What if signing in to work was just like checking your Facebook profile? It’s always such a thrill when you see that bright red alert flag in the corner of the screen, and you can’t wait to see what good news lies beneath that mouse click. Updates, alerts, postings and notifications – things are happening in real-time and we’re all in the loop. How beneficial could that be in the office. In short, very!!
Just think about the kind of intricate collaboration that we’re used to thanks to the social network phenomenon – profiles, status updates, feeds, groups, lists, filters. It’s pretty remarkable how organized our social lives have become, really. Most of us already use these networks to make business connections, but just think about how organized our work lives could be if we took a lesson from the social scene.
How can the same collaboration tools we use in personal life apply to work life?
- When you post photos from last weekend’s party they show up in your family and friends’ news feed.
- When you post the new proposal presentation you’ve updated it shows up in your colleagues’ news feed.
- You collaborate with friends to plan a trip to a concert next month.
- You collaborate with colleagues to prepare for the big client meeting next week.
- You follow your favorite celebs for gossip on Twitter.
- You follow the experts in your company for tips on how to best close deals or find industry expertise.
- You follow @Starbucks for coupons, deals and updates.
- You follow your important customer accounts to be sure all issues are resolved.
- You post questions to your profile wall or feed for advice from friends.
- You post questions to your company network for advice and relevant documents from colleagues.
So why don’t we have real-time collaboration in the workplace already? It’s seems like a no-brainer. Developing a custom inter-office CRM for ourselves has been on our to-do list for months. We want something that will work how WE need it to work instead of trying to deal with maneuvering around a generic system. We’re always looking for better and more efficient ways to get things done around here. And how better to keep everyone in the loop than to make our own social network?
What do you think about the trend of bringing social media ideas into the work place? What systems do you find work best?
