how to write handover speech

ZIPDO GUIDES

How To Run A Project Handover Meeting

Successfully run a project handover meeting by clearly outlining responsibilities, communicating effectively, detailing future plans, and ensuring all key stakeholders understand their roles moving forward.

• Steps in this Guide: 7
• Updated: March 12, 2024

A Project Handover Meeting is a formal conference where project deliverables, responsibilities, and outstanding tasks are transitioned from one team to another, often from the project development team to the maintenance or operations team. It ensures stakeholders clearly understand their new roles and expectations related to the continued management of the project’s outputs.

Critical aspects, such as workflows, user guides, technical documents, system access rights, and any outstanding project works, are all discussed, transferred, and accepted by the new team. This transition process aims to ensure continuity, mitigate risks, and confirm all pertinent project information is communicated properly to maintain or enhance project outcomes moving forward.

How To Run The project handover meeting As A Manager: Step-By-Step

Next, we will share our step-by-step guidelines for running a project handover meeting:

Step 1: Planning the Meeting

Step 2: preparation of handover documents, step 3: pre-meeting communication, step 4: conducting the handover meeting, step 5: finalizing and approval, step 6: post-meeting follow up, step 7: continual support and feedback.

This is crucial because it establishes the framework for the entire meeting process. From selecting the venue to deciding the appropriate time, inviting necessary attendees, and crafting the agenda, each detail leads to a productive meeting. You can utilize resources such as project management software or calendar tools to efficiently schedule the meeting and send out notifications to participants regarding the date, time, and location.

Create a comprehensive handover document detailing all aspects of the project. This should cover objectives, performance metrics, resources, roles, and responsibilities. Additionally, provide updates on the project’s progress and outline any outstanding tasks or identified challenges requiring attention in the future.

ZipDo, our app, is designed to make team meeting preparations more efficient. Meeting leads will appreciate how all previous meeting information is centrally stored, accessible for recurring meetings. This streamlines the preparation process and ensures that all important points are covered.

Establish open communication with all attendees prior to the meeting, providing ample time to prepare. Clearly outline the agenda, specify any materials they need to bring, emphasize the importance of preparation and encourage their engagement by reviewing the handover document beforehand. This sets clear expectations, promotes active participation and ensures a more efficient meeting process.

ZipDo optimizes the preparation process for team meetings. As the person in charge, you’ll enjoy centralized access to information from past meetings, including collaborative meeting agendas and notes, which simplifies planning for future sessions. This feature ensures that all vital topics are addressed.

Learn how to write a collaborative meeting agenda.

Thanks to ZipDo, you can create a new meeting culture in your team and increase productivity. You have all information about past and upcoming meetings in one central location and can ensure that all your team members have access to the content.

During the meeting, actively engage all participants by going through the handover document in detail, stimulating discussions, and providing clarifications to promote understanding. Emphasize everyone’s roles and responsibilities, provide a comprehensive update on the project’s status, and encourage an open forum for queries, concerns, or suggestions to ensure a smooth and effective transition.

Securing mutual agreement and acceptance from all team members regarding the project handover process is crucial. It solidifies the team’s understanding and commitment to the transition. This step might also necessitate obtaining formal endorsement from senior management or clients, ensuring that all parties involved acknowledge and accept the prearranged handover terms, thereby reducing potential misunderstandings or disagreements later on.

After completion of the meeting, initiate a systematic follow-up. This entails distributing meeting minutes, wrapping up with final handover documents, and presenting clear action plans. This coordinated effort not only guarantees that everyone has a unified understanding but also ensures essential details are thoroughly documented, serving as a valuable reference for future discussions or evaluations.

Handover is a process that extends beyond the confines of a meeting, primarily characterized by aiding the novel team or individual as they integrate into the project. It is essential to remain accessible to handle queries or problems that may emerge, and periodically touch base to ascertain all operations are progressing smoothly. The continuity and success of the transfer largely depend on the ongoing support and proactive engagement you provide to the new team during their assimilation.

Exemplary Template

During a project handover meeting, it is crucial to discuss key topics such as project objectives, deliverables, timelines, budgets, and any outstanding work. Additional topics to cover include project progress, lessons learned, risks, and support needed during the transition. Effective communication and documentation are essential to ensure a smooth handover.

Gradual transitions, clear communication, and seamless operations are key aspects of a successful project handover. With the stakes so high, do you ever wonder how to conduct a flawless project handover meeting? Look no further! This comprehensive blog post is crafted to guide you through the ins and outs of running a project handover meeting effectively. From carefully communicating every detail to ensuring a smooth transition, we will delve into the essential strategies and tips. So, whether you’re a project management novice or an experienced professional aiming to hone your skills, join us as we unlock the secrets to a successful project handover procedure. Let’s embark on this enlightening venture together.

The main purpose of a project handover meeting is to ensure a smooth transition of a project or responsibilities from one team or individual to another. It's where the project team can present the completed work, discuss key deliverables, and address any open issues or tasks.

Typically, project handover meetings are attended by the project team, the person or team assuming responsibility for the project, and any other key stakeholders. This can include project managers, team leads, and client representatives.

Key topics can include a review of the project's goals and objectives, a summary of completed work, an overview of any outstanding tasks or issues, and a discussion about future roles and responsibilities. It's also important to cover any necessary training or support the new team may need.

A project handover meeting should typically begin with a brief introduction and overview of the project. This is then followed by a detailed review of the project's deliverables, tasks, and any outstanding issues. It should conclude with a Q&A session and a clear plan for post-handover support and communication.

Important documents can include the project plan, a list of deliverables, project reports, system or operation manuals, and maintenance schedules. It's also crucial to provide contact information for key team members and any other relevant supporting documents.

Step-by-Step: How To Run A Project Handover Meeting

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The Layman's Doctor

Bringing Medicine Home

A Guide to Handing over

Handing over patients/ tasks is an important part of practicing medicine. Since it is impossible for us to always be the person continuing patient care, it is important for us as medical practitioners to hand over patients to the team coming on in a clear, concise and practical manner.

Below I just have a simple structure along with tips on how to properly have handovers.

General Handing Over Tips

Hand overs should be done verbally, preferably in person. Instant messaging should only be used as a supplement and not as the main or only method.

Prioritise the patients from most critical to least.

Document clearly what needs to be done in the docket so that the team coming on can use the docket as a reference.

Instructions should be clearly written. If a patient is for transfusion the blood product and the volume should be properly documented, the times labs should be repeated should be documented clearly, and so on.

Handing Over A Patient

Start with demographics, focusing mainly on name, sex and age.

Give the location of the patient so they’re easier to find.

Give a concise summary of the patient. This should include why they came in, important examination findings and laboratory findings and say what has been done so far. This should also include what the plan is now.

Give clear instructions on what you want to be done, when you want it to be done and WHY you want it to be done.

Handing Over a Ward

Please note, that this does not cover (explicitly) walk through handovers where you go through the entire ward. .

Start with the most critical patients first.

If a patient has a poor prognosis the incoming team should be made aware.

If a patient is for ‘do not resuscitate’ the incoming team should be made aware.

Be clear about which patients need to be reviewed and why.

Handing Over Between Disciplines

Follow the guide for “handing over patients.”

Give information that is pertinent to the team you’re asking to see/ review the patient. If it is between Obstetrics and Paediatrics, demographic information, gestational age, parity, comorbidities, any pertinent incidents (such as passing meconium stained liquor), current status of mother and baby should be given.

Be prepared to answer questions. This helps the other discipline know the urgency and the tools and help they will need. Eg. calling orthopaedics for a broken limb on a primarily surgery patient. Be ready to give information about mobility, pulse, function etc.

Put it in writing that you have informed the discipline- along with the time and the person you spoke to.

If a patient is for blood transfusion by the oncoming team ensure that the group and cross match is up to date, document and inform the team of the blood group and don’t forget the consent.

When tasks that need to be done are being handed over, actions that could have been taken from before the on call team starts should be done, unless otherwise impossible.

Don’t handover things you had the time to do, but didn’t want/ couldn’t bother to do.

Hand over at your intra-level, intern to intern, resident to resident and so on. You may also hand over inter level as well.

While not usually done, documentation that a task was handed over is good practice.

If it is urgent, make it clear.

Always, get confirmation that your handover was acknowledged and understood.

Not everything needs to be a handover, some tasks can wait until the day team arrives.

Did I miss anything? Let me know. I am eager to hear about your handover experiences.

Samantha C. Johnson

Samantha C. Johnson The Layman’s Doctor: Bringing Medicine Home with articles, podcasts and videos all aimed at making medicine more accessible to all.

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I hope the new interns coming on see this! Improper handovers were a huge pet peeve of mine.

Thank you! Share share share!

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Home » Blog » Step By Step Guide On How To Write Handing Over Notes In 2022

Step By Step Guide On How To Write Handing Over Notes In 2022

How To Write Handing Over Notes 2022 … Are you looking for a way to write handing over notes? If yes, then this informative article is for you. You will be given detailed information about how to write handing over notes in 2022.

Interestingly, you have been doing this since your high school days. Such is ideally represented by a handing over a speech by a school prefect and in many other ways. However, you are possibly in the corporate world by now, and you have to make sure your handover notes are representative of all points in a concise text.

Handing over data is a way to simplify progression. They are simple notes to ease the transition when someone is leaving a role for new staff. How does one sum up their previous work and clearly state the vital responsibilities of the new employee in a handover report?

What Purpose Does Handover Notes Fulfil?

What is handing over notes? Ease of transition and continuity of business is one of the core objectives of every firm. And since employees have the freedom to stay and leave, handover reports have become a necessary document to ascertain flow and uninterruptedness.

So, if you are about to jet off to your dream holiday or taking a sabbatical, doing a handing over note is one of the essential things to do. Of course, you ought to do it at your earliest convenience to save time. The following are functions of a handover note:

• It is vital to ascertain that nothing integral is overlooked during the transition period. Regardless of the reason for the handover, some large and small matters ought to be conveyed. And without a detailed description, things might not come out clear.
• Handover reports ascertain that the new employee seamlessly settles in their position and feels more comfortable and confident with the new role.
• Handovers reduce the risk of knowledge and experience going with the leaving employee or one that is going on vacation.
• A handover works as a cleansing process meaning that one leaves with a clean slate. If there were unfulfilled responsibilities, they will either be completed or communicated earlier to the new staff.

What Should Be In Your Handover Report?

Are you wondering how to prepare to hand over notes? Once you are aware of the constituents of this report, you will know what to include. Of course, different roles warrant different contents for the handover note that you will prepare. However, specific details remain constant.

In your previous role, you have specific daily tasks and processes that complete your day. These form your routine, and they will be an integral component of your handing over-report. Here, reliant on your role in the organization, you will detail your fundamental day-to-day activities. If necessary, highlight the ones that are pivotal to the proper fulfillment of the position.

What files do you require for your daily routine? Detail all of them in the report. If there are project deadlines that the new employee ought to know about, list them down in the report. Meeting deadlines is one of the critical objectives of every company since they determine proper functionality and fulfillment of client desires.

Do not forget to mention all housekeeping rules for the new staff and write down all crucial contacts they will require for the proper fulfillment of their role. Remember that every company’s responsibilities for even the same position might differ, so, ascertain that you tweak the contents of the handing over report accordingly.

How To Write Handing Over Notes

After you are familiar with the critical content to include in your handover note, it is time to create the final copy. The hardest part is putting everything into perspective. How can you structure the entire report to make sense to the new employee, who probably has never worked in the same position a day in their life?

It is a good idea to give a detailed handover to the new individual. Sometimes, you might feel disengaged because of the circumstance of your departure, or you might be burnt out.

Regardless of your scenario, leaving your position on good terms will ascertain a smooth transition in your previous role as well as where you are going. And you can do it in the following steps.

1. Preparing For The Handover

Discussing the handover with your manager is the starting point of the process. Your superior will inform you of the best approach since they are aware of the most integral areas to cover to ascertain proper continuity.

The manager will probably tell what to focus on in the handover note. Since it is an official document that can be referred to in the future, you ought to prepare it using a formal approach applying the manager’s insight.

Converse with your work colleagues to find out if there is something they would like you to highlight. Since they will be working with the new employee, it is vital to get some feedback on what they think is essential to ideal cohesion.

2. Create An Outline

This is where handing over notes and sample letters will come in handy. It would be best if you created an outline so that you can know the data to include. Since you have a clear idea of your manager’s or any of your superior’s expectations, this section will be easy.

3. Eliminate All Loose Ends

Loose ends can be the biggest problem for a new employee. You ought to put great emphasis to get rid of any instance. Loose ends mean work that you might not have completed or something that is already in transition and requires some following up.

Put all of these in your handing-over notes – they will be of great assistance to the person that is joining the new position.

4. Finalize The Document

The final process of writing a handover report is creating an official document that is informed by all of the above steps. Since you already created an outline, patching it up with all the relevant information will not be hard.

If your organization has a template that all exiting employees ought to utilize, get it from the relevant department. Do not forget to run through the document with your superiors and any other appropriate staff.

Handing over notes highlights numerous matters that are important to the proper fulfillment of a position left vacant for a variety of reasons. In the document, the composer will have details on ongoing projects, upcoming deadlines, and events, action items, and even matters that require troubleshooting.

All the details in the document depend on the job’s responsibilities. This means that some will be short and shallow, while others will be lengthy and well-detailed. Nonetheless, the importance of the information cannot be underestimated.

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How to Write an Inspiring Farewell Speech: Step-By-Step

Updated 06/7/2022

Published 05/14/2020

Kate Wight, BA in English

Contributing writer

Cake values integrity and transparency. We follow a strict editorial process to provide you with the best content possible. We also may earn commission from purchases made through affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more in our affiliate disclosure .

There are many times in our lives when we have to say goodbye to the people we care about. We may retire or switch jobs. We may move away or graduate. We may even die. If you’re leaving a place or situation, you may be asked to give a farewell speech.

Jump ahead to these sections:

Step 1: determine your audience, step 2: figure out what you want to say, step 3: make an outline, step 4: be personal, step 5: don’t speak for too long, step 6: practice makes perfect, sample farewell speeches.

This can be nerve-wracking for people who aren’t experienced in writing speeches or speaking in public. You may be tempted to just read a farewell poem and call it a day. But even a novice writer can craft an inspiring farewell speech.

Here, we’ll break down how to write one step-by-step and also provide examples of farewell speeches from several different occasions.  

Knowing who you’re speaking to will determine the tone of your speech. If you’re giving a retirement speech or saying goodbye to a co-worker, you’ll want to be slightly more formal. It’s definitely not the right place to engage in risqué humor.

If you’re a valedictorian speaking to your classmates, strive for an uplifting and inspirational tone. If you’re eulogizing yourself at a living funeral, you can be more irreverent than you might be eulogizing someone else. Give thought to the appropriate tone for the occasion and go on from there. 

Even professional writers and public speakers can’t just whip up a speech in one draft. Before you start writing, take some time to jot down some ideas.

Are there particular stories you want to share about your time with the people you’re speaking to? Make a note of them. Are there specific anecdotes about coworkers or friends you want to revisit? Write those down, too. Once you’ve narrowed down what you want to say, you’ll find it a lot easier to begin writing.

Once you’ve figured out what you want to say, it’s time to write up an outline. A speech should include the following components:

• Introduction: This will set the tone for the rest of your speech. A good introduction will grab people’s attention and keep it on you. A good introduction will include a greeting to the audience. It may also contain an icebreaker like a joke to loosen up the crowd. Finally, it will let people know the purpose of the speech.
• Body: This is the meat of your speech. In the body, you can delve into the stories and anecdotes you wrote down in your brainstorming session. You will likely be talking about a few different events, so make sure to include transitions between events.
• Conclusion: Finally, you’ll need to wrap up your speech. Most conclusions will summarize things you’ve already covered. For a farewell speech, you may want to end on a poignant note, even if the rest of your speech has been fairly lighthearted. This lends it emotional resonance. 

You may want to make your speech feel perfect and polished. The problem with that is that a perfectly polished speech can end up feeling a little generic.

It’s important to infuse your speech with personal and specific stories. This will help your audience feel more connected to what you’re saying. 

Once you’ve completed your speech, it’s time to edit it down. People may start to tune you out if you go on for too long. Even if your introduction is attention-grabbing, it won’t keep people engaged indefinitely. Five minutes is an appropriate length for more casual speeches. For a more formal farewell speech, you could speak for up to ten minutes. This might apply to a valedictorian speech at graduation or a retirement dinner for an important company figure. 

Ultimately, you need to use your best judgment. Read your speech out loud, being sure to speak slowly and clearly enough to be understood. Factor in pauses for laughter during humorous moments. If your speech is too long, then go through and trim out any unnecessary parts. This will ensure your speech is as strong and memorable as possible.

You may think that once your speech is written, you’re all done. But there’s still one more important step. You need to be comfortable delivering your speech. This means practicing it as many times as it takes.

A lot of people will rush through speeches if they feel nervous or uncomfortable in front of a crowd. Practicing it at the correct speed will help ensure you don’t speak too fast on the actual day of a farewell event. It’s almost like muscle memory. As you practice, you can even note spots where you need to breathe or take a sip of water. Being prepared for little things like that can make you feel more confident.

Practicing can also help you memorize your speech. However, this doesn’t mean that you need to go up without cards or notes. Even the most well-prepared person can have a forgetful moment. Without notes, you may panic and go completely blank.

Keep your speech in front of you so you’re able to quickly pick up where you left off. Just don’t rely on your notes too heavily, either. You want to connect with the audience by making eye contact. Practicing and preparing can help you strike the right balance.  

Now that we’ve broken down the steps that go into writing a farewell speech, we’ll share some examples. You can see how to say goodbye to coworkers through a touching retirement speech. You can see how people say goodbye when graduating or moving away.

You can even see how someone eulogizes themselves at a living funeral . Read on for excerpts from all of these kinds of farewell speeches:

Example for saying goodbye at work or retirement

“Over the past twenty years, I’ve seen this company grow from five people to over five hundred. But even though the office has changed significantly over the years, some things remain the same. We are truly like a family here. We’re just a much larger family than we used to be. 

But just because I’m retiring, it doesn’t mean I don’t still care about every one of you. A family doesn’t stop being a family just because someone moves away. Anytime you need to talk, I’m just a phone call away.” 

Example for saying farewell at the end of someone’s life

“I’ve attended an unfortunately large number of funerals in the past several years. This is the first time I’ve ever attended my own, though. 

I decided to have a living funeral after burying so many of my other friends who also had terminal illnesses. I thought it was a real shame that they didn’t get to hear their friends and family members celebrate them. Perhaps selfishly, I want to hear all of you talk about how awesome I am.

But more than that, I wanted to take this opportunity to celebrate you, too. If you’re here, it’s because I can never fully express how much your support has meant to me while I’ve battled this illness. You’ve all helped me in so many ways. You’ve driven me to treatments. You’ve organized meal trains to feed my family. You’ve cleaned my house. You’ve taken care of my kids. You’ve told me jokes and let me vent. You’ve laughed with me and cried with me. You’ve been there for me in so many ways.

As you all know, we’ve hit a point where treatment isn’t doing anything to help anymore. I’ve gone ahead and discontinued it because it’s making me feel terrible and not actually doing anything. I’d rather go out peacefully and say goodbye on my own terms. And what better way to do that than throw myself a funeral party? So everyone please enjoy some food and music. And don’t forget to come over and tell me how great I am, because I do want to hear it.” 

Example for students or teachers

“Over the past four years, our class has been through a lot together. We’ve had ups and downs, but no matter what, we’ve always come through it closer than ever. Maybe it’s because we’re such a small school. While we might not all be the closest of friends, we don’t have the same cliques you might find at other schools. That might also be because many of us have been in school together since kindergarten. In a lot of ways, we’ve always been like a team. 

Now that we’re all going off to college, many of us will be on our own for the first time. It’s bound to be an enormous challenge for some. But I have faith in every single one of us. We’re graduating from a highly-competitive college prep school. Everything we’ve been through has prepared us for this.

We may be small fish going into a big pond. But we’re some of the smartest and toughest small fish you’re going to find. And ultimately, even if we end up scattered across the country, I know I’ll always be able to count on you. And I hope you know you can always reach out to me, too.”

Example for someone who’s moving away

“Moving away from friends isn’t exactly new for me. With a wife in the military, I end up having to pack up every few years to move. I know you all know what that experience is like. But this is definitely the hardest time I’ve ever had packing up to go.

Y ou don’t always encounter a lot of other civilian husbands living on base. It’s been incredible having a built-in support system with other dads and husbands who understand what this life is like. I’m really going to miss having our families all get together for cookouts on the weekends.”  

Writing an Inspiring and Memorable Farewell Speech: Tips, Tricks, and Examples 

When you’re leaving people behind, it’s hard to know how to say goodbye . You may worry that you won’t be able to properly express what the people in your life have meant to you.

Just follow the steps above and remember to speak from your heart. At the end of the day, that’s what will have the most impact.  

And if you're interested in unique ways to continue someone's legacy after their passing, you can consider a custom urn from a store like Foreverence  or even have a memorial diamond made from ashes with a company like  Eterneva .

Categories:

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Handing Over Speech Delivered By Raphael Kobla Elorm Dzivenu KTU SRC President 2018/2019

Photo credit: kampustyle

Indeed, praise to the almighty God for making this day possible and successful, ‘For as the saying goes whatever that has a beginning has an end’ and so has its reality come to pass.

Mr Chairman, Dignitaries Present, lecturers of this noble institution, my astute co-executives, Poised for service and improvement incoming executives, Executives from sister institutions, Media Present, Observers, Distinguished ladies and Gentlemen. My warmest greetings and welcome to you all.

I must say occupying this office has been a privilege and challenging learning environments for me and my executives, the journey was tough but with the passion and desire to serve, we did all our possible best to keep the SRC flame burning and flag high.

After assuming the office as SRC President many have been the mistakes, challenges, achievements, corrections, and lessons coupled with experiences encountered and learnt as President of the council.

I would touch on the achievements, challenges some advice in the form of recommendations to our incoming. Mr Chairman, over the year amongst the achievements, are;

• Our ability to refurbish the SRC Secretariat by the President’s office with a new Desktop Computer, Printer, President’s chair and carpets as well as the rebranding of visitor’s chair, curtains and a new cabinet to keep documents.
• Stocking the Secretaries Cubicle with also a brand-new HP desktop computer and Secretaries’ chair to make work easier and faster for the association.
• Procuring of a brand-new Samsung 50-inch Digital flat screen for the SRC junior common room for updates on news, sports and entertainment, as well as means of projecting images and proposals for discussion during meetings, also a rebranding of chairs, carpets and curtains were bought and replacing of old locks.
• Revamping of the SRC Business centre which has over the years been non-functional to the SRC, for that matter we entered a lease for the smooth running of the business centre for students in terms of printing, typing, photocopying and binding of final project work at z moderate and affordable prices.
• Refurbishment of the resting lovers’ benches which regularly gets damaged within a short while over the years for students relaxation and comfortability before and after lectures, and during group discussions.
• Due to the welfare and security needs of our students we able to establish and build a cordial relationship with the Eastern Regional Command of the Ghana Police Service to ensure constant patrols in and around the University community.
• We were able to meet with the Director for Ghana Highways Authority and Urban roads, as well as the New Juabeng Municipal Chief Executive which resulted in repairing and turning on the streetlight which is in front of the University stretching from the formerly known as Poly junction to the Akwadum roundabout which has been off for years and that has made the cases of attack on our students over reduce drastically this year..
• We were also able to push for the replenishment of drugs to the KTU Clinic, as well as, procuring of new patient waiting for chairs, new patient beds, drip stands and many others to ensure better health care for our students on campus.
• We were also able to push for the replacement of old and cracked markerboards with new ones, repair of fans, replacements on louvre blades and an additional 1000 new students study and lab chairs were procured for the various lecture halls at CCB, which more yet to be added soon.
• By the directions of the Dean of Students’ Affairs, Mr Samuel Ayittah we were able to draft policy documents which were to aid in the management of the SRC Transport systems, Led Screen and Financial Policies, which have been drafted and tried and are yet to be passed for full functionality.
• Another thing that I achieved as an SRC President was to fight in terms of students registration issues, wherein this year students with financial challenges have been able to register and have peace of mind to study and learn for the examination, I couldn’t do it alone without the help of the Dean of Students’ Affairs, HOD Students Services and some key administrators and lecturers and registration was extended countlessly times for students with problems to register successfully.
• Finally, I can boost that from Junction one to Junction Six which serves as a route to many of our students which were mostly dark over the years with no lights and served as grounds or areas for most attacks on students now have Led street lights fixed within those areas, and I know that we need, which am sure our successors would continue the good work started.

Mr Chairman, Challenges:

The following are challenges that I faced as a President of this noble association;

• Mr Chairman, one of my greatest challenges as President was getting money (funds) for SRC related activities from management and that led to the delay and postponement of several of our SRC activities and we had to go through hell before acquiring our funds.
• Another challenge was some decisions taken by the University council on the SRC due to many deficiencies spotted from years passed, without laying down measures and procedures to adapt smoothly but just levelled like that on us which we came to meet, and this led to having challenges in acquiring souvenirs for our students even as at now.
• The way our funds are transferred to us if not the intervention and advise of the Dean of Students’, this University wouldn’t have been a place for us to be gathered today, meaning violence or demonstration were not the best resort but still management are not identifying these factors and still doing things their way, especially the finance department of the University.
• Another peculiar challenge I faced as a President, Mr Chairman was the attitude towards work by some colleague executives, communication among us was a problem, executives were not reporting the progress of their activities and some were not taken instruction which made it difficult to identify the challenges faced in their activities and achievement or more for the SRC.

RECOMMENDATION;

I will recommend the following the incoming executives;

• They should build a cordial relationship with the Finance department of the University and consult with the computer networking department to create a system which would be linked with the OSIS of the school, to have a proper tracking of our monies.
• I would recommend that the incoming engage with investors to see how they can put together proposals to develop the SRC land at Sempoaminsah and the supposed hostel on campus to start the hostel project for students.
• The incoming should call for a meeting through the Dean of student office with management to discuss on issues on the procurement activities of the SRC, to reach a mutual agreement to help aid in acquiring souvenirs for students before any delay sets in.
• The incoming should put a proposal together as well as call for a meeting with management to discuss about a space to be allocated for putting up a Police station on campus, for with our interaction with the Ghana Police Service all they need is for a space to enable them to put a structure to better the safety of our students and the general community as a whole.
• I would recommend that a desk should be created in the SRC Presidents’ office for the Vice President, so us to safeguard the seat of the President and treat it with respect when He is on outstation duty.
• I would recommend the SRC should seek sponsorship to secure a pick up for the daily and fast movements of the President and His Executives.
• The drafted policy documents should be reviewed and passed by the General Assembly for all students to have access to for the smooth running of the various SRC asserts.
• The SRC webmaster must be worked with hand in hand, to make proper use of all the mediums of communication for the student populace and safeguard information for future references.
• I would also recommend that proper and consistent consultations should be made before any activity or actions are carried out as SRC, so us not to bring any sanctions on the council.
• My last and final recommendation, Mr. Chairman is that the incoming Executives should work together in understanding and stop the undermining of each other and be submissive to instruction and love one another and shouldn’t use this platform to take advantage of the common students especially the guys among the executives and exhibit moral standards and uphold their integrity.
• Chairman, Media present, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, the position of the SRC President Has been challenging but I must say has been good so far, despite the challenges many lessons have been learnt and it is my uttermost wish and prayer that the incoming would do much better and achieve more than we did.

I want to use this platform to ask on behalf of myself and executives that probably in the order of our work knowingly and unknowingly, if we might have stepped on anyone’s toes we be pardoned, for we are human full of imperfections and as the saying goes ‘To err is human but to forgive is divine.

We are grateful to GOD for a successful end and want to say a big Thank You to the University Council, Management, Dean, lecturers, Colleague executives, students and close allies for the support.

Long live Ghana Long live KTU Long live the SRC

RAPHAEL KOBLA ELORM DZIVENU ( SRC PRESIDENT 2018/19).

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Acceptance speech delivered by obed safo kantanka ktu src president 2019/2020.

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AI chatbots refuse to produce ‘controversial’ output − why that’s a free speech problem

Research Fellow and Visiting Scholar of Political Science, Vanderbilt University

Research Professor of Political Science, Vanderbilt University

Disclosure statement

Jordi Calvet-Bademunt is affiliated with The Future of Free Speech. The Future of Free Speech is a non-partisan, independent think tank that has received limited financial support from Google for specific projects. However, Google did not fund the report we refer to in this article. In all cases, The Future of Free Speech retains full independence and final authority for its work, including research pursuits, methodology, analysis, conclusions, and presentation.

Jacob Mchangama is affiliated with The Future of Free Speech. The Future of Free Speech is a non-partisan, independent think tank that has received limited financial support from Google for specific projects. However, Google did not fund the report we refer to in this article. In all cases, The Future of Free Speech retains full independence and final authority for its work, including research pursuits, methodology, analysis, conclusions, and presentation.

Vanderbilt University provides funding as a founding partner of The Conversation US.

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Google recently made headlines globally because its chatbot Gemini generated images of people of color instead of white people in historical settings that featured white people . Adobe Firefly’s image creation tool saw similar issues . This led some commentators to complain that AI had gone “woke .” Others suggested these issues resulted from faulty efforts to fight AI bias and better serve a global audience .

The discussions over AI’s political leanings and efforts to fight bias are important. Still, the conversation on AI ignores another crucial issue: What is the AI industry’s approach to free speech, and does it embrace international free speech standards?

We are policy researchers who study free speech , as well as executive director and a research fellow at The Future of Free Speech , an independent, nonpartisan think tank based at Vanderbilt University. In a recent report, we found that generative AI has important shortcomings regarding freedom of expression and access to information.

Generative AI is a type of AI that creates content , like text or images, based on the data it has been trained with. In particular, we found that the use policies of major chatbots do not meet United Nations standards. In practice, this means that AI chatbots often censor output when dealing with issues the companies deem controversial. Without a solid culture of free speech, the companies producing generative AI tools are likely to continue to face backlash in these increasingly polarized times.

Vague and broad use policies

Our report analyzed the use policies of six major AI chatbots, including Google’s Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Companies issue policies to set the rules for how people can use their models. With international human rights law as a benchmark, we found that companies’ misinformation and hate speech policies are too vague and expansive. It is worth noting that international human rights law is less protective of free speech than the U.S. First Amendment.

Our analysis found that companies’ hate speech policies contain extremely broad prohibitions. For example, Google bans the generation of “content that promotes or encourages hatred.” Though hate speech is detestable and can cause harm, policies that are as broadly and vaguely defined as Google’s can backfire.

To show how vague and broad use policies can affect users, we tested a range of prompts on controversial topics. We asked chatbots questions like whether transgender women should or should not be allowed to participate in women’s sports tournaments or about the role of European colonialism in the current climate and inequality crises. We did not ask the chatbots to produce hate speech denigrating any side or group. Similar to what some users have reported , the chatbots refused to generate content for 40% of the 140 prompts we used. For example, all chatbots refused to generate posts opposing the participation of transgender women in women’s tournaments. However, most of them did produce posts supporting their participation.

Vaguely phrased policies rely heavily on moderators’ subjective opinions about what hate speech is. Users can also perceive that the rules are unjustly applied and interpret them as too strict or too lenient.

For example, the chatbot Pi bans “content that may spread misinformation.” However, international human rights standards on freedom of expression generally protect misinformation unless a strong justification exists for limits, such as foreign interference in elections. Otherwise, human rights standards guarantee the “ freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers … through any … media of … choice,” according to a key United Nations convention.

Defining what constitutes accurate information also has political implications. Governments of several countries used rules adopted in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic to repress criticism of the government. More recently, India confronted Google after Gemini noted that some experts consider the policies of the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, to be fascist.

Free speech culture

There are reasons AI providers may want to adopt restrictive use policies. They may wish to protect their reputations and not be associated with controversial content. If they serve a global audience, they may want to avoid content that is offensive in any region.

In general, AI providers have the right to adopt restrictive policies. They are not bound by international human rights. Still, their market power makes them different from other companies. Users who want to generate AI content will most likely end up using one of the chatbots we analyzed, especially ChatGPT or Gemini.

These companies’ policies have an outsize effect on the right to access information. This effect is likely to increase with generative AI’s integration into search , word processors , email and other applications.

This means society has an interest in ensuring such policies adequately protect free speech. In fact, the Digital Services Act , Europe’s online safety rulebook, requires that so-called “very large online platforms” assess and mitigate “systemic risks.” These risks include negative effects on freedom of expression and information.

This obligation, imperfectly applied so far by the European Commission, illustrates that with great power comes great responsibility. It is unclear how this law will apply to generative AI, but the European Commission has already taken its first actions .

Even where a similar legal obligation does not apply to AI providers, we believe that the companies’ influence should require them to adopt a free speech culture. International human rights provide a useful guiding star on how to responsibly balance the different interests at stake. At least two of the companies we focused on – Google and Anthropic – have recognized as much.

Outright refusals

It’s also important to remember that users have a significant degree of autonomy over the content they see in generative AI. Like search engines, the output users receive greatly depends on their prompts. Therefore, users’ exposure to hate speech and misinformation from generative AI will typically be limited unless they specifically seek it.

This is unlike social media, where people have much less control over their own feeds. Stricter controls, including on AI-generated content, may be justified at the level of social media since they distribute content publicly. For AI providers, we believe that use policies should be less restrictive about what information users can generate than those of social media platforms.

AI companies have other ways to address hate speech and misinformation. For instance, they can provide context or countervailing facts in the content they generate. They can also allow for greater user customization. We believe that chatbots should avoid merely refusing to generate any content altogether. This is unless there are solid public interest grounds, such as preventing child sexual abuse material, something laws prohibit.

Refusals to generate content not only affect fundamental rights to free speech and access to information. They can also push users toward chatbots that specialize in generating hateful content and echo chambers. That would be a worrying outcome.

• Artificial intelligence (AI)
• Human rights
• Free speech
• Hate speech
• Generative AI
• AI chatbots

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