As I am entering my last week working on the transition from the old job to the new one, earlier on today there was an incredibly piece of great news that even though it may not be suitable for this particular audience (i.e. The Internet Blogosphere), I just cannot help mentioning it over here anyway. As you may well know already by now, very shortly I will start my new job over at IBM Software Global Tech Sales and Social Software Programs and Enablement Teams helping with the embracing and adoption of social software within the corporate firewall and beyond with various different initiatives.
I mentioned this already a few times in various different places, even though I am still on learning mode for the new job, it very much feels like my dream job come true. Everything that I have been doing thus far, mostly, in my own private time, is now going to become my full time job! Yes, indeed, a dream job come true, don’t you think?
However, things got even better today, when earlier on this morning I found out in our internal blogging platform (Blog Central) how not only my entire new team has dived in and started their own individual blogs (With some very engaging conversations I am hoping to bring over here as well), but also my own boss went through the process and set up her own blog as well! Wooohooo! Can you imagine? My own boss blogging away just like I have been doing for a while myself.
Well, you may say that this is not a particularly relevant achievement since plenty of managers out there are already blogging away for a few years now, but what happens when your boss happens to be the VP executive from the Social Software Programs and Enablement Team? I guess that changes things a bit, doesn’t it? It surely does and that is why the whole day I have been very very excited, because my manager, Gina Poole, is already blogging behind the corporate firewall and diving into some of the different conversations going on at the moment.
How exciting is that? I am not sure about you, but to me, it surely is. It kind of felt like a shot of adrenaline going through my blogging veins validating everything I have been doing all of these years. Nothing less, nothing more. You VP executive from your dream job is now blogging! Very nice!
Over the last few days I have been spending some time with my new team and with Gina sharing with them several various different tips and tricks on corporate blogging based on what I have been exposed to and learned over the last few years. The conversations have been incredibly enlightening with the end result that Gina just published her first blog entry this morning!
Yes, I realise that it is just an internal blog, without an external exposure just yet, but that is just the first step. Just like I started it all up myself about 4 years now. Then two years later I dived into the Internet blogosphere and here I am, blogging away. I am sure that the next step is going to be having Gina blog externally and I am certain it will not take two years like it took me. Things have evolved quite a bit already, so I am even more excited that it may even no longer be restricted to just blogging. Perhaps Facebook, Twitter, and whatever else would be next, too. That is right. No limits!
The first steps are now done and as I am getting to write this blog post I just couldn’t help remember a blog entry that Ted Demopoulos wrote not long ago over at the IAOCblog: 3 BIG reasons CEOs should blog:
"1) Blogs add a personality and face to a company. This can mean more business — more dollars and cents.
2) Blogs influence the most important people
3) Blogs connect CEOs and senior executives to their most important people — the customers.
Bonus 4) Writing is a critical business skill"
Well, to me there would be another great reason why CEOs (And other high level executives) should get started with their own blog:
"5) Blogs connect CEOs, and high level execs, to their most important people — their knowledge workers"
Gina, I know you will be reading this from your feed reader … Welcome to the Blogosphere!
Just like I said, the waters are lovely!
Tags: Gina Poole, IBM, IBM Software, IBM SWG, Executive Blogging, Corporate Blogging, CEOs Blogging, Blogging, Metablogging, Social Software, Social Computing, Social Networking, Social Media, Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0, Collaboration, Remote Collaboration, Innovation, Knowledge Management, KM, Knowledge Sharing, Personal Knowledge Management, PKM, Social Software Enablement, Social Networking Services, Ted Demopoulos, IAOCblog, Knowledge Workers, Blog Central
Congrats on your new position. There are plenty of reasons why CEOs should blog. On my blog, I once listed ten reasons why they shouldn’t —
http://bernaisesource.blog.com/1504872/
10: Your CEO heads up a start-up and wants more people to pay attention to his or her company.
9: Your CEO heads up a Fortune 500 company but wants to stand out from the pack.
8: Your CEO thinks he or she should because his or her employees are blogging.
7: Your CEO thinks blog ging is less expensive than hiring professional PR and marketing teams.
6: Your CEO does not have the time to write his or her own postings.
5: Your CEO is not a good writer.
4: Your CEO is not comfortable with candid feedback or criticism.
3: Other CEOs are blog ging and he or she doesn’t want to cede a competitive advantage.
2: Other CEOs aren’t blog ging and he or she wants a competitive advantage.
1: Your CEO thinks he or she should.
Most PR folks have enough trouble getting their CEOs to blog. But blogging for the wrong reasons can be far worse than not blogging at all. No one, whether they work in the mailroom or the executive suite SHOULD blog.
Blogging is for those who are passionate, committed to conversation and want to blog.
I’m glad Dan said this Luiz. I sometimes think – and I’ve made the same mistake – of confusing my passion with the things that matter to others. CEOs have a whole different set of demands on their time to the likes of thee and me and frankly, most I come across are not that good at writing engaging stuff. That’s a skill you either have or don’t.
I would actually agree with Dennis, and Dan … theres plenty to be achieved with internal blogs, when you and your colleagues blog, and maybe we should look at harnessing that first? It might be better for practitioners to focus their energies there? If as it is, the CEO is going to get a ghost-writer … whats the point? though, in theory, its an excellent idea, and something which I would like to see, too, but having said that, I think theres a long way to go there.