Bell Business Insights newsletter

Interview with Bell unified communications expert, Palma Petrilli

Social media–what does it really mean at the enterprise level? How are organizations actually using it? What does success look like? We sat down with Palma Petrilli, Associate Director for the Unified Communications Portfolio Management at Bell, to talk about the real benefits of using social media, what tools are available and how to use them, as well as what you need to think about when it comes to implementation and adoption.

Business Insights: Thanks for joining us, Palma. Let's jump right in. Social media is a hot topic these days, even for enterprises. What's driving this?

Palma Petrilli: One of the big reasons is that corporate culture is changing and we are moving towards more geographically dispersed teams. With a lot more people teleworking and working outside of the traditional office space, employees need to be able to collaborate with teams and strategic partners in different locations, cities, countries, and time–zones. Naturally, enterprises are looking for better ways to connect their employees digitally. Social media tools are perfect for addressing this cultural change because they are great for sharing all forms of data including video, recorded audio, PDFs and PowerPoint documents, providing support, and facilitating the exchange of ideas in real–time.

BI: So what specific social media tools are organizations using and how?

Petrilli: There are a lot of different tools for a variety of applications depending on your needs. Take blogs–they are great way for people to share knowledge, best practices or lessons learned. Wikis, on the other hand, are much better for project–related collaboration as long as someone is managing the content. There's also microblogging, which is a Twitter–like tool that employees can use to interact as a group and for instant messaging. And we can't forget the classic forum, which can be used to share and discuss ideas around a specific topic.

BI: Are there certain social media applications or tools that are better suited for particular functions?

Petrilli: It all depends on what you want, because the reality is different teams across an organization will use social tools in the way that works best for them. That's one of the great things about social media–it's customizable. Users can filter information and get exactly what they need. Let's take sales for example. Reps can instantly access information on things like competitive intelligence, products, and negotiation tactics.

BI: So what are some of the things enterprises need to keep in mind when deploying a social media strategy?

Petrilli: It's like any IT deployment–you have to keep the same things in mind. To start, it's critical to have an implementation strategy that is in line with business objectives and focuses on your employees rather than the technology itself. Along with implementation, policy and education are also key. You need to have good policies on deployment, as well as on privacy and security. Remember, most people are used to engaging on social media at home rather than in a workplace environment, so you need to have guidelines governing the use of these tools. And HR should handle all the training and make sure that the policies protect both your employees and organization.

BI: Other than policy and implementation considerations, what else do enterprises need consider for a successful deploy?

Petrilli: Social media is all about building relationships and sharing information, so you need to encourage employees to create content and collaborate. One way to do this is by offering rewards for participation. And like with any other deployment, you need to think about how you'll measure success. Some potential benchmarks are productivity or cost measures. And this seems obvious, but IT should be involved from the beginning because these tools need to be integrated into existing and future infrastructures. It's easy to start a blog or create a wiki, but you need to look at the big picture and make sure everything fits together.

BI: How do you see social media evolving as a collaboration tool in the future?

Petrilli: Most of the factors that are driving adoption like changing corporate culture, telework, intense competition, and so on, aren't going away. In fact, they are probably going to become more pronounced. So from a user standpoint, I think we are going to see these kinds of tools and this kind of collaborative environment grow in importance until it really becomes an intrinsic part of the way people work. From a technology standpoint, I think you are definitely going to see the tools become more inclusive, scalable and results or measurement oriented.

Additional readings

Assessment: Maximizing productivity with network–based tools, Assessment tool, February 2010

Turning theory into practice: Lessons from the front lines of Unified Communications, White paper, August 2010

About Palma Petrilli

Palma is an Associate Director, Unified Communications Portfolio Management, with Bell. As leader of the Unified Communications portfolio and strategy for Bell, Palma works with many industry–leading organizations and internal product management teams to help define the company's UC strategy, roadmap and overall marketing plan. She has held leading positions in the IT and telecommunications industries for more than 10 years.