Someone emailed me with a list of 16 great questions regarding regarding using ‘Social’ in an organization. I’m not sure how many posts this will turn out to be, but I will go through them all…
What is the big picture for social media in organizations (for E2.0 purposes)?
For most organizations the big picture of E2.0 is unclear, if they even know what it is and have identified it. What normally happens is one of four things. The business..
- locks everything outside down and says NO to E2.0, yet people still go around that.
- doesn’t do anything to see where it is going.
- creates a combination of the two without a strategy.
- is actively creating an E2.0 environment.
If you are doing some but not sure where to go, you are out ahead. If you have a plan, you are doing well. If you are actively working with E2.0, congrats! You are a superstar!
Is social media replacing something we have, or adding a new thing?
The simple answer is BOTH. It is certainly something new, there is no doubt about that. But then (usually) comes the statement, “Arrr! Another system I have to learn! This is all too much.” This is where the other part of BOTH comes into play. When used correctly, it often takes the place of some of the activities you might have done. Here is a perfect example: One person I know (let’s call her Ann) started following another (call him Bill) in their organization’s E2.0 tool and they exchanged a few rounds of conversation. Later they accidently met each other on the elevater and recognized each other. Since then, they have helped each other find information. Bill once came to Ann saying that he is looking for a person who fills a particular role and can’t find who it is. Ann knew exactly who it was and the search was over. Instead of spending time searching for that person, the relationship replaced time searching for that person. It is odd to think of it that way, but because of the interaction in the virtual world, Ann saved Bill a decent amount of work.
Again, think of a phone (see point #1). If it saved you from having to write a letter or taking a trip then you would be very grateful for that ‘new thing.’
I have personally experienced and seen others experience the drop in email, meetings, wasted time and another host of activities because of the use of social media and networking inside of an organization. So, over all, it does replace something – work which is not as valuable as actually ‘getting things done.’
More Q&A to come another day…
