by Kristen Nicole on March 8, 2010
The battle over social media usage at the office continues, as social media manages to become more prevalent in business use, and more widespread for its user base. Between high adoption rates and its use for marketing and communication a work, social media is a blessing and a curse. Yet the love-hate relationship corporate America has with social media continues to be an unavoidable melodrama that plays out like a soap opera scene on a regular basis.
Social media has proven itself useful for certain marketing, brand-building and other forms of web-based advertising. As a communication channel, certain social media tools are even being utilized for internal use at the office. That means more employees familiar with the ways of social media are of value in an office setting, and the higher-ups also need to become more familiar with social media as well.
But social media still manages to take up a great deal of free time for many employees. And for those that aren’t required to actually use social media for work purposes, their growing desire to tap into social media sites is a productivity drain. So what’s an office manager to do?
CNN brings new stats to light, detailing some of the negative things going on with employee use of social media channels. Even if the time spent on social media sites isn’t detrimental to an employee’s productivity, the way in which that social media outlet is used can be damaging to the company itself. Security breaches for confidentiality are high on the list of things employees are caught doing on social media sites, giving just cause for an employee to be reprimanded or even let go.
Of course, it’s easier to track this type of behavior with social media. If a company has the authority to track employee computer usage, it can also get a good trail on its employee’s behavior. Should that lead to an investigation, there’s quite a virtual paper trail that the employee has left behind. Not such a good move, but it’s indicative of the way in which social media is creating an enhanced form of accountability for individuals. It’s not just your friends that are cluing in to what you do on Facebook and Twitter, but your boss and team leader as well.
In an era where school teacher and principles are monitoring their students’ computer usage during school hours and beyond, our children are learning early on how figures of authority can become involved with your online social life. Perhaps this is just the changing ways of the future. No matter which way you slice it, it’s clear that your actions on social media sites can land you in hot water one way or another. As employers seek to hire trustworthy individuals that require less monitoring, the employees themselves will have to find a way to stay out of trouble.
by Donavon Roberson on February 22, 2010
So the question came up from my last post:
How do we create a company culture when the manager does not really care about their employee’s good? What is the motivation for a manager to really want to invest in the life of his employee?
In my opinion this is really based on two things:
- Vision
- Values
Before we go there I want to look at what it means to be a leader and discuss what leadership is all about. Let’s take a moment to talk about the difference between management and leadership. Some say that they don’t manage…they lead. Management has taken on a bad stigma as of late but why? What is the difference?
I see the difference being:
- Leading is leading people to be better individuals. The emphasis being on the people being lead. The focus of leadership isn’t what but who.
- Managing is making sure a process get’s accomplished. The emphasis here is would be upon the tasks at end. The focus of management isn’t who but what.
The problem with this is that I don’t believe you can effectively lead people without managing a process, so I don’t believe that you can truly separate the two. You need both of styles of leadership. Generally “managing the process” becomes the focus of many organizations or managers and not leading people. The completion of the task becomes secondary to leading our people and inspiring them to greatness.
So what is leadership?
Leadership is what happens when, through my interaction with my team, I am inspiring my people to greatness. Leadership happens when I as a leader help my employees or team to become better individuals. Leadership is all about pouring into their lives in order to see them grow and succeed. Leadership happens when I can honestly say that I am investing in the lives of my team.
The reality is that while my team is growing personally, they are impacting the company in a positive way as well.
Since leadership is about success and growth, it does require that we manage a process. Managing a process correctly requires that the leader understand how that process relates to vision or the purpose of the organization. Without vision there is no meaning or standard of decision making to make sure that vision comes about.
What is vision?
Vision is that which we aspire to attain. It’s the direction which an organization or company is heading. It is the way that we’re going, the path that we are on, and the end goal that we want to see happen. It is not simply “who we hope to be one day” but a clear idea of where we are going, with steps along the way to help us get there.
However you want to define it, vision is the purpose of the company or organization.
Without vision, a leader is simply taking a stroll. Without vision, a leader is simply taking a walk with followers strolling aimlessly along with no direction, no purpose.
The problem with vision is that it can limit our growth if it is not large enough and it can frustrate the organization if it is too high and lofty. A vision must be clear, concise, and actionable. That is not to say that a small vision can’t be part of the process to accomplish the larger vision and that a large vision cannot be attained with careful planning and preparation…both can be true.
Vision should be something that is clearly communicated inside the organization and something that everyone can get behind and support. Without alignment, the vision is not going to easily get off the ground.
Vision is key to effectively leading our employees to realize their greatness and the greatness of the company.
Vision helps us as leaders figure out:
- where we need to go
- what we need to do to get there
- how we’re doing along the way
Vision provides:
- unity for all within the company or organization
- energy and drive to see the company move forward
- accountability and
That’s where values come into play and that is for another post.
But before we go, here are a few questions to consider:
- What is your vision?
- Is it greater than just the bottom line?
- Do your employees understand your vision and do they have ownership?
- If your vision isn’t where it needs to be, are you willing to make changes in order to get back on track?
droberson[at]zappos[dot]com | @zappos_drob| www.zapposinsights.com
by Brian Solis on January 17, 2010
I’m attending The Sundance Film Festival again this year and on Saturday, January 23rd, I will do so with a purpose.
During Sundance, The Parnassus Group is hosting the Tweet House to celebrate the uses and potential of Twitter in the entertainment and film industries. On Saturday from 5 to 7, the Tweet House will dedicate its efforts towards raising awareness and funds for Haiti.
LeVar Burton and The Parnassus Group are hosting “Tweet for Haiti,” a celebrity Tweetup that invites talent and other Sundance Festival attendees to gather and Tweet messages encouraging their followers to make donations to the organizations that are accepting funds related to the Haitian disaster. Proceeds raised from corporate sponsors of the event will be earmarked to benefit the victims. I’m supporting Unicef.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this crisis. I know from experience that members of the entertainment community can be counted on at times like this, and my partners and I are dedicated to doing what we can.” – LeVar Burton
The Tweetup will be held at The Tweet House, located at the SHOP Yoga Studio in Park City, Utah.
Click for map.
Connect with Brian Solis: Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr, Plaxo, or Facebook
by Stephanie Schlegel on January 11, 2010
I love having the opportunity to connect with people through social media tools. I’ve reconnected with old friend, built bridges with former acquaintances and stayed in contact with those I see on a more frequent basis. From best friends to networking buddies, we’re all connected through one social network site or another.
A few weeks ago, I thought this would be a great tool to help my brother connect with some of the friends he’s made over the years. Let me tell you a little about big my brother, Peter. He has cerebral palsy and is quadriplegic. He can’t speak or communicate beyond a simple nod “yes” or “no”. He’s smart and stubborn, like all men in my family, and has a lot to offer the world, even though his body may limit him most of the time.
My brother and I get together to update Facebook as often as we can. It can be as simple as sharing what he had for dinner or posting the artwork he creates at one of his programs, Creativity Explored. He attends a program each weekday so it’s become an opportunity for communication between his aids and my family. His aids can share if he had a good day or a bad one and what they did so we know to ask Peter the right questions.
Facebook has also allowed for Peter to connect with his friends that have similar limitations. They may never be able to “talk” to one another but they can communicate through their Facebook pages and the person managing that page. I run everything by my brother before I post it and we play Farmville together. It’s not perfect but has opened so many communication doors. It has even inspired my brother to be interested in his communications device that he’s long given up on because it’s a challenge to learn to use. Bringing that enthusiasm into that challenge was difficult but Peter’s activities on Facebook presented and opportunity to reintroduce the idea.
My brother has 17 friends on Facebook. If this were a numbers race or some kind of client launch, it may not be viewed as a success but what we’ve been able to accomplish in the past few weeks is beyond measurable. There is not measurable ROI beyond the smile on his face when I show him some of the comments on his wall or the pictures posted by a friend. This is where I see the true value of social media: giving a voice to those that didn’t have one before.
*If you’re interested in checking out additional art by my brother and other artists at Creativity Explored, please click here for times/dates of gallery showings in San Francisco”
