Some great feedback from Jen Frahm to the strengths of Twitter as an internal communications tool. Here’s some more thoughts:
Comment: Twitter encourages brevity and clarity in writing (the 140 characters)
An internal communicator who is not good at this does not need Twitter to train them. I can think of better ways to deal with this. (Yes it certainly helps get the point across, so maybe practitioners should set up a personal account and experiment privately). My view on brevity for most internal messages is that more than 140 characters are required for message coherence.
Comment :Twitter introduces the idea of microblogging and the possibilities of this in the company e.g. managing projects.
I agree but there are better tools available (not just talking about Snap tools here)
Comment :Twittter is built on principles of contribution and reciprocity, both necessary in creating an engaged workforce
Absolutely, but is this an idealist view? Better to get staff engaged with wikis and discussion forums first perhaps (many of the organizations I encounter are still struggling with uptake)
Comment :Twitter opt-in creates a measure of engagement - you have ROI
Not sure about this – anyone else have thoughts?
Comment :Work & private life is already blurred. Deal with it, create a living policy on how to use social media safely (for company & individual)
Yes there should absolutely be a policy. I think that some of the older generations will struggle with any expectations to use Twitter. Plus Gen Ys aren’t as willing to sacrifice as much as the Baby Boomers for their work, so we need to tread really carefully.
Comment :Twitter provides you choice on who to follow
It does, but when someone follows you, aren’t you tempted to take a quick look? Also, updates on whether someone just drank a cup of tea or watched their favorite TV show clutter the channel and other messages are diluted. Cut through is diminished.
Comment :One employees pushed out newsfeed is another employees management spam. Totally agree, it’s about content, relevance, and as Liam FitzPatrick put it, as 'meaning' and a sparking conversation.
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Well I guess I should jump into the fray here as I'm supposed to be advocating microblogging at a workshop in London next month...
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts on Micro-Blogging (or Twitter) internally are fairly straight forward - there are three key points I'd like to make.
Firstly, in the main, I wouldn’t class microblogging as an Internal Communications Tool - due to some of the limitations Sarah has pointed out in previous posts ie. message length limitations, general uptake etc - but it is a 'connection' tool. You can connect like-minded people that otherwise would never have met - particularly in larger multi-location organisations. And ‘connected people’ allow knowledge to easily move around an organisation.
However, what Internal Communicators can use it for is to direct people to other parts of the online landscape eg. key communication activities, links to intranet articles etc. It's just another channel in your armoury - just like any other communications campaign, you would never use just one channel to get your message across. Microblogging is just one way of reaching out to a particular audience (in this case the techno savvy ones).
Secondly, if organisations don't start playing in this place, people will go outside to do it. People always cite the Allen & Overy example where the company turned off access to facebook resulting in the IT department being inundated with over 5000 complaints from people in the firm who legitimately used it for business purposes - people saw the need for an online connection and collaboration space, the company didn't provide it, so they went outside the organisation.
In our own organisation, a yammer.com closed group was set up and within weeks was used by 100s of people across the globe. The security team were a little concerned about the risks of hosting on an external website so within days a technology geek had set up an internal Micro-Blogging site, completely under the radar of the Internal Communications team and management teams and at no cost to the business, which grew and grew. Now welcomed into the Internal Communications fold, the online space continues to grow - with no promotion whatsoever – it’s all viral.
So, if you don't offer it, people will find a way of making it happen anyway.
And finally, despite the general attitude of 'I just don't get it...why would people want to read what I had for breakfast', this is not what people are using microblogging for in our organisation. In fact I have seen very few 'general updates'.
What you do see is all about knowledge sharing 'Found this great article on...', 'anyone know how to...', 'CEO mentioned XXX in last message, here's more info...'. Yes - there are a core group of ‘Tweeters’, yes - the majority of people just watch from the sidelines...but usage increases everyday and people are connecting with each other, the organisation as a whole and our business strategy.
Finally, the other good thing about Micro-Blogging for the Internal Communicator is to find out what the organisation are talking about - a bit like ‘Trending Topics’ on Twitter. The water cooler conversations can be bought out into the open and any ‘mis-information’ can be clarified quickly and efficiently.
Phew...long comment... anyway, I’m not saying that Micro-blogging is the ‘Great Hope’ for Internal Communicators and will solve all our issues in one foul swoop, I am saying that it’s something that can help the internal communicator and the organisation as a whole…may even lead to people feeling more engaged…they can have a voice!
Cheers
Geoff
Thanks so much for the comment Geoff, it sums up the benefits of micro blogging for internal use perfectly. Nothing more to say here, the final word is yours...I think...!
ReplyDeleteGreat comment Geoff.
ReplyDeleteI agree and think the more switched on Internal Comms professionals are to the 'trending topics' in their organisation, the more effective their communications can be. Knowing what people are talking and worried about is key to ensuring what you produce is of interest to them.