Social networking

Take control of your IT career amid layoffs

Judi Hasson — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:27:40 -0400

Are you feeling insecure about your job with the economy reeling? Well, it may be time to get prepared rather than sitting back and just hoping for the best. John Estes, a vice president at staffing firm Robert Half International, and John Baschab, a senior vice president at Technisource, a staffing and IT managed services provider, have some advice for those IT workers who are concerned about losing their jobs.

In a CIO.com article, they urge workers concerned about layoffs to be proactive. They suggest that employees ask their managers how the economic situation of the company will affect them, whether other opportunities exist within the company and whether the company offers severance pay. They also advise IT workers to have an updated resume prepared and to start tapping into job search networks, including friends, business associates, clients, vendors, alumni groups and professional or social networking groups.

They also recommend meeting with an IT recruiter, exploring jobs outside your industry that can use your skills and keeping an eye on smaller companies that might offer bigger opportunities.

For more on the state of the industry:
- check out this CIO.com article

Gen Y demands new tech at the office

Judi Hasson — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 14:04:13 -0400

As CIOs begin to hire a new generation of IT workers--that Generation Y crowd born roughly starting in 1982--they might be wise to get with the times and give these tech savvy employees the latest communications technologies. Ron Alsop, author of the new book, "The Trophy Kids Grow Up," said that many recent workforce entrants face a shock in some corporate cultures that avoid new technologies due to security concerns or budgetary issues.

"Companies really need to loosen up a bit and not play Big Brother too much by worrying about blocking certain social networking web sites," Alsop said. He added that some companies are making an effort, noting that recent MBA graduates hired by Johnson & Johnson successfully lobbied the company to create an internal social network that has grown to include virtual classrooms for training and a career counseling center.

Capital One Financial Corp. is creating internal discussion boards and its own version of Wikipedia in an effort to improve worker collaboration. Linda Gravett, author of "Bridging the Generation Gap: How to Get Radio Babies, Boomers, Gen Xers, and Gen Yers to Work Together and Achieve More," noted that the folks from the younger generation that she interviewed for her book were very clear in their reluctance to work for a company that lacks Web 2.0 and other emerging technologies.

For more on what Gen Y wants:
- see this CIO.com article

Advice on connecting disparate offices

Judi Hasson — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 23:10:35 -0400

Jason Harrison was asked to a find a better way to connect 3,000 employees in 60 locations around the globe when he joined the communications firm, Universal McCann, as CIO two years ago. The old ways--telephones and email--weren't cutting it. In short, they weren't building a sense of a common company culture.

Harrison decided to try social networking, adding social software capabilities to Microsoft's SharePoint system already in place, and using the technology from NewsGator, a vendor that offers enterprise Real Simple Syndication (RSS). This technology streams relevant information to employees over portals such as corporate intranets.

"We wanted everyone to feel one culture and one set of objectives," Harrison told CIO.com "Because we're so distributed, we had to build a common social fabric virtually."

For more on ways to connect workers around the globe:
- see this CIO.com article

Shadow IT gains footing

Judi Hasson — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 19:45:18 -0400

Dan Woods, chief technology officer and founder of Evolved Media (a firm that offers content creation, editorial and publishing services) writes in Forbes magazine that companies have started bypassing their IT departments and creating technology solutions for themselves. He calls it "Shadow IT" and says it has been driven by frustration with the solutions offered by corporate IT departments and the now readily available software tools on the Web.

"Consumer technology now has the ball for quality and ease of use in end-user computing. The services offered by Amazon, Google, Yahoo!, eBay and the other leading lights are the acknowledged examples for software-as-a-service companies,'' he said.

He points to PB Wiki, Google sites, Blogspot, Blogger,Typepad, Basecamp and Central Desktop as examples as well as social networking sites like Facebook and Ning. His recommendation? Recognize "Shadow IT" as a valuable tool for end-user computing and use some of it to improve your workplace.

For more on this trend:
- see this Forbes article

SOA helps veterans get jobs

Judi Hasson — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 18:10:04 -0400

A small start-up called Hire a Hero has decided to use technology for a good cause--helping soldiers leaving the military to get jobs. The effort centers on connecting the vets with potential employers using Web 2.0 social networking tools. CIO.com reports that after some ups and downs, the company found a solution built on service-oriented architecture (SOA) that enabled it to achieve its goals at a low cost, with vendors donating some services because the company has gained non-profit status.

Brac Selph, the executive director of Hire a Hero, said their system helps organize information about employees and potential employers, allowing both to enter information about themselves while providing a social networking functionality.

By adopting and adjusting the service-oriented architecture, Selph said his four-person company can communicate across different data sources and make the system fit its needs. His experience also provides a guide to using a services model to increase efficiency and cut costs.

For more on tech and heros:
- see this CIO.com article

Gartner: IT must adapt to changes faster

Judi Hasson — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 23:53:50 -0400

A survey by Gartner says IT departments should adapt more quickly to new technologies like social networking software, or end up with large numbers of company employees dissatisfied. The poll of IT professionals at 360 enterprise-sized companies found that as of today, nearly 20 percent believe their users felt the pace of change and the embrace of new technologies to be "too slow," and an additional 15 percent said it was "much too slow."

Gartner said one reason for the dissatisfaction is that IT departments tend to have a "universal, enterprise-wide deployment strategy" that means buying software suites that include many technologies at once instead of individual "best of breed" technologies. The report suggests that such a package strategy is too limiting, and may mean more dissatisfaction in the future.

For more on the survey:
- see this CIO.com article

Firms block access to FaceBook

Judi Hasson — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 09:00:38 -0400

Concerned about worker distractions, nearly one in four companies are now blocking employee access to social networking websites like Facebook and MySpace, according to a new survey of human resources professionals. Challenger, Gray & Christmas--a consulting firm that conducted the survey--said the use of the social networking sites has grown during work hours and is worrying some employers who view the communication tool of the new generation as a "productivity killer."

The survey found that 23 percent of companies polled block access to these sites entirely. Yet some companies have a totally different perspective, with 8 percent saying they encouraged employees to use social networking sites, and 10 percent viewing them as invaluable marketing, networking and sales tools. At the same time, the majority of firms--59 percent--have no formal policy at all.

To learn more about social networking:
- check out this NetworkWorld article

Golf is not a critical IT skill

Judi Hasson — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:55:30 -0400

It is a widely held belief that the golf course is a great place for networking, relationship building and career advancement, but CIO Magazine's "Golf Networking Survey" has found that not everyone sees it that way. The survey showed a split, with 55 percent of IT professionals saying golf has helped them professionally, and 45 percent reporting that they had no need for the fairways and the greens. In fact, many IT industry professionals said they would turn down the boss's invitation to the country club or a day out on links with a vendor. To some, opportunities to connect on Internet-based social networking sites were more enticing.

For more on the golf survey:
- see this CIO.com article

ALSO NOTED: Your CFO is your best friend; Electronic spying just made easier;

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:59:58 -0400

> Your CFO is your best friend. Article
> Electronic spying just made easier. Article
> Etiquette for social networking. Article
> Headaches in Bangalore. Article
> Faster, more powerful processes are on the way. Article
> You can be a successful mentor. Article

And Finally … The thank you note after the interview. Article

You cannot control 'Social Networking'

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 06:59:56 -0400

You may not like 'social networking' one bit. You may grit your teeth when you have to use it. But get used to it. It's not going away. In a new book, Groundswell, two Forrester analysts write about how critical it is for the business community to use this technology. While co-author Charlene Li said that some CIOs are saying "How can I control this?" she suggests that IT executives really need to be thinking about what business objectives they want to achieve with this vehicle rather than how to stop it.

For more on this tech revolution:
- See this CIO Magazine article