At the upcoming Infocomm Industry Forum 2009 (IIF2009), Mr Mike Gotta, Principal Analyst on Collaboration & Content Strategies with the Burton Group, will be speaking on Enterprise 2.0 and how organisations can leverage social media to promote workplace innovation. We get a sneak preview of some insights that he will be sharing at the event.
Why should organisations be paying attention to social media?
Globally, and across demographic segments, people increasingly use social tools and interact in online communities and social network sites as part of a growing digital lifestyle. Such shifts are causing organisations to explore ways of engaging with customers, partners, or the public in general, that are more informal and conversational compared to traditional practices… Effective social media strategies enable a more authentic and transparent relationship with stakeholders that augments business activities (for example, sales, marketing, customer service), resulting in improved business performance and attainment of strategic goals.
Mr Mike Gotta: Effective social media strategies enable a more authentic and transparent relationship with stakeholders. |
What are some of the concerns they have surrounding the use of social media?
Social media means different things to different people. For some, social media means a presence on Facebook and Twitter, or information delivered to mobile devices. For others, social media implies enterprise-sponsored customer communities or an employee social network site. Confusion regarding what social media is, what governance model is appropriate, what resources are required, what risks exist, can stymie efforts to capitalise on social media’s potential unless leadership teams adopt a holistic approach involving both business and IT strategists.
What are some of the interesting ways in which organisations are leveraging on it?
In the United States, Dell is using Twitter to sell its products (twitter.com/dellOutlet). Cisco runs a contest (iPrize) to discover its next “great product idea”. Deloitte ran a video contest (“What’s in my Deloitte”) to improve employee engagement. The Center for Disease Control (www.cdc.gov) offers a variety of information services to the public. Widgets (www.cdc.gov/Widgets) enable information to me embedded in other web sites. Citizens can add these widgets on their own blogs or personalised home pages with the content updated automatically. This helps expand the reach of government information virally.
What is the one key thing that you would like the audience to take away from your presentation at the Infocomm Industry Forum?
Enterprise 2.0 (blogs, wikis, social networking) can be a strategic enabler of innovation within organisations. However, technology alone is not enough. Organisations need to consider what structures (innovation programmes, supporting processes) are needed as well as how important organisational values are to encourage participation and contributions from employees.
* Click here to read more about the Infocomm Industry Forum 2009. To register for the Forum, or to find out more about the event, visit www.infocommindustryforum.com.