.

3. Annual

   • Develop Web Plans
     1. Create annual Web plans according to guidance provided by the Office of Web Communications
     2. Facilitate the development of annual Web plans within Region or AAship
     3. Coordinate topics across other agency organizations