Month: October 2020

what are the benefits of a diverse and inclusive PLN in social media sharing that understands where you are coming from with messaging that impacts the community?

According to Clark and Aufderheide (2011), it is widely popular to set up platforms for sharing, remixing as well as commenting on both amateur and technical media. Based on the conversation from Jesse and Mike Russell , a diverse and inclusive PLN in social media sharing that understands where you are coming from with messaging that impacts the community will attract more users who are interested in the same information. Also, according to the humorous or serious commentary, people in the community can easily understand what kind of person we are and what we are doing. Russel would use his own account comment to humanize some roles that traditionally were very traditionally were very cold or stoic. At the same time, it will increase our influence and affinity in the community.

Explore how using technology can provide realtime engagement and include answers to the following. 

●  How does social media help engage in community-based communications?

●  How does social media challenge community-based communications?

On the one hand, establishing a social media community compared to in-person communication can help reduce tension. Through everyone’s PLN, we can also understand the personal style inside the community. By adding tags or creating groups, social media can easily achieve realtime engagement. Also, community-based communications using social media will save the costs of renting a physical activity room and time that everyone arrive there.  I knwo a social media called QQ building a anonymous speaking mechanism that you don’t know who post what words within a group. It sometimes help people publish their real thoughts. However anonymous speaking also lead to aggressive expressions and waste of time. We have to admit that social media community communications  is not as efficient as in person communications. Communication is not only about 他the language communications,  but also everyone’s action and expressions’ communication, which are limited by social media. Another challenge is privacy. Even in a private group or using a unique tag, it is still possible to be revealed. Therefore, I would not recommend discussing company secrets or personal privacy in social media.

Within community engagement, are their extended rules from the employer that you should consider?

we must consider cultural sensitivity in PLN, not only for career development but also for the maintenance of the social media platform. Users all over the world are browsing this platform. In my opinion, the establishment of PLN is more to use community resources to learn and sharing learning resources to help others in the network learn, not for meeting someone or company on purpose, as Angie Kermer said. Meanwhile, we have  maintain a humble attitude inside the community when sharing and absorbing. Personal style is acceptable and attractive like humor, but it should be comfortable for the whole community, and should not be excessive. First of all, I think personal beliefs and professional expectations must be related, and the two will not completely contradict each other. It is difficult for a peace-loving person to choose a company that makes weapons. Therefore, I feel that when we organize a PLN, we need to express more personal beliefs that meet professional expectations. For example, if I want to become an HR manager in the future, then I might express some beliefs about the importance of interpersonal relationships. When we are recognized by the community, we can pass on some professional knowledge to public based on career. Compared with official accounts, PLN can be more friendly to comment and reply.

Reference

Clark J., Aufderheide P. (2011) A New Vision for Public Media. In: Jansen S.C., Pooley J., Taub-Pervizpour L. (eds) Media and Social Justice. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca/10.1057/9780230119796_5

Infinite Dial 20 created by Edison Research in 2020 pointed out that 75% of the U.S. population is familiar with the word “podcasting”. (Ross, 2020) Also, according to a study by Pew Research, “the median length of the most popular YouTube video is 2 minutes and 1 second, while the median length of the most-viewed TV news report is even shorter: 41 seconds.” (Douglas, 2018) . This kind of time length is unable to conduct in-depth discussions on complex issues, and the media is flooded with various eye-catching titles. Podcasting may break this practice. A large number of people who think news reports are superficial will be more inclined to podcast programs that delve into the topic. And podcasting has also become a media channel that can make a difference in the subdivided and deep fields.

I want to create an interview podcast that I can talk with business celebrities in BC or even in Canada. One of my favorite podcasts in this space is “The Tim Ferriss Show” (Apple Podcasts). The host is Tim Ferriss who is the author of “The 4-Hour Workweek”. This is the first commercial/interview type of podcast on the Apple Podcast. It has over 400 million downloads and is very popular. Guests who participated in this show include NBA star Lebron James, Bridgewater Foundation founder Ray Dalio, Silicon Valley elder Peter Thiel and other celebrities. Considering from both his and Mo Amir @Vancolor’s successful experience, the subject of the podcast must be of interest to ourselves. You cannot attract listeners with content that you are not interested in. Besides, as a podcast, it must have its own characteristics and at the same time be inclusive. It could be funny, be sharp, or be serious. Social media will help establish podcast’s style. For example, we can post the core views of each episode of podcast on Twitter spreading among the Twitter communities, and finally form a community of your own podcast channel involving listeners and their comments.

Before building a podcast, we can also develop PLN to improve our reputation, such as improving the LinkedIn profile to gain trust of invited guests. Also, on other social platforms like Twitter, I will post some professional-related ideas. Those users who follow me or agree my thoughts will be potential audience in the future.  Facebook is another useful platform to build healthy relationship because the people around us have a wealth of information (Woods, 2013) and unimaginable relationships. When I saw the photo posted by one of my friends on Facebook, I realized that the mayor of Richmond is his neighbor.

At last, privacy is one of the most important concerns when attracting audiences from social platforms. What we need to remember is that the host is sharing stories and opinions instead of sharing their privacy. It’s better to create an official account about the podcast to publish the topic of each episode and participate in online discussions. Meanwhile, the host should pay attention to own speech on his/her private account as the audience is likely to search and follow. And once individuals who become influential in a social space, all his information will be scooped, from primary school grades to social relationships. All his words and actions will be amplified and over-interpreted. What they can do is to stay away from social networks appropriately such as Selena Gomez and Sarah Koenig (Podcast Serial’s producer).

Reference

Ross, Winn. “2020 Podcast Stats & Facts (New Research From Oct 2020)”. Retrieved from: https://www.podcastinsights.com/podcast-statistics/

Douglas, Karr. “Podcasting Continues to Grow in Popularity and Monetization”. Sep 12,2018. Retrieved from: https://martech.zone/podcasting-popularity-statistics/

Woods, Bianca. “Building your own PLN: seeking new insights and ideas? Expand your personal learning network.” T+D, vol. 67, no. 11, Nov. 2013, p. 70+. Gale OneFile: Business, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A348998538/ITBC?u=uvictoria&sid=ITBC&xid=9daf4a31. Accessed 19 Oct. 2020.

Like education, more and more companies pay attention to diversity and inclusion when establishing their company culture and mission. On the one hand, excellent people are more likely to stay in a place that allows them to develop personality and potential. The more diversified and inclusive a company is, the more successful it is in attracting and retaining high performance employees. According to Korn Ferry （2015）, 84% of responders said that the lack of diversity and inclusion within company causes turnover. On the other hand, everyone has unconscious biases that limit our thinking. Only by ensuring that there are diverse employees who can consider from different views at all times can the company continue to create innovative ideas and products ahead of competitors.

In addition to the advantages of human resources, diversity and inclusion also help the business build its image of brand especially under the internet environment. If a company’s post on social media related to customer segmentation and employment strategy is slightly deviated, the problem will immediately be magnified a million times. In particular, diversity and inclusion are the most vulnerable areas in the image of the enterprise. Once a problem occurs, it is likely to cause irreparable damage. Also, towards director’s offline action or words, consumers may spread online and initiate boycotts. For example, the industry’s leading The American retailer Nordstrom (Nordstrom) decided to remove Ivanka Trump’s fashion brand products. This decision stemmed from the #GrabYourWallet activity on social media against her father’s contempt towards women.

In order to further create a diverse and inclusive working environment, company leaders need to spend time understanding each of their employees from recruitment to departure. Then they will know what strengths each staff has, and maximize their strengths to improve the efficiency of the operating process. Social media is a good tool to monitor or regularly check employees’ mental status and potentials. As we discussed before, the HR department could eliminate candidates who have made discriminatory comments on social media platform. Also, if current workers make similar comments online, the company can take actions such as warnings and dismissal to maintain the company’s inclusiveness.

Finally, for businesses, when considering product design, they need to have an inclusive attitude toward “all” consumers.  It can be noticed that many brands have published related products to support LGBT groups on social media, which represent their corporate culture of inclusion and equality. As Moore and Schnellert (2016;2017) said, education should think about inclusion based on personal, social and intellectual purpose. Business also need to establish inclusion combining personality, organization and ability. And it’s not only in a physical space, but also in the virtual reality such as social media platform.

Reference

Executive survey finds a lack of focus on diversity and inclusion key factor in employee turnover. (2015, ). Business Wire. Retrieved from：https://go-gale-com.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca/ps/i.do?p=ITBC&u=uvictoria&id=GALE|A403610004&v=2.1&it=r&sid=summon

Moore, S., & Schnellert, L. (2016;2017;). One without the other: Stories of unity through diversity and inclusion. Winnipeg, Manitoba: Portage & Main Press.

This is my own Visitor & Resident Map where we can see that I use many our univserity platforms as institutional sources.

Also, as a  part-time employee of company, I use Wechat to communicate with cutomers and share some of my personal life status.

• What digital platforms are students currently using to develop their professional network?

From my personal point of view, LinkedIn and Dropbox are two most commonly used digital platforms to develop students’ professional network. I will post my academic experience on LinkedIn’s profile. LinkedIn is also a good platform to look for many of the best job opportunities in the industry (van Dijck, 2013). Besides, I will upload assignments required by the course to Dropbox and share them with my classmates. On the other hand,  as an economics student, I like to view and comment on some economic forums such as The GREAT Reddit Bureau of Economic Research and Economics Forum | Debate.org. Compared with social media, these forums are more professional and targeted. The advice found here is more accurate, and it is easy to get to know the experts in the specific field.

• What can you (as a student) consider to expand your professional learning network?

At first, as a student, we need to improve our ability to independently search for information from digital platforms, and change from receiving information passively to actively searching for information. Then we can find out the submerged quality information and apply it. Secondly, students should establish their own closed online learning network. Many drawbacks that we discuss in previous blogs basically exist on the open social network platform, while own closed online discussion and learning platform rarely has such problems. Mattermost Group, Forum and Facebook group all have this feature that people outside the “circle” (such as interest or specialized subject) need to be recommended and reviewed by at least one insider to enter the social “circle”. It is necessary for students to establish a professional learning network based on the research orientation of common interests, and have their own set of access mechanisms to ensure efficient and high-quality discussions. Finally, we must not only develop a professional network in our own field, but also take advantage of the extensive social networking features of the Internet to obtain various aspects of knowledgepects and get in touch with professional people from all other fields.

• In your network, how can you create a digital identity/reputation?

When creating our own digital identity, we need to distinguish between personal and professional network. If it is a personal network, your digital identity can be based on your hobbies such as basketball or Harry Potter enthusiast. You can share stories and insights of life, as well as some artistic photos. For personal digital identity, people can determine the percentage of “Visitor” or “Resident”. However, when building a digital identity on professional platforms such as LinkedIn, we have to consider ourselves as a personal brand. We need to describe our information, school background, internship experience and job responsibilities as accurate as possible. In addition, we may use some funny avatars to attract attention in personal social media, but for professional identity, this kind of  avatar will make your potential employer think that your attitude at work is too frivolous. At last,  whether it is a personal or professional identity, use your online information as your public relations tool to show your achievements and creativity, never avenge and attack others.

• Consider what a local employer would do if you applied for a job with them – can they search the content, is it of benefit to the career path, does it hinder the opportunity of employment?

Accoring to CareerBuilder survey (2018), 70% of recruiters use social media to check candidates during the recruitment process, and about 48% of managers use social media to moniter on current workers.  Most employers say that they use social networks to check candidates’ unprofessional behavior, such as complaining about their former employer or discussing drug use. Many of job seekers think their personal account activities are privacy and they can decide who can see what. This is totally wrong because once an employer enters your name in Google Search, they will see all activities including  inappropriate remarks even though it is not posted on your professional account. And those job seekers don’t even know they lose the opportunity of employment due to the bad personal identity. In short, people should not ignore the impact of digital identity on real life because of its virtuality and multiplicity. Digital identities on all social platforms should be healthy and positive. Do not use privacy policy as protection for discrimination and attacks.

Reference

van Dijck, J. (2013). ‘You have one identity’: Performing the self on facebook and LinkedIn. Media, Culture & Society, 35(2), 199-215. doi:10.1177/0163443712468605

More than half of employers have found content on social media that caused them NOT to hire a candidate, according to recent CareerBuilder survey. (2018, ). PR Newswire