Leadership Communications in the Digital Age

Vera Rulon MS RHIT FAHIMA FACMImimiNYHIMA Annual Meeting 2014

What we will talk about today

• Communication in the digital age• What does the data tell us?• Our differences and their impact on

communications• Digital communications deep dive• Last word

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Connected generation: Perspectives from tomorrow’s leaders in a digital world

Insights from the 2012 IBM Global Student Study

“Social media will continue to grow, both on a personal and organizational level. The Internet is now the new place where business relationships are formed.” – United States student, age 21

“We stand on the precipice of a paradigm shift into a fully connected society. We must not be afraid to embrace change. Those who can manage this will survive; those who don’t will perish.” – United States student, age 30

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Social Technology Applications

Source: McKinsey Global Institute, July 2012 “The Social Economy: Unlocking Value and Productivity Through Social Technologies http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/high_tech_telecoms_internet/the_social_economy

Social Networks

Media & File Sharing

Social Gaming

Crowd Sourcing

Shared Work Spaces

DiscussionForums

Wikis Social Commerce

Ratings & Reviews

Blogs / Microblogs

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iConsumer: Digital Consumers Altering the Value Chain McKinsey & Company*

Six Significant iConsumer Trends

Trend 2008 2012

1 Device shiftFrom PC to touch

PCMobileTablet

78%22%0%

57%33%11%

2 Communications shiftFrom voice to data

VoiceEmailSocialOther

39%42%15%4%

27%36%26%10%

3 Content shiftFrom bundled to fragmented

Mobile voiceMobile data

61%39%

22%78%

4 Social shiftFrom growth to monetization

SocialOther internet

13%87%

23%77%

5 Video shiftFrom programmer to user controlled

Linear TVDVR, VOD, OTT

78%22%

65%35%

6 Retail shiftFrom channel to experience

E-commerce/All retail

3.6% 4.9%

*Authors Ewan Duncan, Eric Hazan, and Kevin Roche retrieved August 6 2013 fromhttp://www.mckinsey.com/insights/telecommunications/developing_a_fine-grained_look_at_how_digital_consumers_behave

Share of Usage

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What does the data tell us?• People are using digital and social media

to communicate more than ever before!• Use of social media:

– In government• Almost all government agencies use facebook,

twitter, You Tube, Flicker, and other social media

– In business– In healthcare

• By consumers, healthcare practitioners6

US Government Use of Social Media

http://govsm.com/w/Federal_Agencies

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Our differences and the impact on communication

• Gender– Use of social media

• Gender Differences in Internet Use Patterns and Internet Application Preferences: A Two-Sample Comparison Eric B. Weiser. CyberPsychology & Behavior. April 2000, 3(2): 167-178. doi:10.1089/109493100316012

http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/109493100316012

– Girls: collaboration, communication, research– Boys: gaming and leisure

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Respect the preferences of others

“The answer to difference is to respect it. Therein lies a most fundamental principle of peace: respect for diversity”

John Hume, Nobel Peace Prize Winner, 1998 These wise words are not always easy to live by. The poster to the right, part of an advertising campaign of an international bank, illustrates well how meaning changes with your point of view.

Neither is right or wrong – they are just different.

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Connected generation: Perspectives from tomorrow’s leaders in a digital world

Insights from the 2012 IBM Global Student Study

“…While boomers usually view long hours as evidence of loyalty and hard work, Gen Y tends to try to have more work-life balance… They expect to leverage technology to work efficiently instead of staying late in the office to get it all done.” – India student, age 22

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Globalization• Examples of cultural differences• Building cross cultural capabilities• Applies to working within the US as well

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Working on Common Cross-cultural Communication Challenges

Six Fundamental Patterns of Cultural Differences1. Different communication styles2. Different attitudes towards

conflict3. Different approaches to

completing tasks4. Different decision-making styles5. Different attitudes towards

disclosure6. Different approaches to

knowing

Guidelines for multicultural collaboration1. Learn from generalizations2. Practice, practice, practice3. Don’t assume4. Listen actively5. Respect others6. Suspend judgment7. Discuss the past8. Be aware of imbalances9. Know that cultural norms

may not apply to the individual

Working on Common Cross-cultural Communication Challengesby Marcelle E. DuPraw and Marya Axnerhttp://www.pbs.org/ampu/crosscult.html 12

Unconscious bias• We learn from each other• Tell it like it is • What you do in your science is what you

should do in management• Two stages of “straight talk”

– To yourself– With others

• Own up to bias• Mind bugs

Dr. Mahzarin Banaji, Ph.D., professor of psychology at Harvard University 13

Virtual Team Challenges: Online Meetings & Teleconferences

Build Cross Cultural Capability Develop awareness, responsiveness and ability to resolve different perspectives

Use Technology EffectivelyChoose the right tools and learn how to make them work for you

Communicate BrilliantlyRecognize communication as a critical success factor – and aim to be great at it!

Develop Trust RapidlyWork hard at trusting others – and at being trustworthy

Team members have diverse values and beliefs Different work norms can cause irritation and frustration Challenging to build team cohesion and cooperation

Heavy dependence on technology to communicate Varying levels of technical skill among team members

Having limited contact opportunities due to working across time zones

Lack of face to face communication means you see no non-verbal cues so it’s difficult to see people’s reactions

Having little of no prior history of working together Time pressures put the emphasis on achieving the task at

the expense of developing relationships and trust

Virtual Team Challenges How to Resolve Them

Digital Communications Deep Dive• Making the best use of facebook,

twitter, LinkedIn, others• Online meetings and teleconference

etiquette• E-mail communications best practices• Blogging

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Social Media• Facebook• LinkedIn• Twitter• Others?

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Virtual meetings: cross-cultural tips e.g. language and communication style differences

• Encourage presenters to speak more slowly • Avoid jargon • Pause for questions more often • Encourage participants to ask a clarifying question and

make suggestions• If possible, provide specific questions in advance and

allow for responses in writing• Establish “safe language”• Any other ideas?

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E-mail communications best practices

• Be informal, not sloppy• Keep messages brief and to the

point• Use sentence case• Use the blind copy & courtesy

copy appropriately• Don’t use e-mail as an excuse to

avoid personal contact• Remember that e-mail isn’t

private• Be sparing with group e-mails

• Use the subject field to indicate content and purpose

• Don’t send chain letters, virus warnings or junk mail

• Remember that your tone can’t be heard in an e-mail

• Use a signature that includes contact information

• Summarize long discussions

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook-help/12-tips-for-better-e-mail-etiquette-HA001205410.aspx

12 tips for better e-mail etiquetteby Laura Stack, MBA, CSP, The Productivity Pro®

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Blogging• Be responsive• Write regularly• Tweet, facebook your blog

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Last wordIt is about technology but it’s more about:Appreciating our differences• Appreciate and leverage cultural and other

differences• Know your unconscious bias and address it• Make no assumptions• Establish safe language

Embrace our new way of communicating!20

Questions?

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THANK YOULeadership Communications in the Digital Era

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