Organizations
are jumping into social media without being ready for what might
happen. You ask what might happen? A lot of things could happen and
many you are not ready to handle.
In order to get ready before you leap you really need to assess
whether your organization would be consider “social”. The people who
could answer that question best are your employees then your customers.
However if you’ve never really asked those people whether you are good
at building and keeping relations then you might consider assessing
that before you jump into social media.
To assess whether the organization is ready means to check three
things that will give you keen insights into whether or not you are
ready. These three things include:
- People: How do they really feel about their
relationship with the organization. People being suppliers, employees,
customers and prospects. You might be surprised at what they might say
and that is if you are ready to listen.
- Process: Your organization has many processes that
either enable or constraint people from communicating. How well are
those processes performing? How would you know? Your organization also
has processes, spoken and unspoken, which say trust, collaboration and
the tone of your communications. Do you know what these processes are?
What do the processes say to the issues of trust, collaboration and
relations?
- Culture: The BIG UMBRELLA of stuff that reflects
the organizations trust, relations and mind-set that speaks the
sentiment of managements view of its people, internal and external.
- Tools: Does your organization have the right tools
to efficiently and effectively communicate? Does your organization
provide people with tools to improve processes, relations and make
changes that enhance the culture and its market sentiment? How would
you know? Do you know? Not knowing is a clear indicator of not being
ready.
Besides understanding the issues of people, process, culture and
tools the overriding issue is one of methods. By what methods do you
manage, communicate, measure and make needed adjustments? Methods
reflect managements knowledge and if you are using the wrong methods
well you’ll get the wrong results. The method of management has evolved
and is constantly changing with the aim of improvement. When markets
shift methods have to change because the old method simply cannot
respond or satisfy the market demands.
New Methods Require New Knowledge
You cannot adjust to revolutionary change by applying old thinking.
Social technology is changing everything because everything is fueled
by communications. Social media is communications but a new method that
requires new knowledge if you want to tap into the power of effective
and efficient communications. Who and what is communicating to you and
about you. Everything and everyone.
This new method is more powerful than any other communications
medium in the history of mankind. Why? Because it has reach and
influence beyond traditional media and is grounded in trust, relations
and honesty. It appeals to the very fabric of human nature and avoids
anti-social behavior. Anti-social behavior is when your organization
constrains people with bad processes, a closed and controlled culture,
a lack of tools to do things right and management methods that lack
knowledge and common sense.
You may discount all this and ignore its importance to your
performance meaning your bottom line. Then again if you don’t
understand these simply things then you are likely to discount them as
irrelevant and unimportant to getting you the results you so
desperately want. By the way, how are your results? If you
want them to improve then you’ll have to change the methods otherwise
nothing will improve. Get it?