Changing the Way We Work

Blogger Vala Afshar discusses different ways social media has changed the way we operate in our everyday lives. After interviewing Jacob Morgan, author of the best-selling book The Collaborative Organization, and owner of a strategy consulting firm, Chess Media Group, Afshar summarizes the "Five Ways Social Media Has Forever Changed the Way We Work," and how what Morgan has learned about five important ways social media has enabled us to deal more effectively with issues in society and the workplace.

1. Collective Intelligence- When companies or individuals are unable to solve problems, they can post their questions to social media sites in order to obtain advice or answers to whatever questions they may have. 

2. Serendipity- Information can become even more valuable when organizations share what they have learned with others via social media. Morgan gives an example of a Lowe's Home improvement employee who was able to share a demo of what she doing at one store with others, which eventually led to increase in sales for the product and other stories across the country. The demo helped bring in over a million dollars in extra revenue. 

3. Easy to Find People and Information-  Morgan has implemented a series of collaboration tools and strategies within his consulting firm in order to decrease the duplicated content seen by his employees day to day. Since 25-30 percent of employees spend their work hours reading and looking at a ridiculous amount of duplicated content, this means a lot of wasted time. Morgan says this self-sufficient strategy is more empowering for employees and allows for less time spent e-mailing.

4. Anyone can be a Leader and Employees have a Choice- Social media allows all employees to have a voice, not just the executives and CEO's of companies. People can share their ideas for anyone within the company and elsewhere to see and read. 

5. Transparency and Flatness- Social media allows for a change to the typical hierarchy and structure of most businesses and organizations. Employees can use social media to voice how they are feeling, what they are working on, who they are meeting with, and what is happening within the company. Managers and entry-level employees can communicate with one another and bridge the gap there once was in organizational structures. 

All of these practices have allowed for more efficient businesses practices, and with the way technology is headed, our reliance on social media for quick and improved business will only continue to grow and evolve.