HRDaily has published an interesting article on how Web 2.0 for employee engagement increase profits.
Web 2.0 tools dramatically boost engagement, improve business results and generate new ideas, according to a new report from Aberdeen Group, providing content is driven by “subject-matter experts”.
“As with any system for capturing or sharing information, if garbage goes in, garbage is what will come out,” say Mollie Lombardi and Jayson Saba in an HR Executive’s Guide to Web 2.0.
“Tools that connect people to experts, or try to leverage that expertise to create and deliver meaningful content are only as good as the ‘experts’ within them.”
According to Lombardi and Saba, Web 2.0 tools – which they define as “collaborative technologies and social media” including social-networking websites, RSS feeds and blogs – are particularly invaluable for business in an era in which:
* co-workers and project teams are increasingly separated geographically and temporally;
* customers, partners and other stakeholders demand access to company information while companies need to maintain security and control over certain processes and data;
* baby boomers on the verge of retirement are looking to contribute to work without the constraints of a daily commitment;
* candidates and recruits are looking to access training and other information from “their mobile device of choice”; and
* employers must quickly identify talent for hard-to-fill positions.
Web 2.0 tools, Lombardi and Saba say, are “enablers” for the generation of new ideas and talent management, and improve collaboration and communication across business networks. They enable new employees to quickly hone their skills and acclimatise to the organisation’s culture.
“Getting a new employee to the point where they have all of the information they need to achieve competency in a new role has a tremendous impact on the business,” they say.
Some 80 per cent of employees of organisations that effectively utilise one or more Web 2.0 tools report being “highly engaged”, they say, compared to an average of 16 per cent in organisations that don’t.
“Information moves rapidly in the world of Web 2.0, and it’s important to ensure that the information put out there is from the right sources.”
Getting started
For those employers yet to utilise Web 2.0 tools, Lombardi and Saba recommend engaging a small pilot group of employees to test a variety of tools.Employers, they say, should tweak the systems after seeking employee feedback and “build a base of educated users” as a business case for wider adoption.
Executive “buy-in” and training are key.
“Establishing a clear purpose and training employees on the use of Web 2.0 tools are critical steps in ensuring that the full benefits of these kinds of tools are realised,” they say.
“Getting everyone from senior leadership to IT to front-line managers and workers on the same page as to the purpose and value of these tools will increase adoption and results.”
If purchasing a tool from an outside vendor, employers, they note, should take into account the level of support and training that comes with the deal.
When the tool is well established, Lombardi and Saba say, employers should look to apply the system across recruitment, onboarding, succession planning and beyond.
“The most dramatic improvements are seen when these types of tools are used in combination and across multiple aspects of the talent management lifecycle,” they say.
Barriers to success
The number-one barrier to successfully implementing a Web 2.0 tool is the difficulty in linking projected outcomes to business metrics, making executive commitment improbable, Lombardi and Saba say.Proponents must also battle perceptions that social-media tools are a distraction from “real work”.
Employers, they say, should start by measuring usage and participation and move on to more complex metrics – such as reductions in costs and improvements in productivity – from there.
“In addition, like all metrics that matter, they should be reviewed on a regular basis.”
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