A huge number of social media solutions for internal communication in companies has emerged recently. Many attempts to implement internal social media, however, fail in practice. What are the most common causes of these failures and how to avoid them? Answers to these questions were published by eLearn Magazine.
1. Corporate Culture
Companies implement social media to facilitate communication across departments or the entire company. That may, however, cause different reactions and mainly hit against a deep-rooted corporate culture - both in the company as a whole and in individual teams. Even the best communication products and processes which can save a lot of money will not automatically be used if they are in conflict to the values of a corporate culture. The question of how to integrate a social technology into the culture that is averse to sucha technologies should come right at the beginning of the project. Then you will need to find an appropriate way to communicate about these technologies and explain their benefits to employees. Keep in mind that you will be rejected. Your goal is to find enthusiasts who will support you and help you persuade others. It is necessayr to be patient and focus on the specific purposes you want social media to use.
2. Lack of management support
The initiative for the implementation of social media as an internal communication tool can certainly come from ordinary employees. In order to be successful, however, not only approval but also active support of management is crucial. It is not important to for the tool to successfully implemented, but to be actively used. In addition to actively promoting new tools from the bottom, you also need to involve company's management from the very beginning. Managers should set an example to their people and motivate them to use social media while being supported by their superiors.
3. Assuming that employees will know how to use the new tools
The fact that your people routinely use Facebook or Twitter does not mean that they will be able to work with a tool that modified to meet your internal needs. Although it seems simple to handle, do not underestimate training. Employees not only need to know the technical aspects but also why and for what specific purpose each function should be used. If they do not understand, they will not leave their old habits.
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