Here’s this week’s round up of resources that look at social learning and the use of social media for working and learning:
1 – The first resource I want to share with you this week is Jane Bozarth’s Social Media for Learning Start Guide, which appears inside the (glossy) November edition of Inside Learning Technologies magazine, and which is introduced as follows:
“New tools have given training practitioners limitless new ways to engage with and support our learners. Anecdotal reports indicate interest from trainers as well as some trepidation about how to include the new tools and approaches. Jane Bozarth takes a look at how to approach this new frontier.”
- Social Media for Learning Start Guide, Jane Bozarth, Inside Learning Technologies, November 2011
2 – “Social learning” as we know is not something that happens just when social media is involved, we learn socially all the time in pretty much everything we do. What we actually need to do is to support natural social learning better in the workplace, as Adam Rchardson explains in Harvard Business Review.
“Most corporate buildings don’t do a good job of supporting collaboration, brainstorming, and innovative work methods. They tend to be dominated by cubicles or offices which are suited for individual work, or by hard-to-book conference rooms that teams can use but only for short periods of time. What’s needed is a more flexible space that better supports teams and inspires more open thinking.”
- Inventing the collaborative workspace, Adam Richardson, Harvard Business Review, 21 November 2011
3 – But when it comes to social technologies, they are now beginning to have a big impact on the way businesses operate, reports the McKinsey Quarterly:
“Our fifth annual survey on the way organizations use social tools and technologies finds that they continue to seep into many organizations, transforming business processes and raising performance.”
- How social technologies are extending the enterprise, McKinsey Quarterly, November 2011
4 – However, it is not all about the technology. As Ryan Nicholls points out in ComputerWorld, too many people believe “if we build it, they will come”:
“Here’s how it usually works: Many organizations start by throwing a bunch of money at a variety of social business tools and “hoping for the best.” Next comes an attempt to “manage” these communities by encouraging a lot of activity that’s seldom more than noise. Achieving results will require a third step that will be even harder. According to Rachel Happe what makes communities successful are characteristics that most companies aren’t comfortable with-words like “connection, caring, empathy and vulnerability.
While it makes sense that these words are at the heart of successful communities, they aren’t used very often in the boardroom. That means that Enterprise 2.0 is as much about how we manage our organizations as it is about the technology that supports them.”
- Enterprise 2.0 maturing with a focus on how we manage, measure and motivate, ComputerWorld, 21 November 2011
5 – So it is understanding how to build this collaborative culture in the organisation, if it does not already exist, that Allyson Kapin looks at in her post on frogloop – an organisation that is focused on helping non-profits. The advice she provides, however, is relevant for all. Here, for instance, is her tip about Trust.
“Trust Your Staff
One of the best ways to create a more collaborative environment is to stop relying on consultants so much and start listening more to your own team. Nonprofits tend to rely on consultants to either come in and save the day or to validate what their own staff already knows. You hired your team because you thought they were capable to begin with, right? Now trust them. Still feel like you need to use consultants because you don’t have enough internal resources to implement great ideas? No problem, just make sure your own team gets first dibs on the pieces they want to work on.”
- Tips to create a culture of collaboration and innovation, frogloop, 25 November 2011
Connect!