ITD #5 09 Sep 2011 | Social Media and the CIO

8/4/2019 ITD #5 09 Sep 2011 | Social Media and the CIO

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/itd-5-09-sep-2011-social-media-and-the-cio 1/13

1

ITD #5 ‘Social Media and the CIO’

© IT Decisions 9 September 2011 - All Rights Reserved

SocialmediaandtheCIO ITDResearch#5:Sep9,2011



2



IntroductionWeb and mobile technologies are now focused on

encouraging dialog – social media is everywhere. Every

newssiteyoureadwantsimmediatefeedbackfromthe

readers.Everybloghasanoteattheendsoyoucan‘like’itorsenditontoyourfollowersonTwitter. The web has moved on, from pushing information to

readerstoencouragingparticipantstouploadtheirown

information, and a new evolutionary wave offers an

immediate feedback loop. Web users don’t just upload

their comments and photos, but offer immediate

feedbackontheinformationcreatedbyothers.

Andsocialnetworkinginparticular,theuseofsocialtoolstoconnectwithotherpeople,hasexplodedinpopularity

overthepastfiveyears.Butwhilemanyexecutivessee

these tools as a way of listening to conversations,

learning what people think, and just plain old business

networking,othersstillseethemasawasteoftime.

It’s no surprise that many companies ban their

employees from accessing tools such as Facebook and

Twitteratwork.TakealookatthewallofmostFacebook

users; it’s rarely got anything to do with work. Twitter

‘tweets’ can be serious one moment, sharing political

information in another, and then debating the football

resultswithaTVcelebrity.

But tools such as LinkedIn, use similar principles to

connect people together and yet are

seen as “serious” business tools. Many

largeorganizationsnowturntoLinkedIn

asthefirstplacetolookwhenhiringnewemployees. LinkedIn use has increased

byover400%inBrazilinthepastyearso

there must be something that

companies are finding useful in these

tools.

Genuine business applications of social

networking, such as recruitment, has

shifted the perception of these tools

frombeingfocusedonteenagegamesto

the exploration of how greater

connectivityandinformationsharingcan

helpbusinessleaders.

In our research this week, we have

explored the question of how CIOs

should be using social media and

networking tools. Is it essential for you

to take the lead as an IT leader, or do

these tools still need to prove their

worth in the real world of business

beforebeingadoptedintheoffice?

“…LinkedInusehasincreasedby

over400%in

Brazilinthepast

year.”



3



ParticipantFeedbackToexploretheissueofexecutivesusingsocialmedia,inthisweek’sresearchsurveyweaskedfour

questions–threeofwhichweremultiplechoiceandonedesignedtopromoteanopendiscussion. Wereceivedanswersfrom23executivesfrom17industrysectors:consumerservices,financial

services,shipbuilding,cosmetics,foodproduction,insurance,retail,logistics,media,automotive,

chemicals, telecommunications, internet, oil & energy, recruitment, food & beverages and

engineering.

Question1:IsitimportantforseniorITexecutivestobeseentobeusingsocialmedia?

Thisisanalmostoverwhelmingvoteinsupportofsocialnetworkingandmediatools.With47.8%

ofourITleaderrespondentssayingthatitisimportanttobeseenusingsocialmedia,andafurther34.8%sayingthatitisimportantin‘somejobs’itisclearthattechnologyexecutives

believethattheyshouldbeseenusingthesetools.

0 2 4 6 8 10 12

Yes

No

Insomejobs,butnotall

47.8%

17.4%

34.8%



4



Incrudeterms,8outof10ITleadersinBrazilbelievethattheirpeersandteamsshouldseethat

theyareusingsocialmediatools.

Butwhatdotheygetfromtheironlinepresence?Thenextquestionasksspecificallyabout

businessnetworking.

Question2:Doyoufindsocialmediausefulfornetworkingandexchangingideaswithpeersin

othercompanies?

Thoughsocialmediaisthebroadtermsforallformsofmediathatinvolvesomesocialinteraction,socialnetworkingisperhapswhereitismostuseful–usingtoolssuchasLinkedIntoconnectwith

peopleandtoexchangeideas(orjusttofindanewjob!)

Whenaskedaboutnetworkingusingsocialtools,theanswerisclear–theITexecutivesinourpoll

allfindsocialmediaausefulwaytostayintouchwithpeers.Justunder70%claimedtofindit

usefulfornetworking,andtheremainingITleadersallsaidthatitwassometimesusefulfor

networking.

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16

Yes

No

Sometimes,butnotregularly

69.6%

0%

30.4%



5



NotasingleITleaderinourpollsaidthattheydonotfindsocialmediausefulfornetworkingwith

peersintheirindustry.

Clearly,networkingisthe‘killerapp’forsocialmedia,buttherearemanyotherwaystousesocial

connectivity–suchascommunicatingtoyourownteamwhenitislarge,diverse,andspread

acrosstheworld.

Question3:Doyoufeelthatsocialmediaplaysausefulroleforinternalcommunications,

helpingyouworkwithalarge,diverseteamthatmayevenbeglobal?

Heretheresponseismoremeasured,butstilloverwhelminglyinfavorofsocialtools.Themost

popularresponse,at43.5%,indicatesthatITleaderssometimesfindsocialtoolsusefulin

communicatingwiththeirteam,butanalmostequal39.1%saythatthetoolscertainlyareuseful.

Ofcourse,thequestionaboutinternalcommunicationandmanagementcanbeaffectedbythe

sizeofthecompanyanditsfootprintinBrazil.Largermultinationalcompanieswillprobablyfind

internalcommunicationsisextensivelyboostedbytheuseofsocialtools,companiesbasedona

singlesite,orevenasinglecountry,maybeabletomanagewithagoodold-fashionednotice-

board.

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Yes

No

Sometimes,butnotregularly

39.1%

17.4%

43.5%



6



Whatisclearthoughisthatonly17.4%oftheITleadersinourpollsaidthattheydon’tfindsocial

mediausefulatallwhencommunicatingwiththeirteam. Question4:Itisnow12yearssincebloggingstartedand8yearssinceFacebooklaunched,could

you explainyour thoughtsonwhatyou thinksenior ITexecutives can gain fromusingsocial

mediaand whether it is possible for a senior IT executive towork effectivelywithout these

tools?

ThemostinterestingandrelevantCIOresponsesexploringthesechallengesaregroupedtogether

byindustry:

Engineering-Theissueistodealwithexpectationsandreceivingfeedback

I really dobelieve that the use of social mediawouldbe interesting in the management of IT

departments as well as internal marketing. Internal communications would flow more easily

throughthestructureofthecompanyandinaconsistentmanner.

Butthisappliesmuchmoretomanagerswhoareconfinedtothestrategiclevel,whichisnota

realityformostITexecutiveswhostillneedtobalancethestrategicmanagementwiththeday-to-

dayofthefunction,alwaysrunningshortoftime.Evenwithalltheknownbenefits,theuseofany

mediaalsogeneratesexpectationsonthepartofthepersonreceivingtheinformation,aswellas

therisksofoverexposure.

Wemustalsoconsiderthatmanymanagersarenotpreparedtoreceivefeedbackaboutwhatis

disclosed to provide appropriate follow-ups, consideration and return - which may end up

underminingthewholeeffortinusingthesetypesofmediaandgeneratingatotallyadverseresult

towhatwasinitiallyplanned.

ConsumerServices-Socialmediacanincreaseproductivity,butitisstillunderused

Surely, itispossibletoworkwithoutsomeof the toolsavailabletoday.Theemergenceofnew

patterns of communication and information management is creating new situations and

possibilities,allowdifferent ways ofworking,and insome casesmakeswork easier and moreproductive.

However,Ithink[socialmediatools]arestillunderusedinthecorporateenvironmentasameans

toimproveeffectiveness,exceptforgreaternetworkingopportunities,whichisveryeffectivefor

anyprofessional.

FinancialServices-Neitherfirmsnorworkerscanbeeffectivewithoutsocialmedia

Thechangebroughtaboutbysocialmediaaffectsallseniorexecutivesincompanies,notjustIT.It

turnsusersintoconsumersofmedia.Thisbasicandfundamentaldifferencechangesthewaywe

thinkaboutITanditslimits.Neitherfirmsnorworkerswillbeeffectivewithouttheuseofthesetools.Donotfight,adapt.



7



Shipbuilding-Socialmediarefuseniksaremissingoutonabehavioraltrend Ibelieveitispossibletobepresentinsocialnetworksinordertointeractandunderstandhow

theycanhelpinthewayorganizationsdobusiness.Thiscanbedonewithoutnecessarilyhavingto

sharedetailsandinformationyoudonotwanttodivulge.Insummary,Ibelievenottobeinsocial

networksistobeoutofwhatisafundamentalbehavioraltrend.

Cosmetics-Youcannotreplacetheagilityofsocialmediaforreallife

Thesocialmediabringtogetherwhoisfarawayandwho'snear.Theremustbeabalanceandnot

a dependencyon the use of tools such as Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. Wecannot lose the

essenceofwhoweareinreallifeinexchangefortheagilityofvirtuallife.

Food&Beverages-CIOsmustunderstandsocialmediaandbereadytosupportitsuse

SocialmediaisarealityandICTmanagerhastounderstandthemandbepreparedtorespondto

requestsforitsinternaluse.Atthesametime,wemustnotforgettheproblemofsecurityandthe

employeeproductivitydilemmathatforcesustocreatecontrolsinthefrequencyofuse.

FoodProduction-SocialmediaresultshavebeenlimitedtoHR

Despitethesignificantgrowthofsocialmediaovertheyears,Ihaveaslightperceptionthatfor

CIOs, significant gains with its use have not come about, except from the perspectives of

recruitment/selectionofITstaff.

FinancialServices-Geographicallydisperseteamscanbehelpedbysocialmedia

Thesetoolsfacilitatetheinteractionwithdispersedteams,andhelpsintermsofkeepingintouch

withcolleagues,whomayalsobegeographicallydispersed.

Insurance-Socialmediacanhelpareasincludingsales,butitisnotcrucialfortheCIO

Socialmediatoolsarethemeansandnottheend.Theyrepresentmorethanonechannel,which

is,ofcourse,veryusefulforsales,relationshipbuilding,researchandcommunication.Ithinkitis

veryefficient,butnotrequiredformanagementperformance.

Retail-Infrastructureplanningcanbesupportedbysocialmediatools These tools have the potential to indicate trends and behaviors, which should be taken into

accountintheplanningprocessofthecompany’sITinfrastructure,dependingonthesectorin

whichthebusinessoperatesandtheimportancethatitplacesonsocialmedia.

Insurance-Instantmessagingcanhelpovercomelocation-basedbarriers

Yes,itispossible[toworkwithoutsocialmediatools],buttheuseofTwitterorinstantmessaging

softwaregreatlyfacilitatescommunicationincaseswherethegeographicquestionpresentsitself

asanimpediment.



8



Logistics-Fast-flowinginformationcanbringmanybenefitsinashortspaceoftime Ithinkthewayinwhichwecommunicatehaschangedandinformationflowsmuchfasterinthe

socialmediarealm.Itisalsotruethattheremaybeaproblemaroundqualityofinformation,but

thepersonalnetworkitselfsolvesthatproblemquickly. Ibelievethenetworksareveryeffectiveinmaintainingtheevolutionofknowledgethroughthe

distributionofinformationandespeciallyofthediscussionsthatariseoneachtopic.Itisanopen

fieldwherethedirectandfrankdebateoftenbringsmanybenefitsinashortspaceoftime. Itisworthmentioningthatwhatmayhelpmayalsodestroy:anexamplewouldbecomments

and/ormisleadinginformationbeingusedasthesolesourcefordecisionmaking. Media-Theexecutive’sdailylifecanbeimprovedwithsocialmediause IdonotthinkthesetoolsinterferewiththeeffectivenessofaseniorITexecutive.Ibelievethat

theyenhanceandfacilitatetheday-to-daylifeofprofessional,bringingadvantagessuchasbetter

approachesandrelationshipswithyournetwork,exchangeandacquisitionofideas,experiences

andpointsofviewandopportunitiesforexposureoftheirpersonalandprofessionalvalues. Automotive-Blogscancreateadirectchannelbetweenmanagersandstaff Forlargeorganizations,theuseofinternalblogscanbeausefultooltodisseminateideasand

decisions,whichinsomecircumstancescreatesadirectlinebetweenthemanagerandallthe

stafforcommunitywherehe/sheoperates. ButtheuseofFacebook,despiteitbeingsimpler,cangenerateproblemsofunwantedexposure

ofcompanyfactsacrosstheweb. Chemicals-Twitterisanexcellenttoolto“feelthepulseoftheplanet” Personally,IuseTwitterasabasisofmytechnicalandgenericreading.Ithinkanamazingtoolto

feelthe"pulseoftheplanet."Fromanenterprisestandpoint,wewereslowertoadoptthem,but

wehavesomesuccessstories.Ithinkitisnotpossibletobeleftout! Insurance-Socialmediamaybearoundforawhile,butresultsarenotyetsignificant Sure,Iwouldsaythatevenaftersolongthesekindsoftoolshaveyettodemonstrateitsvalueto

thecorporateenvironment.EvenamongorganizationsactiveinthatrespectIstillthinkthatthe

benefitsintermsofproductionofsocialmediaarestillverysuperficial.However,inthe

relationshipwithcustomers,ithasshowngreatresults.



9



ConsumerServices-ITteamsstillcan’tusesocialmediainaprofessionalmanner

ThereareseveralothercollaborativetoolsthatcanbeusedbyITmanagers(suchasemail,video

conferencing,andsoon)tocommunicatewiththeirteams.ITteamsarenotmatureenoughto

usesocialmediaonlyinaprofessionalsenseandtheriskoflosingproductivityandfocusistoo

big.

Telecoms-Socialmediacanimprovethedisseminationofinternalcommunication

Socialnetworkshelpspreadtheideasandguidelinesofthecompanyacrossteams,especiallywhentheyaredistributedinseveralsiteswithalotofpeople.Communicationiskeyandthe

(internal)socialmediatoolssupportthatgoal!



10



Conclusion&ExecutiveSummarySocialnetworkingisanemotivetopic.Employeesbarredfromusingthesetoolsatworkcomplain

thatitistheir‘right’toremainconnectedtotheirsocialnetwork–evenwhenatwork.Asaresult,

manysubvertworkplacebansbyusingsocialnetworksviatheirsmartphonesorotherdevices.

Many executives see social networks, and media in general, as little more than a marketing

device,awayofbroadcastingcorporatemessagestoenthusiastic‘viewers’.Yet,asLinkedInhas

demonstrated,thereareindustriessuchasrecruitmentthatarebeingtornapartandreshaped

becauseofsocialnetworkconnectivity.

SeveraloftheITleadersinourpollrespondedwithwordstotheeffectof:“Itwouldbepossibleto

workwithoutsocialmediatools,butitwouldnotbeaseffectiveorcomprehensive…”or“these

toolscangreatlyfacilitateyourwork.”

This grudging acceptance of social media tools can be summarized as executives with the

followingattitudes:

• Thereisnoprovenbusinesscasethatforcesmetousethesetoolsand,untilitisproven,I

willwaitandseewhathappens.

• Thetoolsarejustnotneededformetodomyjob.I’vealwaysmanagedwithoutthesetoolsandIcancontinuetodoso.

• Ijustdon’treallyunderstandthevalueoftellingpeoplewhatIamdoingallthetime.Who

readsthisstuff?

• Igivetheordersaroundhere.WhywouldIwant‘feedback’onwhatIgetmyteamtodo?

The bottom line is that many executives find the application of the tools exciting and useful.

Informationcan beshared and locatedeasily,but defininga businesscase thatwouldactually

encourageemployeestoactivelyusesocialnetworkingtoolsisharder.

Can investment in hardware and software be justified and how exactly can endless hoursnetworkingalwaysbeconsidered‘productive’?

However, most of the IT leaders featured in our research were receptive and positive to the

possibilities.Justlookattheresponsetoquestion2whereeverysingleITleadernotedthatthese

toolsareveryusefulforconnectingtoindustrypeers.

ThesearethefivekeyareaswheretheITleadersinourresearchfoundthatsocialmediaand

networkingtoolscanplayausefulroleforthemodernITexecutive:



11



• Informationmanagement.Intimesofinformationoverload,toolslikeTwittercanbea

veryusefulwaytofilternewsfromthejournalists,publications,analysts,andindustry

expertsyouadmire.Farfromwastingtime,byfilteringthenewsinthiswayyoucangain

andabsorbmorerelevantinformation,faster.

• Industrynetworking.Keepingintouchwithcolleaguesyouonceworkedwithandmay

workwithinfuture,aswellasalumnifromthesameuniversityandpeersinthesame

industryisfareasierwithsocialnetworks–withtheaddedbonusoffuss-free

communication.

• Recruitment.ToolslikeLinkedInofferincrediblefacilitiesforscoutingpeoplebylocation

andexperienceandkeepingintouchwithpeopleyoumaypossiblyworkwithinfuture.

Thishaschangedtheentirenatureoftherecruitmentprocess–anyHRspecialistwill

confirmthis.

• Internalmarketing.TheCIOalwayshastoensuretheinternalcustomerknowswhatis

happeningwithIT.Ifthecustomerdoesn’thearfromyou,theyassumeyouarenotbusy,

sosocialtoolscanbeagreatwaytoshareinformationaboutITprojectsandpriorities.

• Connectingteams.ManyITteams–whethertheyareinternalorexternal–arebasedin

multiplelocations,sometimesindifferentcountriesandsometimesworkingfordifferent

companies,butonthesameproject.Socialtoolscanbeusedtocreateacohesivevirtual

team.

Butdespiteallthesebenefits,ITexecutivesstillneedtowalkthetalk.SeveraloftheITleadersin

ourresearchnotedthat,despiteallthebenefitsofferedbysocialmedia,ifthemanagerdoesnot

workwithhisteam,orexpectssocialnetworkingtoreplacepersonalcommunication,thenthey

willsuffer–noteveryinteractioncantakeplaceonline!



12



ITDecisionsResearch ITDecisionsproducesareportlikethiseveryFriday,basedonwhatCIOstoldusthatsameweek.

Itisfastandrelevantknowledgefromyourpeers,itisonlyavailabletotheCIOsintheresearch

network,anditisfree. Whatisthecatch?Youpaybyparticipating.Everyweek,wewillsendyoufoursimplequestions

thatwilltakenomorethanfiveminutestoanswer.

Themoreparticipants,thebetterthequalityoftheresearch.Sopleasedoinviteyourcolleaguestojoin!

Do you want to direct the research and define the topics alongside our board of founder

members?WealsoofferPlatinummembershipsthatallowyoutosteertheprocess,aswellas

other benefits including comprehensive reports, face-to-face focus sessions and more. Get in

[email protected].

The IT Decisions FutureSkills fund is a charitable, transparent fund focused on improving IT

educationandtraininginBrazil.

IfyourecommendaPlatinummembertothenetwork,wewilldonateR$500tothefundinyour

name–andPlatinummemberswillgettochoosewhichorganizationgetsthemoneyattheend

oftheyear.Pleasecontactusformoredetails.



13


AboutITDecisions ITDecisionsisthepremiersourceofinsightintothetechnologyandhigh-techserviceindustryin

Brazil.ThecompanycreatesEnglish-language newsandinsight foraCIOaudiencewithregular

features and analysis that cannot be found elsewhere. We focus on decision-makers and

influencers–the“buy-side”.Reproducingthesalespitchoradvertsofsuppliersisnotourthing;

wefocusonthosebuyingthesystems. ITDecisionswasfoundedin2011byMarkHillaryandAngelicaMari,twoofthemostrespected

businessandtechnologywritersinEurope-withacollectionofbest-sellingbooksandindustryawardsbetweenthem.

TheITDecisionsresearchnetworkisaninvitation-onlygroupofCIOsinBrazilwhoworktogether

toproduceanewresearchreporteveryweek.

TakeamomenttoconnectwiththeITDecisionsmanagementonLinkedInandtakealookatsome

oftheirbooks,othermedia,blogs,andpublications:

MarkHillary,ChiefExecutiveOfficer

http://j.mp/markhillary

AngelicaMari,PublishingDirector

http://j.mp/angelicamari

PhotoCredits:

EunhyeL http://www.flickr.com/photos/utopianlee/5148902886/

HowardLake http://www.flickr.com/photos/howardlake/5540462170/

MarcosXotoko http://www.flickr.com/photos/xotoko/2382680812/

Documents

ITD #5 09 Sep 2011 | Social Media and the CIO