New technologies, concepts, and Web 2.0 tools are popping up everywhere. How can you use them to help your project team collaborate, communicate - or just give your project an extra boost? [Contact Dave]
Situation: You are still trying to figure out what Twitter is good for.
Much has been made of how Twitter has been used to circumvent Government censorship in Iran - letting us know what's really going on in places where journalists have no access. A lot of that is because:
1. Twitter can be completely anonymous and untraceable. 2. Twitter is so immediate and easy to use.
So, even under extreme pressure, anyone can feel comfortable commenting and reporting issues on Twitter.
Think about that for a second. How many times have you found out about project issues too late because of office politics or fear of reprisals? Wouldn't it have been great to have a suggestion box that people could trust because it resides outside of the organization?
What would happen if you set up a Twitter account and asked people to "direct (private) message" you with suggestions, comments, difficult issues, and just "things you should know about". Perhaps you could push people to do it at every status meeting. The comments would be completely anonymous and you could even have a longer private conversation through direct messages if required. You would have to make sure they didn't openly "Tweet" any private company info, but that shouldn't be a problem.
If Iranian dissidents feel comfortable risking jail by Tweeting, why wouldn't your team feel comfortable using it to make things more successful?
Brad EgelandBusiness Solution Designer| Bradegeland.comLas Vegas, Nv, United States
I don't see Twitter as ever being a useful or well-used tool within an organization for project issues, alerts, etc. I think it's great for sharing ideas, announcing articles, and broadcasting info, but I find it hard to comprehend that it would be utilized instead of email. As a project manager, I expect frequent communications to happen among my team members and with my customer. Adding another avenue for anonymous communications like Twitter simply adds confusion to the process - we usually need more standardized processes to keep the communication flowing not adding more and more communication paths that may get overlooked and may not get to the right person.
And all of this is my personal opinion...I wouldn't want to use it, but I won't completely discount it because there may be projects and organizations within which it could work or where the concern over announcing project issues is so great that alerts like that need to happen outside of normal communication paths. I just am not seeing it.
Sam NormanProject Manager| ValleySpeakSan Jose, Ca, United States
I think it will a while before twitter is taken seriously by the Project Management community.
Deborah JoyNebraska Public Power DistrictBrownville, Ne, United States
I agree this probably won''t become a standard PM tool in the near future, but I think the possibilities are awesome! Imagine getting status on schedule activities in 140 characters or less - this would eliminate the apparent compulsion on the part of an activity owner to describe in great detail all the issues associated with not getting the activity completed per the schedule and would encourage straightforward status reporting like "activity xxxx will complete two weeks after the scheduled finish date" or "can''t start activity xxxx until Joe Resource is available 15-Jul-09". The anonymity could be a nice feature, too - many times team members tell me (the scheduler) about significant problems or issues on the project that they don''t report to the PM, putting me in the dubious position of being the messenger. If anonymous tweeting would encourage team members to report problems requiring PM intervention directly to the PM, it woud be a great tool. Like any new tool/process, there would be kinks to work out, but I''d sure like to be part of a team willing to try it!
Denise BracamonteSenior Project Manager| NYC Dept. of FinanceBayside, Ny, United States
I believe that creating an environment where any information may be shared freely, without fear of reprisal or hindered by office politics, remains the domain of the PM no matter what tool is used. Trust in the PM (and his/her availability and receptiveness) is essential to sensitive (or any) communications and the only way to guarantee that any information that might be provided, by whatever method is established, will be held in the confidence in which it was given. The immediacy of electronic tools also presents its own problems and lends itself to reporting "knee-jerk" reactions to situations that with some time or thought may not be problems or issues, hence producing more project "noise". I would worry far more, however, if there were an overwhelming need for anonymity in project communication or there were a significant number of anonymous communications on a project. Sounds like an environment where successful projects and successful PMs would be few and far between.
Denise BracamonteSenior Project Manager| NYC Dept. of FinanceBayside, Ny, United States
Oops, I lost the last line in my post...
Reservations aside, whether via Twitter, or the low-tech suggestion box for environments where electronic communications must be monitored and stored, I might try it and I might be surprised.
Curt SherrodDirector of Business Development| Viasim SolutionsRockwall, Tx, United States
I am not sure that twitter can do anything that email and Instant Messaging can't, therefore I don't see the need to add another tool to an already cumbersome tool box for project managers. If there is a situation where anonymous communication is required and the person with the information is not comfortable with sharing in face-to-face talks with a trusted manager or HR professional, the organization in question has significant cultural hurdles to overcome as Denise pointed out. The focus of communication of project issues should focus on resolving the issues rather than worrying about who to blame for causing the issues.
Maybe there is a future for twitter in PM, I just don't see what it adds.
Much has been made of how Twitter has been used to circumvent Government censorship in Iran - letting us know what's really going on in places where journalists have no access. A lot of that is because: