Getting stuff done in the world of No Straight Lines
In the world of No-Straight-Lines there are no such things as conscripts – there are only volunteers. Young people are coming into traditional organizations having spent the entirety of their young lives: collaborating, networking and getting stuff done in very different ways. They are confronted with an alien world of: linearity, silos, hierarchies and the “ego of title.” The friction is palpable because the old organizational models cannot cope with, or, take full advantage of this new potential, unleashed is a profound transformation in the way of doing things, of getting stuff done.
Complex technological and marketing environments are driven by networks of highly-connected people. Managing these people requires different approaches and skills of managers than managing more conventional workforces.
The desire to connect both with each other and with worthwhile endeavours affects staff at a very deep human level. Conventional management approaches have if anything squandered this human characteristic, but engaging staff in conversation with each other and, with customers affords the possibility of tapping passion which in an undifferentiated world of appliances will be the difference between success and failure in future marketplaces.
So, what does the organization look like this context? True and valuable insight is offered as how to navigate this treacherous crossing – philosophically, conceptually and practically.
We offer a two day workshop to introduce client to the practicalities of social computing and their impact on the day to day business of getting things done.
Day One
What tools are we talking about?
- An overview of the tools and applications which fall under the banner social computing.
- A brief look at the origins, history and some of the people involved.
Interactive session: Assessing the organisation
- How ready are they for this new way of working?
- What particular challenges, both technical and cultural might they face?
- What problems are they trying to sort?
- What are the main benefits they expect?
The cathedral and the bazaar: Forums and Social Networking Tools
After e-mail online forums were the next major social tool on the web. What makes them tick, how to start one up, how to keep the communities going.- Social networking tools help staff find and connect with others and allow the informal organisation to surface.
Writing ourselves into existence: Weblogs and Wikis
Blogs are having a huge impact on the web and in business. What actually is a blog? How do they set up a corporate blogging capability? What makes a good blogger?- Wikis create shared writing spaces that can be put to all sorts of creative and efficient use. What wiki tools are available and which one should they choose? How do they encourage their use? How do they fit in with more formal means of communication?
Finding your way around: RSS and Folksonomies.
- Now that they have all of these online conversations how are they going to keep track of them?
- How do they classify and find “the good stuff”?
Day Two
What’s in it for executives?
- How do they react when a blogger finds fault with your services or their staff are better informed about their business than they are?
- What strategies should they adopt? How should they engage?
What’s in it for managers?
- How do they engage with their staff in online environments?
- How do they gain credibility and be seen to be part of the new world rather than the old?
- How do they react if their decisions are being criticized online?
What’s in it for staff?
- How do they overcome reticence about stating the obvious?
- How do they make time for doing all this stuff and what its the payback?
- How do I find the people I really need to talk to?”
Encouraging take-up and use
- How do they encourage people to adopt these tools?
- How do they engender a self policing environment where people take responsibility for their use of them?
- What sort of problems are they likely to encounter and how do they deal with problems when they arise?
The big wide world
- How do they engage with their customers who are blogging about them, discussing them in online forums and writing the history of their organisation in the Wikipedia?
- Do they get their CEO to blog or get their marketing agency to do it?
- Do they encourage their staff to discuss their work in their own increasingly online lives?
- How do they cope when it all goes horribly wrong?
Interactive session: What do we do next?
- Having seen the tools and gained an understanding of their potential how are they going to take them forward in their organisation?
- What challenges do they perceive given what they have learned and how do they anticipate overcoming them?
Duration:
2 days
Group Size:
Maximum 8 – 16 people
