Manager's Guide to Social Media

Chapter 1Social Technologies: An Introduction

Kim runs a marketing office with six direct reports. Four of her people are under 32 years old and have been with the company for less than two years. More and more, she observes them spending time on their computers using Facebook, Twitter, and watching YouTube videos. She can’t help noticing that they send links to each other and share interesting articles and videos. At times she’s sure they’re helping to expose each other to new ideas and information, yet she also suspects they use company time to communicate with friends. Increasingly, her four young direct reports spend time on their mobile devices during meetings, either texting, checking social sites, or taking notes; it’s hard to say.

Their ...