Dr. Andrew Makar is an IT program manager and is the author of the Microsoft Project Made Easy series. For more project management advice, visit the website TacticalProjectManagement.com.
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Over the past few years, the buzz around social media and Web 2.0 has increased. I’ll forgo the statistical research but instead refer to my informal social media observations within my own family. Social media refers to the latest advances in Internet technology that includes blogs, wikis, Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds and social networks that enable collaboration and communication.
Recently, I have a growing number of family members who have all jumped on the social media bandwagon and have been posting to blogs, sharing photos and updating their one-line status every day. I knew it was time to start exploring social media’s application to project management world when my 83-year-old grandfather was updating his Facebook status while golfing in Florida.
Promoting, marketing and branding your internal projects are key elements of successfully implementing change management within the organization. Change management teams typically create posters, newsletters, training materials and corporate communications to promote a project to improve change awareness and adoption. These traditional print media artifacts are useful, although the recent rise of social media tools can be used to support project promotion and branding. The following ideas are a few examples of how current social media tools can be used to promote, brand and market your internal projects.
Twitter Your Project Status
Twitter is a micro-blogging website that allows you to send a message to everyone in your network who is “following” you. These messages, called Tweets, have a maximum length of 140 characters and are a simple way to communicate immediate status updates, issues or risks without overloading your inbox. Twitter is supported on various mobile phones and information can be cascaded as quickly as one can type “Project launch party after work @ Baileys” on their BlackBerry or iPhone. It is similar to instant messaging except it supports distribution to everyone on your network.
A change management team can create a Twitter account and project’s Twitter name (i.e. @employeePortal) can be promoted in the organization’s employee communications. Employees can also engage with the change management team by responding to the different tweets and engaging in the change management implementation.
Of course, security and data privacy issues can be a concern. One approach is to have the project team create their own project team profile and only have project team members follow the specific Twitter name. “Following” is a Twitter term that indicates who is receiving your tweets. Just like any communication, project teams should be careful what they tweet as it is immediately distributed to everyone on the project team.
Podcast the Project Sponsor
Podcasting is a term made popular with the advent of iTunes and the iPod. It is an effective method to distribute an audio message using an MP3 format. In traditional podcasting, these files are published to an iTunes directory and new messages are immediately imported into a person’s podcast. In lieu of a project’s internal iTunes directory, project teams can simply record a podcast and post it to their corporate intranet or Sharepoint site. Providing a form to capture comments and feedback further engages the target audience.
Creating an MP3 file and recording a podcast is easy to do and doesn’t require expensive recording equipment. An inexpensive digital recorder or a microphone and a computer are all that’s required to capture the discussion. Using a free tool like Audacity will enable project managers to quickly turn recordings into downloadable MP3s.
Possible applications could include hosting a facilitated discussion with the project sponsor, host a “Meet the Vendor” podcast and learn about the suppliers engaged in the program or distribute a “Top Ten Tips” podcast on using a system’s new features. If a project team is implementing a new payroll system, one topic could include “How to View Your New Paystub” and distribute it via a podcast. The key is transmitting your message in an engaging fashion that uses a variety of media. You’ll definitely generate some buzz when your corporation starts using podcasts to distribute information in addition to the humdrum e-mail newsletter.
Blog Your Business
A project blog is a useful tool to provide immediate updates and communication to promote project awareness. A blog is an online journal that allows a “blogger” to easily post content on a website and readers can also leave comments and engage with others responding to the posts. The blog content can all depend on the project’s communication plan and goals. An internal team blog could be used to post project status or immediate meeting minutes. An external blog to the organization could include a carefully crafted message from the project sponsor to further cascade information about change management.
Social Media Considerations
Organizations seeking to adopt social media techniques need to invest in the tools and technologies to enable collaboration and communication on their own network. In a high security IT environment, tweeting on Twitter may not be an acceptable practice as communication across the Internet is uncontrolled. However, installing a blog on the intranet or hosting a podcast can be easily achieved using a variety of open-source or commercial packages.
Before considering adding a social media campaign to your enterprise project, the team should consider the resources required to make it successful. In a traditional change management initiative, a project team member is responsible for leading change management. On large-scale programs, change management is a work stream tracked within the program and is staffed accordingly. If project teams are investing in a team to create newsletters, posters and facilitate change management lunch and learns, then they should also consider adding social media to their tool kit. I look forward to hearing how you’ve been able to tweet, blog and podcast your projects to future success!
Andrew Makar is an IT program manager who effectively translates project management theory into actual practice. Additional techniques on tactical project management can be found at http://www.tacticalprojectmanagement.com. He can also be reached at [email protected].
