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SNCR Study: Results Reveal Social Media's Impact on Traditional Professional Decision-Making Cycle

The Society for New Communications Research held their Research Symposium at Harvard University earlier this Fall. SNCR Fellows, Vanessa DiMauro and Don Bulmer presented their survey results of a study entitled "The New Symbiosis of Professional Networks."

The purpose of the study examined Social Media's impact, particularly focusing on the following research questions:

• Are professional networks being utilized by decision-makers in business?
• Is social media typically regarded as a trustworthy source of information for professionals?
• In what ways do professionals rely on social networks to support business decisions?
• Will social media change the business and practice of enterprise-level operations?

Core Findings Validate Social Media's Rise as a Trusted Information Source (Network)

• Professional decision-making is becoming more social
• The big three have emerged as leading professional networks: LinkedIn, Facebook & Twitter
• Professional networks are emerging as decision-support tools
• Professionals trust online information almost as much as information gotten from in-person
• Reliance on web-based professional networks and online communities has increased significantly over the past 3 years
• Social Media use patterns are not pre-determined by age or organizational affiliation

...An Opportunity for Professional Decision-Making and Engagement

• Social Media is supplementing the traditional professional decision-making cycle with great affect
• Challenges are facing marketers who endeavor to mange or control social media network content
• The greatest opportunity business has is to engage collaborative influence – via immediacy of impact through social channel

Creativity is not a luxury, but a necessity

The exploration of new ideas, the expression of different ways to present those ideas, and most of all the unique nature of communicating complex ideas simply or provocatively -- all require time and an open opportunity to explore, test, and try again. Creativity is not a luxury, but a necessity.

Reading through my feeds, I came across this great "tongue-in-cheek" article by Paul Sloane, author and speaker on leadership, innovation and lateral thinking, entitled - Ten Great Ways to Crush Creativity. 

Sloane says, "Leaders have more power than they realize. They can patiently create a climate of creativity or they can crush it in a series of subtle comments and gestures. Their actions send powerful signals. Their responses to suggestions and ideas are deciphered by staff as encouragement or rejection."

Here's how Sloane sees a top 10 list to "crush creativity" in an organization:

1. Criticize new ideas
2. Discourage brainstorming or collaboration to explore new ideas or creative solutions
3. Hoard problems - don't seek ideas to create innovative solutions
4. Focus on efficiencies not innovation
5. Overwork - "hard work alone will solve the problem"
6. Adhere to the plan at all costs
7. Punish for mistakes, reduce taking any risk
8. Don't look outside (the organization, the processes used, the existing solution in place)
9. Promote only those who think and manage like you
10. Don't waste money on training - just learn as you go

For the full article, read on >>

See Paul Sloane's latest book, The Innovative Leader: How to Inspire Your Team and Drive Creativity.

Change Manifestos Worth Reading from ChangeThis

There are always great manifestos published on ChangeThis and some of the latest I wanted to share with you. If you are a manager in today's Organization 2.0, the following manifestos are an excellent read. These ideas and concepts are worth sharing. Check them out!

Change Master: Why Adapting is the Most Crucial Skill You’ll Ever Need
By: M.J. Ryan Web | PDF
“In order to not merely to survive, but to thrive during the greatest period of transformation humans have ever experienced, we are all being called on to stretch mentally, emotionally, and spiritually into the future. It’s my hope that this manifesto offers you both comfort and practical support as you take on this challenge and become a Master of Change.”

See M.J. Ryan's latest book, AdaptAbility: How to Survive Change You Didn't Ask For

What’s Your CQ and Why Should You Care?
By: David Livermore Web | PDF

“You’ve heard about IQ and EQ. But what’s your CQ? CQ, or cultural intelligence, is more than just a kitschy catch phrase for cultural competence. It’s a fresh, new approach to leading in our multicultural, globalized world. Cultural intelligence is defined as the capability to function effectively across national, ethnic, and organizational cultures. And research demonstrates a leader’s CQ may easily be the single greatest difference between thriving in the 21st century world and becoming obsolete.”

See David Livermore's latest book, Cultural Intelligence: Improving Your CQ to Engage Our Multicultural World (Youth, Family, and Culture)

Below C-Level Strategy
By: John Spence Web | PDF

“Whereas C- level strategic planning is for people that ‘make’ budgets; below C-level strategic planning is for those of us that are given a budget. Folks at the C-level make broad reaching decisions that direct people and departments across the entire organization, while those of us below C-level often have to focus on the few places within the organization where we do have impact, influence and some level of control. Luckily, the most important strategies for creating a highly successful organization fall into a handful of key result areas, most of which are completely within your control.”

See John Spence's latest book, Awesomely Simple - Essential Business Strategies for Turning Ideas into Action

Quit Managing Your Time… and Start Managing Your Attention
By: Lee J. Colan, Ph.D. Web

“The myth of time management never dies. Many people enroll in 'time management' classes and learn techniques like making to-do lists. That’s fine. Lists can be useful, even satisfying. It’s great to experience that rush—Ahhhh!—as we check something off the list. However, by the end of the day, or the week, or the month, most people discover projects that are still not checked off and some projects they haven’t even started. That’s when frustration begins to set in. The time is gone, and there’s no way to get it back.

You can’t manufacture time, you can’t reproduce time, you can’t slow time down or turn it around and make it run in the other direction.

You can’t trade bad hours for good ones, either. About all the time management you can do is to cram as much productive work as pos¬sible into each day.

What you can manage, however, is your attention..."

See Lee Colan's latest book, Winners Always Quit

Thought Leaders Spotlight - Clay Shirky

In an age where there are so many "thought leaders," particularly in the emerging social media space, it is really refreshing and mind-nourishing when you get to really sit with some ideas that make you stop, think and want to feed your brain some more. Drawn in to watch every clip of US Now, Shirky's videos really made me want to follow and learn more (interesting inherent behavior in social media right off the bat). :)

Today, we are going to kick off a new blog series, entitled "Thought Leaders Spotlight." It's an opportunity for us to explore the roll out of ideas, critical thinking and viewpoints from varied sources over time to study their opinions, perspectives and view the dialogue discussed on, by or about these thought leaders.

We've assembled a few of our favorite presentation videos from Shirky's Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations book tour and his recent contribution in the film documentary, US Now.

Here Comes Everybody

Where Do People Find the Time

The Power of Organizing Without Organizations

Shirky also spoke at the RSA, where there is another great video on this same topic.

Instutions vs. Collaboration

Future Transformations