Using Social Media In The Workplace To Communicate

Introduction

In the last decades, the fate of nations has been changing due to the usage of social media. Due to this practice, the political systems of whole countries are changing, and drastic changes are occurring in entire regions. In this modern era, there is a great need to use modern ways of communication, especially in the workplace. Now, social media has played an enormous role in two-way conversations and lets us collaborate efficiently. Blogging, posting, texting, emailing, and tweeting permit us to send direct messages quickly, and it is more productive and influential to communicate through social media in a work setting.

The purpose of this study is to identify the importance of social media usage in the workplace for communication purposes. Nowadays, every single person actively responds to others on social media rather than making a physical presence. It is more productive to use social media as a tool for communication in the workplace as it makes it easy to communicate if team members are present virtually or at a distant place. Due to advancing trends, companies can boost their effectiveness and productivity by using social media as it is economical and easy to implement.

This study will be helpful in understanding the ways that organisations can practice to make communication useful. Social media will allow coworkers to interact with each other, determine information, and develop proficient relationships with other people.

Top managers or team members should focus on making sure communications, campaigns and message tactics that influence social media do not overshadow each other. At the same time, managers should realise that employees will be more responsive and approachable, where communication is done through email, social media and virtual meetings. Employees must recognise the real purpose of social media, which is to make better connections instead of engaging in incongruous activities in the work environment.

The use of social media is essential for those organisations where interaction with employees is necessary to share information. Social media will enable communication if team members are not in the same place and the offices are distant. In this way, employees will be available in real-time and will get a real-time response. Indeed, today’s organisations need communication as well as immediate interaction with their coworkers to shape genuine rapport. Any organisation that aims to build a proper relationship with employees puts emphasis on such initiatives to enhance engagement needs.

Organize should formalise such strategies for communication that fulfil the objectives of the organisation. Such a plan is useful for giving two-way communication where the top-down approach is not feasible. There are many means of using social media for communication: email, Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, and Skype. However, it will be useful to embrace Skype as a communication tool. The use of Skype will allow members of the organisation to collaborate and respond to each other actively. In this way, employees can collect information that is relevant to them in real-time. The organisation must design such a communication strategy that cannot overlap with other unsuitable activities, and the purpose of communication will continue only in the workplace.

Discussion

Nowadays, trends are changing and evolving very rapidly. Organisations must come up with these challenges to improve performance and survival. Most of the communication happens through social media rather than using other tools. If the organisation wants to communicate more effectively within the organisation, then it has to build a strong channel for it. Today’s generation is more actively using these social networking tools than the traditional channel (Cardon; Marshall, 2015). Social media is essential for internal communication purposes with employees working in the organisation. It is more helpful and productive to use and leverage their activities through modern tools. Thus, social media proves to be more effective in developing and facilitating connections not only within the organisation but also outside the organisation. Social media is more useful to encourage employees when they post and comment. It has become easier for HR professionals to create a net with peers and concentrate on competitors. Displaced employees can easily access the info from their devices. Employer brand can be built by sharing data about company values and events that will be useful in attracting customers and applicants. Knowledge sharing and social learning will be promoted as employees interact with other team members. (Social Media: What are the pros and cons of using social media in the workplace? What should we include in a policy? shrm.org, 2018) . The decision-making process also becomes faster because team members can communicate issues without waiting for a meeting. Employees also get satisfied and feel recognition for their work through immediate direct feedback (Charlotte, 2014). Internal communication permits co-workers to record or track the progress of their work in real-time instead of in meetings. Thus, social media as a platform for internal communication is used to construct dynamic conversations among employees at all points of an organisation.

Conclusion

This report will help explore how crucial and vital it is to use social media as a tool for communication within an organisation. In what ways can employees improve their performance and productivity using social media? In what way does social media have a role in building a relationship between the organisation and other team members? How upper-level management plays their part in making policies and procedures for internal communication. However, this tool must be designed cautiously so as not to overshadow other activities. Nowadays, everything is evolving with the changes in technology. So, it is more productive for an organisation where offices are away, and an information-sharing process is needed.

Recommendations

Organisations should plan strategies that are congruent with relevant activities and provide support to make communication effective. Many businesses use Facebook for internal communication, but this platform of communication can distract employees and make them unproductive. Many ways of social media can be used to create connections. Enhance not only internal communication but also build an improved relationship with other people in a workplace environment. Skype can be used to make actual contact in the workplace and share real-time facts and figures. The use of Skype will make people more interactive and connected even when they are not physically there. In this way, employees will be more engaged and involved in a task. Instant feedback will be helpful.

References

Cardon, P. W., & Marshall, B. (2015). The hype and reality of social media use for work collaboration and team communication. International Journal of Business Communication, 52(3), 273-293.

Collins, K., Shiffman, D., & Rock, J. (2016). How are scientists using social media in the workplace? PloS one, 11(10)

Social Media: What are the pros and cons of using social media in the workplace? What should we include in a policy? . (2018). SHRM. Retrieved 2 April 2018, from https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/tools-and-samples/hr-qa/pages/socialnetworkingsitespolicy.aspx

Charlotte, Q. (2014). The Benefits of Using Social Media for Communication Among Employees. Queens University of Charlotte Online. Retrieved 2 April 2018, from https://online.queens.edu/online-programs/mscomm/resources/social-media-for-communication