1) Motion Study – do the keg shuffle
Ever notice that there is a ton of space in the downstairs of Owen but we cluster together? We will analyze security camera data to understand student traffic flows during kegs and propose a new keg placement to disperse the crowd create more opportunity for conversation.
2) More faculty – connect graduating students with ProfsMaybe the Deans will come over once in a while, or they are there for trivia night, but let’s face it -- faculty, staff and administration tends to shy away from Kegs. We say invite them out! Let’s have a night where faculty and staff attend to say farewell to their favorite students. MACC, MSF and second year MBA students are graduating – get your picture taken with Sagi before you leave.
3) Alt Beverages – soda, water, other liquidsMaybe you do not like beer (blasphemy!), maybe you are a wine gal, or maybe you would prefer a cool soda while chatting with friends. We realize not everyone is always game for a beer, so we say “have more liquids.” Have some non-alcoholic drinks and mixers if you want to make your own.
Thanks for your idea. Maybe you could incorporate "bring a friend" or "invite a prof" themes, too. Another idea would be to coordinate with student groups to arrange meetings on Thursday afternoons as an extra incentive to stay late at school. Question: how are you going to define and measure success?
ReplyDeleteI like #2 the most. We can learn from our professors outside of class just as much or more than we can in class. Maybe try and create an event that incents them to attend.
ReplyDeleteI really like idea #3, this year I have only gone to kegs a couple of times because beer is really not appealing to me. I'd go far more often if there were soda, wine, or even some alternative such as hard cider!
ReplyDeleteI like #1 with the change of location. I think they should be moved outside into the courtyard for the rest of the semester. Or right next to that door if they have to be inside for some reason. If the weather is nice that would be the most social place on Owen property to have it. A little live music never hurts too.
ReplyDeleteI like your third suggestion, and think that would have implications that would essentially implement ideas one and two. I personally love beer (I mean, come on!) but other options would nice. Recognizing the financial limitations of offering wine and liquor on a regular basis, perhaps there could just be some communication encouraging students to byob, and some coolers or fridge space to keep their drinks cold.
ReplyDeleteMore importantly, I think offering non-alcoholic drinks would be far more inclusive to the large group of students who don't drink at all, or try to study on a Thursday night (first years, I'm looking at you). Soda and coffee would be a great way to get more people to take a break, have some professors hang out for a while, and hopefully foster more interaction between new groups of people.
1) People seem to cluster near the beer. I would love to see kegs moved outside during nicer weather. You could also spread the individual kegs out around the lobby rather than clustered in one area.
ReplyDelete2) This would be fun for a few kegs, but it does not seem to solve the overall problem.
3) Please implement this! I would enjoy kegs a lot more if there were more drink options. Wine would be great. Also, please have water and soda that are cold, rather than room temperature.
1. Shake up the location. Some Thursdays I don't stick around just because I want to get away from the building for a bit. Even just outside would make a big difference. Perhaps finding a near by establishment to host them every 2 months or something would spice this up a bit.
ReplyDelete2. I'm always against "mandatory" fun, if the profs aren't showing up, its cause they don't want to be there. We need to come up with a more compelling reason for them to show up.
3. While beer is my social beverage of choice hands down, I also understand its not for everyone. A box of wine or two might work wonders on attracting more students and faculty.
I think idea #3 is great. It would be a fantastic way to include more people. I also think that doing this could actually help disperse the crowd a bit, too, because you could have different drink options offered at different locations in the lobby.
ReplyDelete#1: This would be a good idea to accommodate more people.
ReplyDelete#2: These images could also be used to show faculty-student interaction at the future discover/welcome weekends.
#3: The Best Idea: I personally do not come to Kegs as I don't drink beer. If there are other drinks it would attract more people.
These are three very different solutions both because they address the problem in different ways and because you will face different constraints in trying to implement any of them. The first solution requires some time and effort by the members of your group to analyze the videotapes and attempt to understand the patterns of student movement, but the actual process of moving the kegs to a different location would not be that hard. The second solution requires getting the cooperation and support of members of the faculty, which is not always an easy task. The third solution may require securing some additional funding from Owen as well as gaining the cooperation of whoever actually purchases the kegs.
ReplyDeleteBut I will push you to think a little deeper about one of the core elements of your problem, which is that the people who already attend the kegs already have a "comfortable rut" of people they always hang out with. If new people show up to the kegs or if the regulars do their socializing in a different space, how can you ensure that people actually take advantage of the opportunity to network with other Owen students and faculty? It is late in the year and people may be unwilling to change their routines without some extra incentives, so I encourage your team to see if you can take your innovation one step farther to truly "shake things up".
I don’t know how it is in America, but in Europe you can’t do this, it is illegal to get the information in such a way. How about you just observe it for several times? Is a camera really needed?
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a fun idea, you need to figure out why do are they reluctant to attend Kegs and then solve the problematic if possible. We have also a kind of a Keg’s event at my university and Professors HAVE to attend it, it is not an option. How about the students? Are they keen on having a picture with Sagi?
I see that you have identified several possible reasons for the problem: maybe not enough professors are coming, maybe you need more beverages, but on the whole you know there is problem, it seems you don’t know what exactly is causing it, maybe you should have investigate more on that issue and then the most effective solution would be clear: for example if it was because o the drinks than implement solution 3. The first idea sounds actually like “problem identification/investigation”.
I really like idea #3. There are some people that dont know drink beer or want a change from beer. I think attendance will rise with more creative drink ideas.
ReplyDeleteThe idea is to mix it up and create some form of varaiation and I think you've found some of that in #1. Making use of the big space is an issue and once this is addressed the idea of kegs should become more apparent. #2, not sure how this would go over...most people are looking to break free of class come Thurs evening and that means putting work, professors, etc behind them...#3, i like it, change is good, perhaps you could entertain the idea of having theme nights (i.e. one night can be Irish night and have alcohol from that region...etc)
ReplyDeleteI think that idea #1 would be very good since many of the groups settle in their spots in relation to where the kegs are. You could also move the kegs to a different location every time so that every thursday you have to think a little more rather than just going to the same place every time.
ReplyDeleteIdea #3 is also very good, especially the non-alcoholic drinks. It could help people who are busy with school work at least come out and be social with a drink in their hands yet not be alcoholic which would interfere with their school work.
#2: I like that a little, but has anyone ever invited a professor to show up at kegs? My guess is that they would show up if asked, but most already have networks too big to maintain already. Before pushing for mass professor invites, honestly consider whether you personally would go over "solo" and talk to one of them you don't know.
ReplyDeleteIn the military there was a term called "mandatory fun". Once it gets applied to kegs... things are bad.
Alternative: Sagi in a dunking tank for chairty dollars (finance student unpaid internship $tipends)
#3: Yes, an Arnold Palmer is half lemonade and half ice tea. I'll have two.
Option 3 sounds simple and easy but non alcoholic beverages are already served at kegs. I like your ideas but I wonder if they will make a difference you speak of changes being made to kegs but you do not address what motivates those who come to kegs versus those who don’t. Are these the actual reasons that people don’t come to kegs.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the location of the kegs doesn't seem to be a major issue. The kegs are often spread out throughout the lobby. When a lot of people attend kegs, people utilize the full space on the first floor. I like your second idea. Students/faculty seem to attend kegs when their is a specific event planned for the evening.
ReplyDeleteAs many have already commented, I like your 3rd suggestion of providing alternate beverages as I know several students who don't enjoy beer. However, it would be difficult and expensive to serve wine. What do you do with opened but unfinished bottles? Where do you store bottles that are unopened? Is there a way to control the pouring to prevent big messes? How can you keep white wine (or other soft drinks for that matter) chilled?
ReplyDeleteI like all of your suggestions for how to improve kegs, and I agree that they have certainly been lacking in attendance and entertainment value this year compared to last year. I think the point about providing alternative beverages is especially good, as I know many members of my class who don't drink beer.
ReplyDeleteAlso, you may consider incorporating more themes into kegs. I find that kegs with activities, i.e. trivia night, global food night, casino night, etc. tend to be much better attended and more fun in general. Perhaps an MBA Olympics themed kegs that allows for accrual of Clash of the Classes points? Maybe kegs in the courtyard when the weather is better?
I think people will always hang around the kegs. There already is soda and water at kegs, but maybe that should be promoted more since it seems some people don't see it or it runs out too fast. I like the idea about moving the kegs to the courtyard or connecting it to events to promote kegs. If people don't show up though, then consider the people wanting to go versus the keg placement.
ReplyDeleteI like the shuffle idea...how about this? Most people like to play games while they socialize and drink, so how about adding some gaming opportunities to kegs (ping pong tables, flip cup, Wii). Even for those that don't like to game, they can watch and converse.
ReplyDeleteLove the effort with the pictures in the posting
ReplyDelete#3 is most appealing to me
#1 sounds too technical and constrained by factors like number of people and location of kegs. What about moving the kegs further apart and having more of them?
#2 It involves a change in behavior which though appealing might be hard. #3 and #2 might work in tandem
I actually think all three are interesting. I like the idea of changing the layout of the kegs. I think Andrew Bouldin mentioned placing kegs outside. I think placing at least one of the kegs in the courtyard if there is a minimum temperature might attract the fair weather fans.
ReplyDelete1) this is a good idea to try and spread the crowd out. sometimes, i think kegs are put in different places (other than by the mens bathroom) but people don't know about them, so therefore people just tend to stay in the place where they KNOW there will be one. Signs above the new locations would help -- also changing up the locations every week so people don't grow accustomed to the same spot might also help.
ReplyDelete2) i like this idea, but i don't think its very realistic. faculty/staff are not going to show up because they are invited... they have to have some other incentive. theme nights are good (trivia and chili cook off)
3) this is a GREAT idea... but the huge concern I can think of is the business hit that the 810 cafe would take... I think the 810 cafe does a decent amount of business for people who want non alcoholic drinks
These are ideas people have wondered about for some time now. For instance, no matter what is going on in other parts of the house, people always congregate in kitchens at house parties. There could be beer in other rooms and the kitchen could be the most cramped part of the house, still that's where people go. Did you guys see if there are any other studies with ideas that have been done on this?
ReplyDeleteI don't have anything profound to add here-- just want to point out that you have solutions to at least two different problems. #1 seems to be about generating more mix in the conversations a kegee has, whereas #2 & 3 are focused on bringing a different set of characters to party. That said, I think the environment has a powerful effect on social relationships and it would be really interesting to watch how people process that change (they'll probably not even be fully aware why their behavior has changed).
ReplyDelete#3 proposes a good solution to attracting people who may not be interested in going as kegs currently stands. I think the drink variety issue is a real one. and one that can also be prototyped (or surveyed) rather quickly. #2 is a little harder nut to crack as there are many different reasons why faculty/staff don't go to kegs- among them family obligations, the fact that many are there starting at 8 in the morning, that Friday is a work day, that may be perceived by some as a "student event" and their presence may not be fully welcome in that environment where students want to blow off steam. An invitation as you have proposed might dispel some of those ideas and may allow people to plan attending one or two kegs over the mod. Also an "easy to prototype" idea.
I think the best way to improve kegs is to have more activities during kegs. Someone else mentioned how kegs was more fun last year due to all the different events. This also attracted more faculty. Offering more beverages has always been suggested but there just isn't the money for it. When the weather was nice last year, the kegs were moved outside.
ReplyDeleteI think #1 would be most appropriate because both #2 and #3 are currently done. We've invited others to attend the kegs and/or provided other drinks and neither has worked at this time.
ReplyDelete