As you would have seen from my recent blog post, I am ecstatic about the fact that the 2011 South by Southwest (SXSW) interactive festival will have a “Health Track” as part of it’s mainstream sessions and, what’s even more exciting, is that a big part of this was due to the success of the Social Health 2010 unconference (read: “New for SXSW 2011: One-Day Health Track“). And to top that off, I have also been invited to be a member of the 2011 SXSW Advisory Board for “Health” — you can see how sessions are scored on the Panel Picker here.

While I am extremely honored to be on the “Health Track” ad board, one disappointing “side effect” is that I am not able to submit a proposal for a session within the “Health Track” (it would be silly to judge your own submission )

While many businesses and corporations have started to adopt social media as part of their marketing, communications, and other business practices, regulated industries – such as pharmaceuticals, financial services, and the automotive industry – often face challenges and restrictions that other industries do not need to consider, such as federal regulations and industry guidelines.

This panel brings together an esteemed group of social media pioneers within regulated industries, who have not only transformed their organization’s approach to social media, but also successfully planned and executed numerous social media programs, while adhering to their respective industry regulations and limitations. The session will cover:

• A general overview of some regulated industry regulations/ limitations
• Championing organizational change, with respect to digital communication
  
• Developing internal policies/guidelines for social media
  
• Working with internal legal/regulatory departments for reviews and/or approvals
• Developing social media strategies within highly conservative corporate culture

Questions Answered:

1. What are some of the federal/industry limitations that challenge regulated industries?
2. How do you get around existing internal policies and guidelines that prohibit social media activities?
3. What needs to be established before implementing social media within conservative corporate cultures?
4. How do you develop an ongoing process that meets the expectations of the social media culture, yet adheres to the limitations of being regulated?
5. How do you develop and implement strategies that will work within the conservative limitations of a regulated industry?