Tweet Equity: Social Media in the Workplace Boosts Productivity

Over the past decade, social media has become a hallmark in the realm of communication. Not only has it re-shaped the way in which communication functions on a social level, social media has taken on a new role in the workplace. Social media usage in the office is no longer seen as a distraction for workers and has become a new tool towards productivity and engagement. Instead, these companies have adopted an embracing attitude towards it and have incorporated it into company culture and everyday office life.

To prove this argument, a study was conducted at by Joe Nandhakumar, professor of information systems at the Warwick Business School in the United Kingdom. Over the span of two years, the study monitored the productivity levels at a well-established European telecommunications company that practiced policies that encouraged social media use in the workplace. The results of the study show a clear rise in productivity. This rise can be contributed through the employees’ ability to respond to client and customer concerns in a quick manner, through the use of social outlets and networks such as Facebook or Twitter. Employees were also able to use these outlets to pitch products and ideas and close sales. Nandhakumar also noted that social media allowed for heightened collaboration amongst employees, both within the office and in other locations that may be farther away.

This embrace of social media within the workplace is a major indicator of the definitive changes in corporate culture and the face of business in 2013. Social media has the ability to allow a company to build a distinct culture and identity. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ allows businesses to grow a public presence and allow fast and direct communication with its customer base, clients, current and potential employees, and any other interested user. Social media also changes the way in which employees communicate with each other and management. In a time where telecommuting is a very common practice at most companies, networks such as Skype or Google (Hangouts) make it possible to have quick meetings without the need to physically be in the same place. Not only does this boost productivity and cuts down on time, this also has the potential to cut down on travel expenses for companies, since they are afforded with the convenience of virtually conducting a meeting absolutely anywhere. Skype and other video chat outlets have also become commonly used in job interviews, saving time and money for both the employer and the potential employee.

The topic of social media usage in the workplace very distinctly paints a picture of the how business is conducted in 2013. There is an immense embrace of transparency in business that allows for collaboration, growth, and innovation. The corporate use of social media has opened the conversation on many levels.

How do you think the relationship between business and social media will expand in the future?


Social Networking after Death? Google, Twitter, and Facebook

Social media became heavily popular in the early 2000’s when MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Friendster were launched. These sites allowed users to communicate in other ways besides email. Today, there are tons of different kinds of social networking websites. However, Facebook, Twitter, and Google remain of the most popular. These networking sites allow users to communicate in different ways. Google focuses more on email and/or chat, while Facebook and Twitter allow users to communicate with one another with “statuses” and “tweets,” respectively. These social media sites recently took it a step further and introduced ways of tweeting and messaging after death.  By allowing this to happen, are companies just really desperate to keep their social media outlets buzzing with posts from the dead?

Google introduced the Google Inactive Account Manager or what it has been called lately, “Google Death Manager.” Those that are heavily involved with social media accounts probably have wondered what happens to their account after they pass. Google has a plan for those that care what will happen to their Google services such as Gmail, Blogger, Google Drive, Google+, Google Voice, and so on. Basically, you have two choices. You can either either pass on your “digital life” to someone you trust, or you can simply set up a time of inactivity. You can choose from one, three, six, nine, or 12 months. If you happen to not login in the certain amount of time you chose, then Google will either contact/alert 10 of your trusted contacts (and share your data with them) or you can simply have it set up to delete your account.  Personally, I think this is not a bad idea at all. If someone disappears or dies suddenly, maybe there is information in their Google account that will help solve the case. I support privacy in every aspect all the way, but this can really help in a time of need.

Next, Facebook has introduced an app called “Ifidie” that allows users to send messages to your friends after your death. I believe the  If I die app  is a bit too much. The Facebook administraters post a public Facebook message or send out private message to specific people. The admin are allowed to do this once at least three of the trusted friends you choose report your death to the Facebook service. I understand we are in the digital era, however, I believe this is just too much. Again, is this to keep the buzz going?

Twitter has also introduced social media after death with _LivesOn. This is a tool that monitors your Twitter habits and patterns then after your death, it will continue Tweet for you.

Perhaps social networking after death is for those who are more comfortable with death. Personally, I think these companies are trying to get the buzz however they can. Would you like to be active on social media even after your death?


Should you be friends with your coworkers?

My previous blog post  covered the increasing use of Agile development methods in mainstream and large scale projects.  Another trend that L. Leroy Ward of ESI International listed in his recent article on the top 10 trends in Project Management for 2012 is Collaboration.

In this post, I’ll discuss the use of collaboration software as an integral tool for project teams.   Project success depends on timely communication within the project team and sharing of information to get tasks completed.  The ability for teams to easily share information and interact with each other quickly and effortlessly can positively impact project results.

A crucial technology that makes this possible is cloud computing which provides a platform to bring together collaboration tools and a centralized data repository to manage projects.  This technology along with social acceptance of sharing information online has given rise to numerous applications that integrate social and functional aspects into a single tool. Project Management tool vendors have noticed this shift and have created applications that integrate cloud and social networking to provide teams with a powerful set of tools.   Products such as Teambox, ProjecTruf, Teamwork PM, BaseCamp, Huddle and numerous other web-based project management tools are being adopted and used by project teams worldwide.

I work for a large multi-national technology company with global development teams across at least 3-4 different time-zones that work together on various projects.  For years, we have used internally developed communication tools which were not integrated with our project management tool; however, we are now in the process of selecting an integrated web-based tool that will combine project tracking and reporting capabilities of project management along with collaboration tools.   I see a lot of positives in using a tool that seamlessly integrates collaboration with project management. For one, the global nature of our teams and business lends itself to the use of such tools.  Second, the ability to easily access key documents anywhere anytime is essential in an increasingly mobile workplace.  I see this trend being widely adopted by the business community.

Have you used any web-based project management tools?  What are your experiences in using them on small and/or large projects?