View Courtney Hunt's profileThis S.M.A.R.T. News Digest presents a sample of 5 videos featuring Mark Ragan of Ragan Communications. The videos address topics like the evolution of corporate communications and planning a social media strategy, in addition to providing examples of how organizations are using social media as part of their communication tactics within their organizations.
Many thanks to Jerry Carducci for being the guest editor for this News Digest, which is a nice extension of his previous News Digest on social workplace communications. His focus on this topic reflects an argument I make in Part 2 of the Social Media Primer (updated here) that external applications (e.g., marketing) are just the tip of the iceberg, and that the same technologies and concepts can be applied inside organizations to enhance their effectiveness. Interestingly, two of the videos are from 2008, which demonstrates that these ideas aren’t as “new” as some people think they are, and that the underlying best practice principles haven’t changed. I have enjoyed Ragan Communications videos on social media and am glad to highlight them, because of both their messages and the medium through which they communicate them. – Courtney Hunt
Please feel free to share your thoughts on the items in this News digest directly via the blog, or start or join the dialogue on LinkedIn. We especially welcome other videos on the subject of social media and workplace communications. We also appreciate your bringing items on other topics to our attention via LI, Twitter, or FB, or by emailing a link to news@sminorgs.net. Thanks!
If you'd like to receive a notice each time a new post is published, you can subscribe to the SMinOrgs S.M.A.R.T. Blog by clicking here or on the link on the right side of the website.
Introduction
The five videos featuring Mark Ragan, CEO of Ragan Communications, provide insights into how internal communications have evolved from newsletters and press releases, what to consider in developing a social media strategy, and innovative ways three organizations have used to create a culture of collaboration and two-way communication that is engaging and relevant for their employees. Here’s a thumbnail sketch of each:
- Mark Ragan, CEO of Ragan Communications, discusses the evolution of corporate communications, how social media creates two-way communications and the importance of testing the waters before jumping in.
- Jim Ylisela and Shel Holtz talk about why it is important for organizations to understand how social media fits into their broader communications framework.
- Rob Friedman discusses the CEO’s role in communications and the importance of connecting with employees.
- Catherine Cummings talks about how the Federal Reserve uses blogs to create internal “buzz.”
- Toni Ewton of Yum! Brands discusses how they developed a behind the firewall social network that is as popular with employees as Facebook.
Many factors are converging and causing organizations to become highly flexible and continually reinvent themselves to remain competitive. Some of the dynamics challenging employers in their efforts to create strategies to communicate with and retain their most costly and valuable resources – humans – include:
- Business models are shifting to ones that are network-grounded, where people collaborate, access and apply individual and collective expertise.
- Workplaces are getting more complex and mobile.
- People are the future “drivers of value and innovation,” increasing the importance of attracting, retaining and engaging them. Yet a recent Gallup Poll revealed that 84% of workers say they will seek new opportunities as the economy begins to improve!!!!
- Skill shortages are growing in a number of industries, making continual development of skills and abilities a critical success factor at the individual and organizational levels.
Social media is all about community, connectivity and relationship building. It plays an enabling role organizationally by leveraging and internalizing a commercialized, mobile culture that has evolved outside the organization. When strong relationships are established, a culture of trust and cohesion is established.
Features like discussion forums, wikis, blogs and instant messaging provide instant access to information, subject matter experts and just-in-time knowledge, and encourage a two-way exchange. It is not out of the realm of imagination that, IBM’s “Watson,” introduced on Jeopardy in February 2011, could evolve to social platforms, possibly providing an interactive way to develop skills as well as other uses limited only by imagination.
It is now more important than ever for organizations to establish a framework that provides access to and disseminates consistent, credible and relevant information that can be used to grow capabilities and provide an engine for growth and innovation.
Like it or not, in the absence of formal internal applications, employees are using social media to inform, communicate and collaborate. So why not integrate it into your communication package?
Categories: applications, best practices, collaboration, community, enterprise 2.0, human resources, internal communication, knowledge management, leadership, opportunities, strategy
For additional articles that address related issues, click on terms of interest in the category cloud on our website.
=============================================================================
Title: Video and Social Media in Health Care Communications
Source: Larry Kless’s YouTube channel
Description: Social media is transforming the way companies communicate to its internal employees and to the public. Many organizations have changed their marketing and communications strategies and tactics by launching company Wikis and blogs, official Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn profiles, YouTube Channels, internal video contests, podcasts, and endless conversation channels. I spoke with Mark Ragan, CEO of Ragan Communications, at the Health Care Communicators Summit last month about held June 8-9 at Kaiser Permanente's Sidney R. Garfield Health Care Innovation Center, about how social media is revolutionizing corporate communications and PR.
Brief Commentary from Jerry Carducci: Understandably the thought of implementing an internal social media strategy can be a seemingly overwhelming task and create a sense of fear, loss of control and, in some cases, weakness among senior leaders. Like any large initiative, if approached in one large dose, failure and/or loss of interest and focus are likely outcomes over the long term. However, when broken into smaller, manageable parts, the chances of successfully attaining expected outcomes are increased dramatically. As Mark points out, starting small with a quick win, builds confidence, breaks down resistance and provides a means for everyone to become familiar and learn…establishing the cornerstone from which to build.
=============================================================================
Title: Social Media Tips and Hints
Source: Ragan Communications YouTube channel
Description: Jim Ylisela and Shel Holtz tell you why social media is an easy, simple tool to use on your intranet. Be careful though, it's not always best to jump right in.
Brief Commentary from Jerry Carducci: All too often organizations jump into the latest trend without examining the bigger picture. More often than not, this leads to fragmented initiatives that do not interact well, fail and ultimately undermine the credibility of leaders. By starting with the “big picture” organizations can best evaluate how they communicate, how each piece of the tool kit fits together and which social media applications will best serve to achieve those objectives.
=============================================================================
Title: CEO Communications within Your Organization
Source: Ragan Communications YouTube channel
Description: Rob Friedman, Director of Executive Communication at Eli Lilly, discusses the role the CEO plays in communication, getting senior executives connecting with employees and how to deliver both tough and good messages via social media.
Brief Commentary from Jerry Carducci: As with any change initiative, how, when and where senior leaders communicate is critical. Social media aids in the communication process through delivery of consistent, credible content in a form and media that reaches employees simultaneously, regardless of location. Allowing for employee feedback, anonymous or not, provides a great measure of message clarity, progress and a vehicle by which leaders can communicate adjustments. But a warning, while asking for and exchanging feedback can serve to build trust, it does so only if that feedback is acted upon – and in a way that is meaningful to employees!
=============================================================================
Title: Catherine Cummings: Internal Communication at the Chicago Federal Reserve
Source: Ragan Communications YouTube channel
Description: Catherine Cummings, Assistant Vice President of Internal Communications at the Chicago Federal Reserve, discusses how blogs have evolved internally as a communication tool to inform and energize, create ‘buz’ and drive traffic to their intranet for information.
Brief Commentary from Jerry Carducci: If people are the new drivers of value, then engaging, connecting and developing them becomes a strategic imperative. Externally, one must create excitement and value in messaging to gain and retain followers, whether at the personal or business level. Internally, the same principle applies. To keep people engaged, communications must be delivered in such a way that energizes, entertains and directs them to information and resources and encourages active participation in two-way communications.
=============================================================================
Title: Internal Social Network as Popular as Facebook
Source: Ragan Communications YouTube channel
Description: A look at the success behind Yum! Brands' social network for employees.
Brief Commentary from Jerry Carducci: Based in Louisville, Kentucky, Yum! Brands is the world's largest restaurant company (in terms of system restaurants), with nearly 38,000 restaurants in over 110 countries and territories and more than 1 million associates. Ranked #216 on the Fortune 500, Yum generated more than $11 billion in revenue in 2010. Brands include Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, A&W, Long John Silver’s and, the newest, WingStreet.
Yum is passionate about their commitment to people, the environment and society as a whole. This video discusses the approach Yum! Brands used in developing a collaborative network (I Ching) that brings the organization together and encourages collaboration among both employees and business partners. The structure of their network is similar to Facebook but is behind their firewall. It contains profiles, groups, discussions and blogs that allow employees to connect on common personal interests, obtain information, and collaborate across borders in developing products and brining them to market faster.
Comments