Recently Anthony Bradley and Mark McDonald at the Harvard Business Review had an interesting blog looking at making use of “social” in organizations (http://blogs.hbr.org) But there is a crucial third dimension to organizational effectiveness. We see this when people get things done by working in the so-called “white space” in the organizational structure, or by working across the “seams” of a business process. In their ways of working and connecting with each other, they do more than just what they are told top-down and more than what is defined as their job. This is the social dimension.
Every organization has a social dimension. The challenge is that the social dimension is not accurately reflected in either the organization’s hierarchy or its process flow. For years, social systems were described not as valuable systems to tap into, but as limits on innovation and change. We gave these systems names like culture.
But what if leaders could create a future where customers, associates and suppliers are no longer seen as objects in the system but as valued sources of innovation, ideas and energy? What if they could truly tap into the creativity, knowledge and experience of their organization’s people? What could possibly enable such a transformation?
The answer is social media. And before you roll your eyes, let us say that we know very well that accessing your social potential requires moving beyond simple social media solutions such as blogs, wikis, etc., to truly changing the way your organization works. This means becoming a social organization and encouraging all of your employees to participate.
A social organization mobilizes its people — from associates to customers, suppliers and others without regard to hierarchy or position — and their interests, passions, knowledge and experience. Tapping into the collective wisdom of everyone creates a new source of competitive advantage, agility and future innovation.
A social organization is one that is able to address significant business challenges and opportunities through creating this “mass collaboration.” We easily allow you to do this in TOPYX through our collaboration tools integrated throughout the whole learning platform. We have seen companies across industries and sectors — from healthcare to high-tech to manufacturing — that have increased innovation, enhanced efficiency and created competitive advantage through effective use of social media.
To learn more about collaborative tools and how to use them for your employees, vendors and customers check out TOPYX – interactyx.com
Jodi Harrison
Vice President, Business Development
Jodi.harrison@interactyx.com
interactyx.com
