From 20 Questions for Leaders:
Can you explain the impact, if any, that social networking and Web 2.0 has made on your organization or you personally?
From a personal point of view Social Networking has had a huge impact for me, and I do see this an major change and important topic for Leaders.
Social Networking allows us to connect so much more with our teams, it really does break down communication barriers, and closes the leadership gap somewhat which I think is really important – although not all Leaders agree with that.
Because of this closing of the gap, I get so much more feedback about what people like about my leadership, and also any areas of opportunity, and I think this feedback is invaluable as we strive to improve ourselves.
Also, it provide an informal communication channel which allows people to approach me, without having to go through an assistant, or arranging a meeting, or trying to find time in a busy schedule, and I have certainly benefited from things brought to my attention which I probably otherwise might not have found out about, which allowed me to deal with them earlier and successfully before they became bigger issues.
This communication channel is also excellent for global teams, I certainly have a lot of informal conversations with the colleagues out in Asia and the US, who are outside my time zones, and this really helps to bring us closer together.
I actually think that we are much more advanced on this in private life, than in professional life, although there is more and more overlap, and I think that the next generation of leaders will really leverage Social Networking to significantly improve their leadership and take it to the next level.
What about you, how do you think Social Networking will impact Leaders and Leadership.
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