In today’s world
there are plenty of venues available to get messages out to the people. Cell
phones, tablet computers, and the internet; email, iPods, and video
conferencing; these are just a few of the new technologies being used to
present ideas to people all around the world. I can make a video presentation
for my coworkers from my cell phone while at a high school football game. If I
wanted the presentation to have some flair there are some new technologies that
can keep the viewers engaged. I could also get daily projections sent to me
instantly while visiting my mother in Belgium. With those projections I could
conduct new meetings from thousands of miles away. This is amazing. This is
exciting. This is new. But is it better? What is going to be done about the
people who cannot keep up with these advancements? How are employers using
these advancements to upgrade the work place and how are employees keeping tabs
on their employers with this new technology?
Has technology started to take away from the message being presented?
For better or worse new technology has advanced the way we present our ideas.
Back when I was
growing up, not too long ago, the best way to get a hold of someone was to
“reach out and touch” them. In a piece written by Clive Thompson he reports
that “According to Nielsen, the average number of mobile phone calls we make is
dropping every year, after hitting a peak in 2007. And our calls are getting
shorter: In 2005 they averaged three minutes in length; now they’re almost half
that” (Thompson, 2010). We are not
talking to people. Technology has brought us to a point where information and
ideas can be shared so fast that actually taking the time to dial up a person
and talk to them becomes cumbersome. Thompson goes on to write “This generation
doesn’t make phone calls, because everyone is in constant, lightweight contact
in so many other ways…” (Thompson, 2010). Now, calling a person has become a
last ditch effort in an attempt to get them a message. With social networking
sites, text messaging, emails, push to talk, and instant messaging we have
stepped away from face to face and voice to voice forms of communication and
substituted for them a passive way of passing along information at a great
speed and convenience. Companies are
beginning to see how “reaching out” and talking to someone is not as efficient
as posting the message on a social networking site or sending out a mass email
for communications and discussion. Good
companies will be able to incorporate this growing percentage of social
networking site users to make collaborating on project ideas from remote
locations easier and more cost effective.
In
my work I use social networking sites to monitor my employees. I do not use it
to spy on them about what they are doing on their time off or to see if they
are taking part in any activities that might shed a poor light on my shop. But
I do use these sites to get a better idea of who the person is before and after
an interview, when an excuse for missing a shift needs to be validated, and to
see if any harassment is going on or can be validated when it does happen. My
reasoning for conducting this type of make-shift investigative work is to
protect my business. There are a lot of people in my business who may say the
right things in an interview, like how they left their previous job, but if I
can find publicly printed hints that would suggest if the interviewee is a good
candidate then I am going to use that information. I am not the only person or company using
this very public tool for employee information.
In a report done by Rosemary
Haefner, Vice President of Human Resources at CareerBuilder she stated that “Forty-five
percent of employers reported in a June 2009 CareerBuilder survey that they use
social networking sites to screen potential employees, compared to only 22
percent of employers last year.” (Haefner,
2009), Because of the rapid growth of technology we have started to act like
children with a new toy on Christmas Day; we try to use it first before
figuring out exactly what it can do to us and for us
It would seem
that the tides are turning when it comes to social media and future employers.
CareerBliss.com reported via a wire feed in June of 2011 that they are
launching Company Q&A. Company Q&A “is the only online community where
job candidates can ask questions and receive uncensored answers about a potential
employer directly from a current employee” (Careerbliss.com, 2011). This is one
more example of companies using new technology to observe the perceptions that
their current employees have about the company. These companies are also given
a chance to see what future employees feel are important values when looking
for a new career. Some risks may come to the companies participating in this
service but the risks involved could be worth the information provided if the
companies use the responses in a way that promotes growth within the company.
For instance, if one company finds out that the employees feel the culture at
their company is good but middle management is implementing practices that take
away individuality in the workplace, the company could review these claims and
try to decide if higher productivity in the short term is worth higher turnover
in the long-term. Technology is providing new avenues to gather information for
both employees and the people they hire. This information is then able to be communicated
to upper management and to human resource departments to implement new hiring
and internal communication practices.
One of the
greatest technological advances in the past decade has been the smart phone.
Cell Phones are a staple for the continuing business world. The use of them has
spread so far that in a documentary done by The History Channel titled How the States Got Their Shapes, there
was a segment that showed and Amish family selling their goods in an indoor
market with cash registers and electricity. They were using cell phones to
conduct their business as well. Cell phones are taking over the world because
they are easy to use, multi functional, and cost effective. We are enamored
with these small devises and more than once I have wondered just how much
larger would the world be if we did not have cell phones. Would we be so
obsessed with this instant information if we did not have the ability to hold
that information in the palm of our hand? To be able to utilize social media
sites, text messaging, email, phone conversations, contact information, news
from around the world and news from my online college is priceless to me and to
the rest of the world. Facebook reports in their statistic information that
“There are more than 250 million active users [50 percent] currently accessing
Facebook through their mobile devices” (Facebook, 2011). We are using these devices to market
ourselves, our families, our jobs, and our causes. During my research for this
paper I utilized a free hour I had while waiting for my vehicle to get new
tires to do some online research about how much our lives depend on
communications technology. Then I gave a
chuckle to myself when I realized what I was doing.
Cell phones are not the only way we
communicate our ideas with new technology, although they were the springboard
for greater things. The iPad and various Android tablets have given not only
the individual, but companies a way to make taking the office and everything
that can be done in that office with the employee when they are not at work or
at their desk in one user friendly book sized device. Gone are the days of
looking at a presentation on an overhead projector with a copy of the notes in
front of you so staying on track is easy. Now we are able to write and create
interactive presentations for clients, co-workers, and management using
software like PowerPoint and Prezi, and with those tablets we can present these
ideas to anyone anywhere an internet connection is available. Ideas can be
collaborated on and new suggestions can be made with the touch of one finger to
a screen. Corporate memos can be sent directly to the front of those devices to
be seen the moment it is turned on thus doing away with any excuses and wasted
hours spent at the copy machine waiting for the repair man to replace the toner
cartridge that is being replaced for the third time in a week. These new
technologies make doing business in the corporate world fast. This speed is
changing the corporate communications scheme. Now management needs to be on top
of memos and information as it comes in. there is no waiting weeks for clients
to respond to a sales presentation. Now, with this new business technology, an
answer can be received as fast as it can be pecked out on the keyboard.
Trying
to do away with that old copy machine is not going to be as easy as a person
might think though. We are living in a unique time when we have more than two
generational gaps vying for and working at the same jobs. What was new just
fifteen years ago is now considered old and outdated not by a little, but by
generations of software upgrades, hardware upgrades, technological complexity,
and terms. Companies are continually upgrading their information networks and
how they store information. These upgrades
do come at a cost though. Employees that are unable to keep up with the changes
in times and technology will find themselves as outdated as MS DOS is to the
computer world. According to Pamela Shockley-Zalabak in her text Perspectives for Organizational
Communication, she writes that emerging communications technologies
influence newcomer socialization and interactions among work groups and
customers (Shockley-Zalabak, 2012). For workers that are not up to date with
these technologies, starting a new job in this ever changing world can be
challenging. Not only when trying to learn the new computer system and how
information travels, but with the communication venues themselves. A fifty
something starting a new job may not be as up to date on the newest smart phone
technologies that are being used to transmit important client information and
company communications that come down from upper management. If upper
management is lost in the times then being able to keep up with employee
demands can be challenging. When upper management refuses to update
communication channels they can be left in the dust by competitors when it
comes to sales leads, employee retention, and financial progress.
Organizational
communication is not dependant on technology alone. All the avenues and
applications in the world that are used to deliver the communications are of
little to no use when the ideas being given are inconsistent and unorganized.
When a member of an organization needs to give a presentation to clients or to
management and co-workers, it is important that the information be clear,
concise, and to the point. Presentations, whether in a sales pitch or in a
training class, are the way that organizations present those ideas.
When
I give presentations the first thing I need to think about is my topic. There
have been too many times where I was asked to manage a meeting and when the
meeting finally came up I was unprepared. Having the key talking points of my
presentation in hand is a great way to stay on course with the meeting. Ellen
Heffes wrote in an article for Accounting
& Tax Periodicals that “the single most promotable skill in business
today is the ability to communicate verbally” (Heffes, 1998). Taking notes
about what is to be said before the meeting and anticipating questions by being
able to think about any objections or problems that may come from group
discussion will help when communicating verbally. When a person is not prepared
for a question that is asked they may stumble over their words and notes trying
to think about a response or look for an answer that will satisfy the askers
needs and the presentations goals. Ellen Heffes also goes on to state that the
most important part of being able to communicate verbally is being clear. Know
what you are saying, be sure the message is clear, and that you can be
understood (Heffes, 1998).
I
am the face of my business. When I meet new people in my everyday life I am
always aware of the challenges that come with this. Every day I need to be
prepared to answer questions about all aspects of my business which include my
competitions strengths and weaknesses, the way my product is handled from the
shop to the customers door, what goes in to making my product, and how the
world economic picture affects my business. Because of these questions and
situations that come up I try very hard to stay on top of current events,
national promotions and current affairs around the community. My business does
not deliver a global product but we are a global business. Each franchisee
handles the business in their community and being active in that community is
very important. When I do get the chance to give presentations in the community
not only am I knowledgeable about my product and how it is involved in the
community, but I am informed about the community. This way I do not get
sidetracked and can give a good presentation with pertinent information to
people who will understand what is being communicated, and how it affects them.
There
are times when I have to be persuasive in my communications with people. When
my company comes out with a new promotion for the quarter it is up to me to
convince my employees that it is going to help the company at a local level. I
need to inspire them and help them see that what we are trying to accomplish
will not only benefit the company but themselves. In a business where part time
employees are looking for as many hours as possible it becomes important to
communicate what employees can do within the business to get those hard earned
hours and to make themselves stand out. This plays on Maslow’s Hierarchy of
needs by establishing a well detailed avenue for providing the physiological
need.
For
better or worse new technology has advanced the way we present our ideas. In a
time when technology is king and the speed of communication is instant it is
important to remember that technology alone is not going to deliver the correct
message. Technology can make the message interesting. Technology can make the
message engaging. Technology can even take that message, convert it in to
multiple languages and then deliver it to millions of people around the world.
But technology cannot make that message informative. Technology cannot make
that message pertinent. Technology cannot take that message and make it mean
something to the people who receive it. Having the skills necessary to present
a message properly in front of an audience, or to employees, or to the
board-of-directors, is the true skill. Being able to work with technology so
that your message is engaging and informative is the new skill set necessary to
be able to compete in today’s world. New technology has advanced the way I
communicate with my peers, colleagues, and family, but the meaning behind that
communication is still the same as it was before new technology; present ideas
in a clear manor. When the idea is believable, and is easy to get behind people
will grab hold of it and run. When they run with that idea today they will be
carrying it on their cell phones and on their tablets. The old way of
communicating may seem to be gone but it will never leave us. It will just be
masked my new paint and hard plastic.
References
CareerBliss
Launches First Employee Verified Company Q&A - Jobseekers Now Get the Real
Scoop on Potential Employers with an Uncensored and Anonymous Online
Community. (2011, 22 June). Business Wire.
Retrieved August 28, 2011, from ProQuest Newsstand. (Document
ID: 2380780271).
Facebook (2011). Statistics.
Retrieved August 27, 2011 from http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?statistics
Haefner, R (2009, June 10). More Employers
Screening Candidates via Social Networking Sites: Five Tips for Creating a
Positive Online Image. Retrieved on August 28, 2011 from
http://www.careerbuilder.com/Article/CB-1337-Interview-Tips-More-Employers-Screening-Candidates-via-Social-Networking-Sites/
Heffes,
E. (1998, October). Sharpen focus, maximize presentation
skills. Accounting Today, 12(19), 8-9. Retrieved August 14, 2011, from
Accounting & Tax Periodicals. (Document ID: 35589036).
Schockley-Zalabak,
P. S. (2012). Fundamentals of Organizational Communication: Knowledge,
Sensitivity, Skills, Values (8th Ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.
/Allyn & Bacon.
Thompson,
C (2010, June 28). Clive Thompson on the Death of the Phone Call. Retrieved
August 29, 2011 from http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/07/st_thompson_deadphone/
Townsend, J. (2011, March).
Managing Generation Gaps in the Workplace. Baseline,
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Zaslow,
J. (2009, November 4). The Greatest Generation (of Networkers). Wall Street Journal (Eastern
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