The cross-disciplinary nature of conversations can also help to add value as employees share information across the business rather than within silos and avoid duplication as well as leverage off existing ideas.
Despite this, many leaders block access to social media at work. A study by accounting firm, KPMG, found only around half of Australian companies are using social media as an integrated part of marketing strategy, let alone a business model. They see them as distractions, despite the potential productivity gains and the views of young workers, who value access to social media higher than a salary rise.
An even more remarkable finding is that that only 32% of companies view social as an executive priority.
A 2012 report on Fortune 500 CEOs’ use of social media shows that the greatest disconnect is at the top, with only 16% of CEOs having some presence in social and up to 70% of CEOs have no social media presence at all.
In fact, CEOs are the laggards here. They are behind the general population and existing and potential customers, stakeholders, suppliers and employees. That is not leadership.
There are some exceptions. Leaders such as Rupert Murdoch (News Corp), Jack Slazwedel (American Family Insurance) and Meg Whitman (Hewlett Packard) understand the link between a connected leader, social visibility and what LeadingCompany’s branding expert, Trevor Young, calls “the connected brand”.
But the social CEO is not limited to celebrity; the ubiquity of social media means that non-social leaders will risk their competitiveness.
As chief custodians of their businesses and brands, executives have a responsibility to shareholders for managing a presence online.
The business imperative for social is clear.
With online offering unfettered growth opportunities, social literacy is a must-have future capability and social leadership an imperative.
Dionne Lew is managing director of Bespoke Communications and an advisor to C-suite executives on leadership, strategy and innovation, in particular social leadership for executives in the emerging social era. She is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. www.dionnekasianlew.com.
This article first appeared on LeadingCompany. Download your free LeadingCompany eBook “10 Key Considerations for Succession and Business Exits”.
