Listing out the Organization Statement and a rough detailing of the Org Chart for the TalkShop startup.
(Edit Jan 04, 2025: Leaving the hateful comments left on the blog to serve as a reminder of why we are doing this! I am going to print and put up these hateful comments in the entrance lobby of the TalkShop office when we open! THIS hate and trolling is what we are fighting against!)
The Professor has been on my case for months saying that I should get the Organizational Statement written down detailing our Vision Statement, strategic direction and Org Chart before writing the first line of code. Well, it is a little late in the day 'cos the first few modules have already been written! But today, took some time off work to do just that!
We are building a Community-owned and Operated platform that will syndicate News from various sources and provide our subscribers with the tools and a public platform to express themselves on current events as well as organize communities for collective action. We commit ourselves to building a safe place where Subscribers can express themselves freely without fear or intimidation. We will use Technology to empower our Subscribers to make informed choices with regards to assessing the reliability and authenticity of News Sources. We commit to always keep the TalkShop platform as a community owned enterprise operating purely in Public Interest. We also commit to repaying our dues to the Community by providing financial and other support to social causes. Finally, we commit to never associating with Political Groups including PACs and keep ourselves free of bias!
The TalkShop News Syndication Service (NSS) will collate news from various sources, classify them on various criteria like Authenticity and deliver the same to the User in the order in which it was created. We will never block or limit visibility of any News source or Subcriber Posts and the delivery will always be based on the Preferences set by the Subscribers themselves.
Features:
1. Organic Trends based on actual User content
2. News subscription to various sectors/communities like Aviation News, or Business News or US Politics.
3. Short form posts for all subscribers. Long form Articles with customised URLs for Premium Subscribers.
4. Communities for Specific interest groups. A number of pre-set Communities will be created on a regular basis. At a later date, I intend to allow (Premium) Subscribers to create and curate their own private/public Communities. The first community which I plan to build is for Aviation Geeks - with a specific focus on Airline Crew/Staff. The discussion forum will be powered off our TalkShop API. More on this in a separate post.
5. Secure 2-way Chats with individual Members and Communities.
6. Employment Listings & Search for ALL subscribers.
All News Content and posts made by users will publicly available. However only subscribers will have the ability to comment and participate in Communities. I believe implementing a Subscription model will not only keep the platform free of corporate pressures but will also keep away most of the Trolls which have been a problem on other SM platforms. Subscriptions will begin at $25/year for the base level, going upto $70/year for the Premium level. Pricing details will be updated in due course as we get closer to going live.
Organization Chart
At the HQ, we will have a team in charge of setting up and maintaining our servers. This team will grow in increments of 3 as we scale up operations depending on the number of subscribers. I also see the need for a "CodeBase Owner" who will be in-charge of collating and safekeeping the source code from the various teams as well as keeping the documentation and manuals up to date. The CTO role will be responsible for interacting with the Technical Leads to get the Feature List completed, tested and rolled out. The CTO will also be responsible to keep the CodeBase secure and updated via the CB-OWNER. Finally the CTO will interface with the SADM team to keep our Server infra up to date and available at all times. Going forward, I foresee the need to further structure the SADM department as we scale up operations.
The COO will have a key role in interfacing with external Vendors and Sales Teams during the course of operations.
The CEO is the captain of the ship! The Buck stops with him! Apart from interfacing with other stakeholders to keep the enterprise running, the CEO will be in-charge of our "Social Responsibilities" which will be a key part of our work. More on that in a separate post.
In the first year at least, I will have to play the role of CEO, COO, CTO and CB-OWNER at once! Multitasking is important to save on running costs as we grow! In the long run however, we may need to find trusted and qualified associates who share our vision for this venture and can take on roles like CEO, COO, and CB-OWNER.
I am trying to to build this platform for Communities to educate and express themselves while also combating the scourge of fake news and hate! As a refugee myself, I understand first hand the dangers of letting these go unaddressed! I also recognise the need to keep this platform free from Corporate Pressures and so we will neither take money from Corporate interest groups nor play the Valuation Game.
You can help make this venture a reality with a small contribution by clicking on the link below. The first 1000 people to contribute $25 and above will receive free membership for life. The first 1000 people to contribute $5 and above will receive free membership for one year.
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