Social Media: Is it About the Money or the Relationship?

The evolution of digital and online media and its effect on the marketing and IT relationship was the focus of discussion at the Q3 Georgia CxO Forum held in July. IT and marketing executives from a wide array of industries — from transportation to digital media, telecommunications and consulting — discussed the changes and challenges their organizations are experiencing.

The discussion began with the general topic of digital trends impacting technology and soon boiled down to social media in and of itself. Three themes emerged:

1. Defining ROI: Few companies have a solid definition of what ROI from their social media strategy means for their organization.

2. Copycat syndrome: Many companies are modeling their definition on what others are doing. According to Forum participants, this is a mistake: Organizations must look internally to identify what’s important to them and independently decide.

3. Dueling tactics: Social media is largely being used in two ways: For operational leverage and as a forward-thinking strategy. From an operational standpoint, companies are asking themselves how they can use social media to brand and market in a way that provides lifetime value. Used as a forward-thinking strategy, companies are seeking ways to increase sales exposure.

Monetizing Social Media — or Not

Of course, when it comes to social media, many companies want to know how they can monetize their efforts. This can be tricky. The effect can be indirect and hard to measure, especially when the goal is building relationships and deepening loyalty. However, direct methods of turning social media efforts into profit-generating activity can be tricky, too: What appears to be successful monetization can often turn out to be nothing more than diversion of sales.

For example, if customers are going to your website to purchase your product, are you really creating sales or are you just diverting sales from your storefront to your website? You need to identify what is really creating new dollars for a company and not erroneously count income that was redirected from another avenue.

Those who have forsaken the pursuit of monetizing their social media strategy are working with an entirely different set of questions — ones that everyone should, in fact, be able to answer, regardless of their goals. If you don’t have answers to these questions, you really don’t have a social media strategy —you only have social media tools.

1. Who owns social media in your organization?

Is it marketing? Is it sales? Or is it IT?

2. Who do you want to do business with?

Once you know who you are trying to attract, everything else falls into place.

3. What information is valuable for you to track?

What data do you really care about? How can you capture that data with social media tools?

4. How do you apply the data you’ve collected to solve or support your company’s business objectives?

How is it impacting your business?

As always, the discussion was enlightening. As one attendee shared, social media became corrupted when it stopped being social. Social media is about relationships and building loyalty. Now the challenge is figuring out how to keep it social with a twist of business strategy.

Mobile Technology: Transforming Business

Mobile technology has come a long way from its birthplace in the 1960s and ‘70s as crude car phones on analog networks to the digital wonder-devices we use today. From sending documents to print remotely, to watching the latest episode of our favorite TV show, it’s no wonder the popularity of these tiny titans has exploded for both work and play. The 24/7 availability of essential information and functionality offers a myriad of benefits for workers, customers and yes, even employers. That’s if you choose your mobile apps wisely. As software companies catch the mobile wave, we will see leaps similar to those that transformed the computer industry. Mobile software development is expected to become a $79.7b industry by 2017 according to Global Industry Analysts, Inc. And Forrester Research predicts smart phone use among U.S-based information workers will triple by 2013. But is your company ready to go mobile? Why, how, and to what degree? Looking at the statistics, it’s tempting to rely on the old “Everybody’s doing it,” rationale. But your job is to keep your eye on the prize: determine what will bring the greatest value to the greatest number of people in your organization. This focus will ensure that your organization is driving the technology, not the other way around.

Goodbye Kiddy Table

Members of the Georgia CxO Forum, an invitation-only group that started approximately three years ago and has expanded from only 20 members at the start to 470 and growing, had the honor of participating in the Georgia CxO Forum Q1, 2011 meeting. The Forum centered on the emerging trend of IT and HR executives partnering to deliver value and drive innovation within their organizations. This concept, which has endured plenty of debate over the years, was discussed at length during the session which was facilitated by Sandra Hoffman, the current CIO-in-Residence for the Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC) at Georgia Tech and former CIO, COO and Chief People Officer for several notable companies. Hoffman’s leadership has resulted in significant recognition, including being named the Georgia CIO of the Year in 2003 and most recently being the first recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from Georgia CIO Leadership Association (GCLA) in October 2010. Sandy moderated the guest panel which included Jay Ferro of Chartis Aerospace, Hank Johnson of Towers Watson, Chris Kenyon of Elavon, Bryson Koehler of IHG, Nancy Vepraskas of P2Excellence and Liz Wysong of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. This esteemed group of business leaders all have notable careers in IT, HR or both and a great deal of experience, which they shared at the Forum.

From the conversation between attendees and panelists, all signs indicate that the dynamics between HR and IT are changing. What was once a contentious relationship between the two functions in many organizations now appears to be evolving into a significant and cooperative relationship between the two departments. Here’s a look at the main themes that stood out at the Georgia CxO Forum as the panelists discussed what is driving this newfound affiliation and how HR is supporting IT:

1. Mindset Shift. It’s no secret that IT and HR have for years been fighting for a proverbial seat at the C-Suite table. Now, at the start of 2011, regardless of company size and service, it appears that the mindset about IT and HR has shifted. Not only are both functions on equal footing with other functional peers and being looked to for strategic solutions, but they are also working together for the betterment of the organization. Whether out of necessity or desire, this cultural shift is having a profound impact. The two teams are meeting regularly, developing joint goals and sharing challenges and opportunities, all in an effort to help ensure they end up at the same place at the end of the year. Coupled with support from the top down, this cultural shift will ultimately drive innovation and produce better results for the companies they serve.

2. Retention. A specific area that IT and HR are working on together that was discussed at the Georgia CxO Forum is retention. This is always a concern for IT leaders, especially for those that require specialized skills; as the economy begins to see a shift, so do retention efforts. What has been an employer’s market is now shifting to a candidate’s market. IT leaders expressed a healthy amount of concern around what is being done to ensure key talent stays with their company. As the market continues to improve, individuals are being presented with more and more opportunities to consider other positions within different companies. As a result, IT and HR are collaborating to take a hard look at retention strategies, making sure they are doing everything they feasibly can to thwart the loss or theft of star players.

3. Attraction. Likewise, as talent gets tight, IT leaders have a heightened awareness around their efforts to attract top talent. This has presented yet another reason for IT and HR to team up. The two forces are putting their minds together to brainstorm creative incentives to attract talent to work for their organizations. One example of a creative incentive shared by a company at the CxO Forum was giving new hires a credit to choose their own laptop, one that suited their needs best, rather than simply handing off a restored or possibly less desirable device. This simple gesture gives this company a unique edge on competitors and a sense of value to the employee.