Monday, December 27, 2010

The Manager and the Evangelist

The tech industry calls Business 2.0 enthusiasts/champions "evangelists".  Okay, let's say that a company finds it has an evangelist in its ranks.  What is the management of this company to do?
  • They could easily ignore the evangelist and snuff out all energy and innovation, because "there are more important things to do."  Bureaucracies love sabotaging a person's efforts for change.
  • Management could let the evangelist "go for it" without clear metrics and objectives.
  • Or management could use the evangelist's energy to research the latest innovations and come up with recommendations on how to use Business 2.0 tools to reach company goals.
Managers do not have to be early adapters.  They do, however, need to be aware of existing tools that may better their firm.

Managers who work well with evangelists will be key to firms entering the world of Business.2.0.

Monday, December 20, 2010

Think Before You Get Social

There are a lot of people out there who are thunderstruck by business 2.0 when they read a good book on the subject. They want to go into the office the next day and completely change the way they do business.  That enthusiasm is great!  Business 2.0 really is exciting!

But before looking at what platforms to use, or who's going to spearhead your company's social effort, take a step back.  This is the moment to think BIG.

What are your company's greatest obstacles?  What are your company's short and long term goals?  Only when you have a firm grasp on on these basics should you think about implementing Business 2.0 technologies in your processes. 

Otherwise you're just playing with fun toys.