Build It and They Might NOT Come: Internal Social Networks, Employee Engagement and Culture Change

Not everyone agrees that an open, transparent culture -- the type we identify with social media -- is best.  Not everyone wants to add "marketing" or "customer service" to his or her responsibilities.  "I want to work with technology, not people" is a not-uncommon, although usually unspoken, thought.  Other people simply prefer structure and limited responsibility.  And those traits can add to the efficiency and productivity of many companies.

Not everyone want to focus on making the company successful either.  Many employees are trying to establish themselves and further their own reputations and careers; the organization is a short-term alliance.  Ideal?  Not at all.  But reality.

So if, as I believe (see for instance http://bit.ly/oYbtHT), success with social media first requires comfort and cultural support internally, are these organizations doomed in the new social world order?

A few years ago, I helped a mid-sized professional services company implement an internal social platform as the first step in executing a social media strategy.  Employees clamored to be among the first on the site.  We offered tips and training; a few people started posting; two executives participated actively, and within a couple of months - NOTHING.

Leadership faultered.  While many executives were lurkers on the site, only the original two enthusiasts had posted.

The professional value was not clear.  Performance reviews did not recognize those who shared.  In a business where knowledge and relationships are power, employees felt the new platform might enable others to snap up their information without giving credit.  The efficiency of the social platform for exchanging information, pointing out new ideas, and adding value to an initiative was overlooked.

The dominant culture of the company was one of controlled sharing on a need-to-know basis.  Not exactly social media nirvana.  We decided to embrace and respect the corporate DNA nonetheless.

We found success by using the social networking platform to enhance and evolve the existing culture, not change it.

We limited use of the platform to one team with 5 selected characteristics:

• Team members came from several different departments
• Team members were geographically dispersed
• Each person brought a different perspective and knowledge to the project that was important for a successful outcome
• The team leader was enthusiastic about the new way of working
• Benefits were clear   

Team members experienced real-time value from using the social networking platform.  Communication and collaboration were easier; the number of major revisions dropped; edits and modifications could be made, disseminated, and enacted more quickly; work hours and end-to-end project time declined.  

Sharing more openly paradoxically also made team members feel that they had more control of their work process and product.  At the completion of the project, team members were already using the internal social network for other work activities.

Work team by work team, node by node, the use of the internal social platform spread.  The objective was not to change the culture, but to help employees succeed more fully within the existing norms.  Two years later, the cultural changes are manifest.