#work2.0

Social business. Social marketing was likely the first wave of social to hit your company. This next revolution promises to change the very way you work and interact with your co-workers.

The idea is simple: the social web empowered us to tap the collective mind of our trusted friends, colleagues, and the world at large. Management experts promise those same tools placed inside your workplace will let you do the same, and more, in the workplace trenches. The result: smarter, more connected employees, better business decisions, and faster innovation.

If only it were that easy.

All too often, that social, collaborative roar of the external world dulls to a barely audible buzz inside the office. What we have here is a hydra-headed problem.

Those same experts who promise a revolution warn that workplace culture, or poorly designed software, or something in the middle, can smother well-intended initiatives before they have a chance to get off the ground. The truth is, there is no magical on/off switch for organizations to operate in a specific way. Social business is, after all, an initiative - a proposal for improvement - and initiatives require more than one kind of support to be successful.  

So what can you do to guarantee a successful social rollout in your company? Here are five steps you should be sure to incorporate into your social plan:

1.  Embrace the same cultural values of the social web

Before any kind of social rollout can be successful, your organization must welcome the open nature of the social web – accepting ideas like free-flow sharing and collaborative ideation. 

2. Understand how and why knowledge sharing is needed in your organization 

Without a clearly defined ask, you're only setting others up to fail. Everyone in the organization must understand what the purpose and goals of the initiative are. 

3. Allot the time and space inside your organization

For this type of initiative is to work, employees need to feel like what they're doing is going to be valued and that it's a part of their priorities - and not a deviation or distraction.

4. Find a tool or technology that enables a culture of sharing and collaboration/conducive behaviors 

Look for tools with functions that enable the certain behaviors you're looking for. You may need to invest in building a unique solution to match your needs but chances are there's a startup out there solving your pain point.

5. Be a champion or rally a group of evangelists to see the initiative through

Once the solution is in place, as leadership or the crusading group set the tone and provide examples. Maybe that means you need to preseed the tool with content and conversations, or maybe it means that you host an onboarding session. 

Good luck, and as always, we’d love to hear your thoughts.

Want more? Here's some extra reading material: Designing Effective Knowledge Networks