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I get it. I understand that I’m a full-time resident of the social media echo chamber and I also realize that I spend much of my time on social networks interacting with a relatively small group of people who “get it” – or who are at least making some valiant attempts at trying to figure things out.
So you’d think that when I attend an event like the 2010 SHRM Annual Conference, I wouldn’t expect much interest or participation in social media from the vast majority of HR professionals in attendance and it wouldn’t shock me when a session speaker asks about how many organizations block access to social media/social networks that over half of the attendees in the room raise their hands – but frankly, I do and it does.
After spending my first full day at the conference attending sessions related to employee engagement, recruiting, candidate experience and employment branding, I’m not only shocked and surprised, I’m disappointed. Regardless of how effective the session leaders were at providing insights or examples of how to utilize social media/social networks in these critical aspects of talent management, the majority of the questions and concerns raised by the participants in the sessions continue to be a about three things – negative comments, “unauthorized” employee activity and creating policies to prevent both.
In other words, it’s about control. And it’s time stop trying to figure out how to control social media. Our job is to figure out how to effectively use it.
Why do we forget that we’ve been through this before? Remember when computers were introduced to the workplace? Or email? How about cell phones? These tools would be considered essential communication devices for most any employee in an organization today, yet all were met by initial resistance. Now, they’ve become commonplace (and essential) tools used every day to help move businesses forward. At some point in time, we stopped asking about how to keep our people from using them and started figuring out how to integrate them into our work cultures as tools used for the greater good.
Embracing and implementing effective use of social media/social networks into our organizations is no different and it’s not a question of if – but when and how.
HR Director Trish McFarlane of the HR Ringleader blog was participating virtually in the Annual SHRM Conference yesterday with thousands of others via the Twitter hashtag #shrm10 (yep, Twitter can provide learning and professional development benefits) and she shared some of her thoughts about business leaders who continue to focus on preventing or controlling the use of social media in a blog post – CEO’s, Web 2.0 and Ostrich Leadership. Trish asserts that focusing on control results in a loss of competitive advantage. Here’s an excerpt from her post:
Are there risks with using Web 2.0? Absolutely and those can be managed. They are the same risks that you have when you put a telephone in your employee’s hand or assign an e-mail address to them and ask them to represent you in that way. Employees are loose cannons, right? They could just say anything. Or not.
The bottom line is that employees are adults. If you treat them like they are and set the expectations of what “proper” communication looks like for your company regardless of the medium used, you’ll be just fine. Stop acting like an ostrich with your head under ground. If you don’t, you will soon find that your business has been passed by and all you wound up with is a mouth full of sand.
You’re in good company if you’re new to social media or if your company has yet to get on board with creating a strategy, guidelines and training for effective use. However, the best way to separate yourself from the pack and start utilizing it to create “competitive advantage” is to start asking different questions.
What questions do you think HR, Recruiting and Talent Management professionals should be asking in order to start effectively integrating these tools into their businesses?
June 29, 2010 at 7:52 PM
This is an outstanding post that tells it the way it is, now if we can get most Corporations to understand these simple facts.
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June 29, 2010 at 8:00 PM
I see negative comments as opportunities to engage directly with your audience. After all, the person leaving the comment 1) obviously is reading the content or else they wouldn’t have made the comment, and 2) might have some ideas to share and is probably looking for a way to do so. Negative comments can easily be diffused by simply validating the poster. Call them, let them share their thoughts, and thank them for engaging. (TIP: don’t try to prove to them that they’re wrong & you’re right… this is about you listening and letting them be heard) Granted, not every negative poster will be turned around, but this is a great opportunity to prove you are engaged with your audience and with your community. This is a great post Jennifer and I am very interested to see who from this conference actually listens to, and more importantly implements, the ideas shared in these sessions on social media use in HR.
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June 29, 2010 at 9:25 PM
Great Post Jennifer! I am thinking of start the Church of Social Media (as Rev. DaveTheHRCzar). Then we can evangelize the non-believers, we can teach them how to use the tools. We can teach them that there is ROI. We can teach them it’s not to be feared. We can teach them they and all of their employee can use it. AND we can teach them that YOU ARE RIGHT! AMEN!!!!!!!!!
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June 29, 2010 at 10:42 PM
let’s be frank! negative comments are often symptoms of many other issues within an organization. so isn’t putting a lid on negative comments (like they’re not already occurring in hallways, “happy” hours and on weekends!)dodging deeper systemic problems within an org?
in the org effectiveness and employee engagement work we do at frank, we help our clients create brands that shine from the inside out. social media tools provide efficient and effective ways to generate conversation, community and ultimately collaboration among employees. all very positive stuff.
yes “negative” comments will emerge during the process, but when an internal community has a clear line of sight on productive corporate goals from the outset – ones that they help co-create! – the community has proven to self-correct itself and the constant naysayers are purged.
I”m following #shrm10 from Minneapolis and surprised not to see more discussion around transformational enterprise 2.0 strategies & tools. the payback of implementing them in strategic, integrated ways is high. but of course what it takes to get them going is courage: from HR leaders who I believe are among the best at noticing misalignment and disengagement within their orgs.
not striving for more authentic, employee conversation and contribution? at frank, we talk about having three choices: lead, follow or get out of the way!
hope to see more courageous discussion of these challenges before this year’s conf is out.
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June 30, 2010 at 11:22 AM
This post is so accurate. HR has to quit living in fear !! If people are going use things inappropriately, then address them about their behavior. We are taking another step backwards as a profession if we keep hiding behind the “what if” scenarios that we all dream up just in case.
Don’t think that I’m naive on this. We are active in Social Media at my company and we hear negative things from customers and employees. But, instead of broad swiping policies and dictates, we talk to people. We investigate what’s occuring and then come up with a resolution.
Thanks Jennifer for being so candid on this and calling HR out on this. It’s time the profession listened !!
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June 30, 2010 at 12:56 PM
Great post, Jennifer, and I appreciate the perspective your bringing from the SHRM conference.
The main question to ask is what role does HR see themselves playing in leading their organizations to compete, connect, create and engage people more effectively to drive and accelerate business results. If they focus only on control then they will fail at leadership because that simply is no longer an option. Well, it is an option but not one that will deliver value or success to their organization with regards to business results.
The world of business and how people communicate has changed and is changing. The new currency of success is engagement, collaboration, creativity, authenticity and agility. Insight, analysis, innovation and speed are required to compete and keep pace, so in a sense they become the mandates of successful business leadership today. The beauty is that we have the tools and technology to build a fluid strategy that can meet the challenge. Social media tools and social networking have the power to enable the way in which organizations connect with prospective talent, customers and partners to accelerate their business results. HR will either be an enabler of this or will impede progress. See, there is choice!
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June 30, 2010 at 2:21 PM
You go Jennifer! You know about my opinion on all this, as I, too, was very disappointed by the #SHRM findings.
Although I no longer work in recruiting or HR, I do consider myself *seasoned* in those industries having worked alongside teams for 10 years or so. I have always been a huge proponent of companies “letting go” of control and letting the employees and clients steer the ship for a change.
I was at a Social Media Summit in San Jose last month, and one person who left a lasting impression was Carlos Dominguez, a Cisco Systems SVP. You can download the preso on SlideShare here: http://ow.ly/25nJN
In a nutshell, he is advocating the need for leadership in all companies to:
Embrace Change
Experiment
Learn
Leverage
I won’t go over all the recommendations he makes, but the bottom line is: If you don’t embrace change, (and like Jennifer stated -remember when e-mails and telecommuting and watercoolers and minesweeper/solitaire were all feared as productivity killers?), your company will become extremely obsolete, perhaps even vanish forever.
Like Charles Darwin states: “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one that is most responsive to change”.
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June 30, 2010 at 5:05 PM
Hi Jennifer –
Great post! It’s important for companies to understand that this is a great way to spread their employee brand. Happy employee will share on social media how much they love their job etc… how wonderful it that. If they don’t have access to information on line, they may miss out on important information that could help them further succeed in their job!
Best -
Chernee
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July 1, 2010 at 3:57 AM
I totally get the idea that companies have to get to grips with modern technology, but surely the main HR fear is not that employees will be representing the brand negatively so much as the fact that they won’t be using the brand at all. They will be chatting with their mates and playing games. And THAT is unproductive time.
Social media is not like a cell phone.
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July 1, 2010 at 5:27 AM
Great Post! It seems to boil down to the basics of good management…. Those that want to control time (input), versus those that want to reward output.
Compare the motivation of a slave in the bowls of a boat, rowing to the beat of the drum, being whipped or cast aside to die when they don’t keep up, to that of an olympic (or even the school boy/girl) rower, determine to win.
Just imagine if we really managed through objectives (both soft and hard measures) rather than prescence how much more diverse, creative, agile our organisations would be!
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July 1, 2010 at 2:55 PM
Great post Jennifer. Nice to see you at SHRM. Totally agree with your points. I think the real issue is fear of the unknown and loss of control.
Remember the 90′s when companies were hesitant on getting a presence on the internet? I was working for a Fortune 5 company at the time, and heard all the naysayers – “Why does my company need to have a .com?”, “Who is going to go to it?”, “Nobody will ever enter a credit card to buy something on a website.”, and on and on… It wasn’t until they saw the surge of companies (many smaller then theirs) start competing because of the worldwide reach of the internet, did they decide to leverage it to stay competitive.
How about the virtual worker? Many corporate managers resisted the concept initially, until the results started coming in that a flexible workforce actually can improve productivity and improves employee morale if done properly. Now most companies embrace it, and the ones who have implemented it have a competitive advantage over those who have not, for many reasons.
Now we’re facing a new disruptive culture-changing technology which is challenging many corporate comfort levels again. This time is slightly different because social media plays in the same sandbox as customers, clients, and prospects. There IS risk to any Social Media Marketing/Recruiting strategy, but the rewards are huge. Those who embrace it, do their homework, and follow a plan-execute-refactor approach will be the ones that succeed.
To borrow a quote from the Socialnomics.com folks:
“The ROI of Social Media is Your Business Will Still Exist in 5 Years”
Gary
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July 2, 2010 at 12:24 AM
One little suggestion I may put forth is Talent Acquisition, HR, and Organizational Effectiveness groups should look for help outside of their vertical. Find those talented people doing it already and offer them a job or pluck them out of their current role for your company. They do what they do and you do what you do and share knowledge, now image you do this four or five times…..Your Talent and HR will most likely be turning those attrition numbers back positive and showing true return to the company. HR can lead in this area if they choose to stop making policies around the 5% that screw up and instead allow the 95% of your audience supercharge your efforts!
I think HR has everything to gain like respect, trust, and confidence they have the ability to engage people better than anyone else!
I am not in the HR vertical…..the next step is yours!
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July 2, 2010 at 9:58 AM
Excellent subject content Jennifer. HR, Recruiting and Talent Management professionals as well as business leaders/owners need to examine what they are REALLY afraid of with regard to allowing access to social media. They then need to address those fears directly. Perhaps they will discover some areas/thought processes within their organizations that are begging for examination/improvement. What is the saying? “Lead, follow, or get out of the way.”
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July 5, 2010 at 9:33 PM
@Margo – Thanks for leaving a comment! I’m confident that more companies – eventually MOST companies – will start to ask the right questions and implement effective social media strategies. I’m just a bit disappointed it seems to be taking so long. Baby steps…
@Amybeth – You, of course, “get it”.
Your recommendations for engaging with potential “Haters” are spot on . I think there a many more examples of how a company or brand has been able to turn a Hater around after an effective response than there are examples of how Haters have damaged a brand. Unfortunately, I don’t think that many of the attendees at SHRM 10 left with a desire to implement a social media strategy. There were a few sessions that addressed social media, but none of the ones I attended – or the tweets I saw from other sessions – really shared practical tips and advice. Most only scratched the surface and had presenters who had limited to no involvement with using the tools themselves. A missed opportunity for sure.
@Dave – Can I get a witness?
I’m all for the Church of Social Media and will be sure to grab a spot on the front pew. It sounds like you’ve already got a sermon written!
@John – I agree that negative comments can provide an opportunity to be made aware of organizational issues. Of course as company leaders/HR pros, we’d prefer that people bring those issues up to us personally/privately, but in the age of “new media”, that’s much less likely to happen. So organizations need to plan for that and make sure they’re listening/participating in the online conversations before they have to respond to any negative comments. And in regards to courageous discussions and transformation strategies, I didn’t hear any of that this year. It may have something to do with the presentation submissions being 1 year in advance. I think it’s hard to predict what they hot button issues will be that far in advance.
@Steve – What? You guys actually talk to people who complain? Imagine that.
Before, I’m sure that your company only heard from the vocal few who took the time to write or call the company, but now you have access to more voices and can make improvements based upon a wider set of opinions. I’m glad to see that your company “gets it”, as do you!
@Susan – You bring up some great points! The truth is, that social media is just the latest thing that separates the “strategic” HR pro from the administrative task master. Those who truly are strategic are always looking for how they can integrate the latest methodologies into their business to attract and retain talent, as well as be a resource and source of information for other aspects that move the business forward. The administrative group tries to control or block new things because they are managing to “the way we’ve always done it”. When they’re forced to make a move, their CEO’s are wondering why they weren’t leading. And they’re still complaining that they don’t have a seat at the proverbial table…
@Suzy – We are like minds and kindrid souls.
Thanks for sharing the presentation and your thoughts. Great information!
@Chernee – I teach workshops regularly to HR/recruiting pros and business leaders about using social media in their organizations and I always emphasize that the positive branding opportunities likely outweigh the negative comments. Assuming the majority of your employees like working at your company and would say something positive if asked, then release them as Brand Ambassadors. On the other hand, if you fear that the majority of employees would say something negative, it’s time to take several steps back and focus on the basics. Either way, they can’t just ignore problems. You’d think we would have learned by now that doesn’t make them go away!
@Morag – I’m a big fan of measuring people’s performance on their RESULTS. I don’t want to have to manage how my employees spend their time during the day. If they are predisposed to waste time, they will, whether with social media, chatting with co-workers, shopping online, taking long lunches, etc. But if they’re engaged and they are measured/rewarded based on their contribution, then who cares if they spend a few minutes networking with friends on Facebook or Twitter. Those conversations often turn into business benefits. Many have for me and I shouldn’t assume that they won’t for others.
@Liz – Exactly! (see my comment above to Morag)
@Gary – Thanks for stopping by! Your comment is spot on. It’s evolve or face extinction with business practices in general, and social media is no exception. Those who try to control it will just get further behind and those who fear it will eventually have to figure it out. Social media isn’t a magic bullet that will change everything, but it offers many new tools and options that businesses need to investigate and understand how to implement to keep current.
@Keith – I’m with you on this! I definitely encourage HR/Recruiting pros to engage current employees who are actively using the tools to learn, as well as to take advantage of their expertise. It’s also important in most organizations to work closely with Marketing and PR to ensure a consistent brand message. It’s my opinion that HR/Recruiting should lead the Employment Branding strategy, but with strong support and direction from Marketing. And Marketing could benefit from HR’s perspective as well!
@Cynthia – Well said. It’s important to understand what we’re afraid of when ignoring any opportunity. There are other companies and individuals out there having much success with social media tools and strategies. Smart organizations will look at what they can learn from them and implement them in their own organizations!
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July 6, 2010 at 9:42 PM
The bottom line, as you suggest, is that there will be challenges with anything new and different to the workforce. The real opportunity is the way we manage those challenges as well as allow each person to learn and become comfortable in managing those same challenges themselves!
Because really, who wants to babysit any employee their whole lives….??? I don’t!
http://ReThinkHR.org
http://twitter.com/BenjaminMcCall
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July 8, 2010 at 11:14 AM
You obviously have never worked with professional time-stealers. Even before cell phones and smoking outside, I worked with a girl who had to leave her customer service window constantly to make phone calls or pay her bills on the boss’s phone. I waited on 30 customers to her one. Years later, when I worked in a factory and gave relief breaks, some losers had to smoke twice an hour. That added up to time-stealing of over two hours per day per smoker.
Now I work in an office with someone who is on FaceBook all day long. This time I’m not the one who has to pick up his slack, but everyone talks about it behind his back and to his face.
All of that time stealing adds up on the corporate balance sheet. Just fire anyone who cruises social media and give the job to someone willing to work an honest 8 hour day, especially us old geezers who don’t believe in “sharing” personal business on public laundry lines.
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July 8, 2010 at 2:10 PM
@Ben – Trust me, you don’t want me to babysit your employees…
@Mary – I’ve definitely worked with professional time stealers and I’ve had to counsel and/or fire more than my share of them. However, in my experience, they are a very small percentage of the workforce – and as you’ve pointed out, will find some way to avoid doing work, regardless of the tools available to them. It’s a management/leadership problem if people aren’t doing what is expected in their jobs – not a problem with the tools. I’d much rather focus on how the vast majority of productive employees can utilize the tools for business results and deal quickly with those who don’t.
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July 8, 2010 at 2:34 PM
Ugh. You make it sound like “change” is good; like if we just all take the time to learn about these new-fangled technologies, they’ll stop seeming so scary and they’ll become “useful” and “beneficial.”
What a terrible, misguided idea!
Everyone knows that the only way to get anything done is through a command and control structure! Everyone knows that freedom and security are opposites, and that security is far, far, far, far, far more important than an ideal like “freedom.” And that any time you give someone a tool that increases freedom means more risk and therefore less security, and therefore should be avoided and hated on principle.
And everyone knows that principle is a far more effective way to run your life than pragmatism or realism.
Please.
Social media is a fad. There are only 70 million people on LinkedIn. This is totally going away any minute now.
All you social media acolytes are clearly wasting your time.
Case closed.
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July 9, 2010 at 10:54 AM
Great post Jennifer! My initial exposure to social media was definitely from a “fear” and “control” perspective. What if someone says this? What if? What if? I changed careers about a year ago and started asking different questions and educating myself on the opportunities social media offers an organization internally as well as externally. The possibilities are numerous and much more energizing than any concerns that can not be handled. It will create a competitive advantage for those organizations, HR professionals and leaders that take the time to look outside their organizations and see where the world is going, educate themselves, ask the “What if” questions of “What if social media could help or improve how we do……..?” and then take a balanced approach to integrating those social media tools that work for them.
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July 15, 2010 at 10:23 AM
@Jason – You always add a nice twist to any conversation. Thanks for sharing your “social media is dying” predictions. If I didn’t know you, I’d think you actually meant that!
@Janet – Thanks for sharing your perspective as a convert! I realize that involvement in social media isn’t necessary for every organization or every business professional, but it’s important not to avoid it because of fear. Your point about educating themselves is spot on!
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