It took a while creating your business case for using social media internally, with many late nights and hard work, but at the heart of proposal is idea that people will be more productive through collaborating on projects using social platforms and then publishing their findings internally for all to benefit from.
Productivity increases are just around the corner… Or so you think.
However, Jacob Nielsen’s 1-9-90 theory says:
“Out of every hundred people who join a community or network – 1% actively contribute – 9% contribute from time to time – and 90% are lurkers.”
To put this into perspective, that’s like replying to only one out every one hundred emails you receive – and that’s after you’ve deleted the spam!
Take a look at your own networks (personal or business) and see how many contributers you have on there – you’ll probably find his theory unfortunately holds up.
But it doesn’t have to be like that. In fact this theory can and must be broken in order for internal collaboration to be successful.
As advocates of social media we have to educate people on the correct etiquette – which can be achieved by workshops for example; outlining from the start that contribution to this ‘hive mind’ is expected.
In reality we know that most people need some form of incentive in order to get motivated… so could something as simple as performance related bonuses or pay rises be linked to contribution levels – even discussed as part of appraisals…?
Something that my first boss told me that has always stuck with me: He came into my office one morning and noticed my bunch of keys on my desk. He asked me what they were all for? I listed about 11 keys all to do with the office. He then said, “Are you empire building or what? What if you we’re not here one day – could anyone else access where these keys opened…”
Imagine what could be done and how future projects could evolve and benefit from a hive mind …
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