Twitter, Facebook, Viadeo..., what they can bring to your employees
17 December 2008
Read by 2165 persons
Finding work, prospecting, making friends... These networks have shown their effectiveness.
The company can encourage their use for knowledge sharing and internal and external communication.
To avoid excesses, rules must be established and good practices implemented.
Finding a supplier, building a network of partners, finding contact details of resource persons... There was a time when only direct contact, meetings and traditional means such as telephone and fax were likely to help establish an address book. But in recent years, these tools are becoming almost obsolete in the face of the rise of new technologies, particularly the internet. The latter has experienced unprecedented growth: more than 840,000 people in Morocco are subscribers, half of whom have high-speed internet (ADSL). The number of internet users exceeds 9 million. The latest significant event is undoubtedly the emergence of mobile internet, commonly called 3G. This access method accounts for approximately 40% of the subscriber base with more than 399,000 subscribers. Between March 2008 and March 2009, the growth rate was around 288%. To date, Morocco has, according to the Network Information Center (NIC), more than 30,000 domain names, including more than 23,000 with the extension ".ma". The rest is distributed among other extensions (.press.ma, .gov.ma, .co.ma, .net and .org.ma).
It is in this context that we must situate the new phenomenon of so-called Web 2.0 tools, the use of NTICs no longer being limited to basic functions. Business partners and friends are no longer limited to the people we see every day; they are now found thanks to what is called Web 2.0, which has become a true global phenomenon. By Web 2.0 in the strict sense, we mean internet tools and particularly "social softwares" such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Netvibes, Viadeo, Wiki, Podcast and others.
These tools allow for more interactivity and sharing for both personal and professional use. "The use of these emerging technologies allows the company to open up to its ecosystem and facilitates the circulation of information and knowledge within it," says Fayçal Banachou, CEO of the consulting firm Ribatis.
A place for enriching exchanges and debates
Like this consultant who works with an American firm, without ever having physically seen his project manager, many have been able to open up to other horizons thanks to these networks.
In the company, it is possible to offer employees a suite of Web 2.0-oriented multi-function applications: messaging, calendar, office tools, Wiki, management applications such as CRM, HRM, project management and sales management. "The interest of such a range of tools is the best sharing of documents and knowledge internally and even with the company's partners," explains Mouhsine Lakhdissi, associate manager of the firm Neoxia Maroc. It is certainly to encourage the use of such tools that Ahmed Chami, Minister of Commerce, Industry and New Technologies, created his blog, which allows him to interact with Internet users. "The blog should allow more direct and multiplied contact with hundreds of citizens. It is also a place for enriching exchanges and debates for everyone. It is also a way to gather interesting ideas that can be implemented in one of the government programs I am involved in," he explained when launching this blog.
The American embassy in Rabat has also opened a blog on Facebook to improve its communication.
126,000 Moroccans on Facebook
The enthusiasm of companies around the world for these different tools stems from their advantages in terms of low accessibility costs and the ease of reaching an audience that is not only internal but also external, including outside borders. The instant and reactive nature of responses and dialogues internally, with partners and clients, is also a vector for promoting Web 2.0-oriented solutions.
"However, the use of Web 2.0 tools remains timid in Morocco because of the dominance of a vertical communication culture. However, the development of a "collaborative" culture within the company requires a prerequisite, namely: breaking down the hierarchy and encouraging proximity," emphasizes Jaouad Benhadou, president of the Association of Information Systems Users (AUSIM) and director of information systems at Lydec. Indeed, for most bloggers, the use is purely personal. For example, on July 20, 2009, there were 126,500 registered users on Facebook via the Morocco channel. This is certainly significant compared to other Maghreb countries, which are several lengths behind, but very little compared to Canada, which had 12 million on the same date.
Beyond this critical assessment of the state of Web 2.0 usage, Mr. Benhadou recommends encouraging internal pilot projects in partnership with professionals and experts to support the appropriation process. At the same time, a gradual generalization is desirable to allow for the democratization of uses for the benefit of company employees. However, excesses must be avoided. Apparently, this is not an insurmountable task. "It is sufficient to establish rules and implement good usage practices to avoid abuse and excesses, as in the case of email within the company," adds the DSI of Lydec.
Selection: The dominant networks
- Facebook: www.facebook.com
- Twitter: www.twitter.com
- Wiki: reference model www.wikipedia.org
- Goolge Docs: http://docs.google.com
- Zoho: www.zoho.com
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com
- Viadeo: www.viadeo.com
- Youtube: for posting podcasts online www.youtube.com
Rachid Jankari
Published August 3, 2009
Posted online August 26, 2009
lavieeco.com
The company can encourage their use for knowledge sharing and internal and external communication.
To avoid excesses, rules must be established and good practices implemented.
Finding a supplier, building a network of partners, finding contact details of resource persons... There was a time when only direct contact, meetings and traditional means such as telephone and fax were likely to help establish an address book. But in recent years, these tools are becoming almost obsolete in the face of the rise of new technologies, particularly the internet. The latter has experienced unprecedented growth: more than 840,000 people in Morocco are subscribers, half of whom have high-speed internet (ADSL). The number of internet users exceeds 9 million. The latest significant event is undoubtedly the emergence of mobile internet, commonly called 3G. This access method accounts for approximately 40% of the subscriber base with more than 399,000 subscribers. Between March 2008 and March 2009, the growth rate was around 288%. To date, Morocco has, according to the Network Information Center (NIC), more than 30,000 domain names, including more than 23,000 with the extension ".ma". The rest is distributed among other extensions (.press.ma, .gov.ma, .co.ma, .net and .org.ma).
It is in this context that we must situate the new phenomenon of so-called Web 2.0 tools, the use of NTICs no longer being limited to basic functions. Business partners and friends are no longer limited to the people we see every day; they are now found thanks to what is called Web 2.0, which has become a true global phenomenon. By Web 2.0 in the strict sense, we mean internet tools and particularly "social softwares" such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Netvibes, Viadeo, Wiki, Podcast and others.
These tools allow for more interactivity and sharing for both personal and professional use. "The use of these emerging technologies allows the company to open up to its ecosystem and facilitates the circulation of information and knowledge within it," says Fayçal Banachou, CEO of the consulting firm Ribatis.
A place for enriching exchanges and debates
Like this consultant who works with an American firm, without ever having physically seen his project manager, many have been able to open up to other horizons thanks to these networks.
In the company, it is possible to offer employees a suite of Web 2.0-oriented multi-function applications: messaging, calendar, office tools, Wiki, management applications such as CRM, HRM, project management and sales management. "The interest of such a range of tools is the best sharing of documents and knowledge internally and even with the company's partners," explains Mouhsine Lakhdissi, associate manager of the firm Neoxia Maroc. It is certainly to encourage the use of such tools that Ahmed Chami, Minister of Commerce, Industry and New Technologies, created his blog, which allows him to interact with Internet users. "The blog should allow more direct and multiplied contact with hundreds of citizens. It is also a place for enriching exchanges and debates for everyone. It is also a way to gather interesting ideas that can be implemented in one of the government programs I am involved in," he explained when launching this blog.
The American embassy in Rabat has also opened a blog on Facebook to improve its communication.
126,000 Moroccans on Facebook
The enthusiasm of companies around the world for these different tools stems from their advantages in terms of low accessibility costs and the ease of reaching an audience that is not only internal but also external, including outside borders. The instant and reactive nature of responses and dialogues internally, with partners and clients, is also a vector for promoting Web 2.0-oriented solutions.
"However, the use of Web 2.0 tools remains timid in Morocco because of the dominance of a vertical communication culture. However, the development of a "collaborative" culture within the company requires a prerequisite, namely: breaking down the hierarchy and encouraging proximity," emphasizes Jaouad Benhadou, president of the Association of Information Systems Users (AUSIM) and director of information systems at Lydec. Indeed, for most bloggers, the use is purely personal. For example, on July 20, 2009, there were 126,500 registered users on Facebook via the Morocco channel. This is certainly significant compared to other Maghreb countries, which are several lengths behind, but very little compared to Canada, which had 12 million on the same date.
Beyond this critical assessment of the state of Web 2.0 usage, Mr. Benhadou recommends encouraging internal pilot projects in partnership with professionals and experts to support the appropriation process. At the same time, a gradual generalization is desirable to allow for the democratization of uses for the benefit of company employees. However, excesses must be avoided. Apparently, this is not an insurmountable task. "It is sufficient to establish rules and implement good usage practices to avoid abuse and excesses, as in the case of email within the company," adds the DSI of Lydec.
Selection: The dominant networks
- Facebook: www.facebook.com
- Twitter: www.twitter.com
- Wiki: reference model www.wikipedia.org
- Goolge Docs: http://docs.google.com
- Zoho: www.zoho.com
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com
- Viadeo: www.viadeo.com
- Youtube: for posting podcasts online www.youtube.com
Rachid Jankari
Published August 3, 2009
Posted online August 26, 2009
lavieeco.com
