The ICT and BPO Era of Sri Lanka
In this era of ICT and BPO, I wanted to discuss about a new trend of social networking that uses ICT technologies.
Social Networking
Social networking is a grouping of individuals into groups based on their interests or linkages. For example a small village can be considered a social network as they share the commonality of living in the same area. Although social networking is possible in person, especially in the workplace, universities, villages and schools etc, a bit of technology can vastly improve the connectivity within the social network. For example as the telephone started to spread around, it became easier for people to keep in touch with each other. Similarly internet (or online medium) has made it very easy for people to stay connected with each other. This has resulted in social networks thriving as never before through online mechanisms.
The internet is filled with millions of individuals who are looking to meet other people, to gather and share first-hand information and experiences about cooking, golfing, gardening, developing friendships or professional alliances, finding employment, business-to-business marketing etc. Therefore naturally social networking is set to grow as internet penetration increases.
Twitter, Facebook, Habbo, MySpace, Bebo, Plaxo, WAYN … the list of social networking sites on the Internet is vast and growing, encompassing everything from social communities and business referral networks to special interest groups covering every topic imaginable.
Growing Impact of Social Networking
Social networking is the fastest growing segment of the Internet, as demonstrated by a recent Nielsen Online study which found that Americans spend 83 per cent more time on social networking and blog web sites this year than in 2008. It’s reasonable to assume that the statistics would be similar for other countries, with sites like Facebook continuing to grow at record rates.
Some networks are purely social and exist to allow people to connect with their friends and family or meet others of similar interests online, such as MySpace, WAYN (for travelers) or dating sites such as RSVP.com.au and Match.com.
Others, like Linkedin.com and Plaxo.com, have a more commercial bent, enabling business people to connect with colleagues, recommend professional contacts, find consultants and contractors, and more.
Some Statistics about FaceBook:
* 50% of our active users log on to Facebook in any given day
* Average user has 130 friends
* People spend over 700 billion minutes per month on Facebook
* There are over 900 million objects that people interact with (pages, groups, events and community pages)
* Average user is connected to 80 community pages, groups and events
* Average user creates 90 pieces of content each month
* More than 70 translations available on the site
* About 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States
Some Statistics about LinkedIn:
* LinkedIn has more than 90 million members in over 200 countries around the globe.
* A new member joins LinkedIn approximately every second, and about half of these members are from outside the U.S.
* Executives from all Fortune 500 companies are LinkedIn members.
Social networking has proven that Web users in the information age want to interact and create content rather than simply consume it. The rapid rise of blogging and user-generated sites like Youtube.com and Wikipedia demonstrate the importance of Web 2.0 technology, which has changed forever the relationship between brand companies and their customers.
I have personally maintained a blog at http://yasasva.blogspot.com/ for nearly 4 years now. I invite you to visit it every now and then! It was exciting to write my thoughts and opinions in an online forum through this blog and see how others comment and discuss about those posts. However, lately I have written only a few blog entries and I notice with many bloggers that their interest with blogging decrease over time. I feel that Facebook and other newer social networking methods have reduced the time people have for blogging.
Such social media is not only used for the sharing of personal information but can also be utilised for the benefit of commercial enterprises.
Social Media for Brand Building
A white paper by online media pioneer Steve Outing outlines key points for companies to consider when building their brand online:
1. Consumers trust their network, not your marketing – more purchases are made due to personal recommendations from online contacts than from company-driven advertising and promotions;
2. The masses now have the power – bad products will fail because word will spread quickly online;
3. User-generated content is now seen as having value – encourage your customers to share their expertise online as part of a community site or forum;
4. Consumers expect to talk – this is particularly true of the younger generation, which has grown up with interactive media and is not interested in simply consuming content; and
5. Consumers are telling companies what they want – companies that provide platforms for their customers to express themselves and listen to what the audience is saying can innovate faster and more intelligently.
Many companies are complementing their corporate websites with social media tools like blogs, Youtube videos and Facebook or MySpace pages to boost traffic and raise the level of interaction with consumers.
Social networking can not only improve customer communication, but it boosts credibility, builds trust and confidence, and ultimately increases sales.
Some of the companies which are leading the way in this area include:
* Coca-Cola, which has two Facebook communities, blogs (Coca-Cola Conversations), Widgets like Coke Bubbles and even a presence on virtual world Second Life;
* Dell Computer, which has several blogs and Twitter accounts;
* Google, which has several corporate blogs, and a YouTube channel;
* Pizza Hut, which uses Facebook to connect with customers;
* Starbucks, which uses blogs and Twitter.
According to IDC research manager, Rachel Happe, companies that foster business communities will realise both competitive and cost advantages.
"Enterprises are increasingly using community solutions to transform their business processes because online communities are so efficient at sharing and prioritising information," she said.
There’s even evidence to suggest that allowing staff to browse social media sites while at work can have a beneficial impact on productivity. Researchers at the University of Melbourne found that allowing workers to take a break by exploring sites of interest, such as news sites and YouTube, actually increase their concentration and improved productivity.
"People who do surf the Internet for fun at work - within a reasonable limit of less than 20 per cent of their total time in the office - are more productive by about nine per cent than those who don’t," said Dr Brent Coker, from the university’s Department of Management and Marketing.
Of course, there’s also a potential downside with some employers concerned that too much social networking by their employees could undermine their reputation, damage credibility or expose them to internet crime such as data theft.
There have also been numerous cases where personal information posted on social networking sites either discouraged an employer hiring a particular job applicant, or led to the termination of an existing employee.
These are powerful tools that will have a growing impact on both business and the community. If we learn how to leverage them effectively, then the benefits will be significant.
Career Advice
By the way, on 31st December 2010 I finished my term as the Director of Young IT at the Australian Computer Society (ACS). It was a rewarding experience to work with ACS to promote ICT. As I have now settled down in Sri Lanka again and also reduced my travelling commitments, I saw it as fit to free up some time from this area. I will be spending earned time to increase awareness of ICT/BPO among Sri Lankans as well as to help Sri Lankan youth with their careers.
I have offered free career advice to the readers of The Island column as well. So, please feel free to drop an email to yva@lankabpoacademy.lk with your career related queries.
Until Next Week
If you have any questions, you can contact me and I am more than happy to discuss topics and questions you may have through this column.
I will be back next week!
The Columnist The columnist Yasas Vishuddhi Abeywickrama is a professional with significant experiences in the BPO activities mainly in the ICT sector both in onshore and offshore roles. He was recognised in 2003 by CIMA (UK) as an up and coming business leader for the future. In 2009 he was named the Young Professional of the Year by Professions Australia. He has worked in the USA, UK, Sri Lanka & Australia, being trained in the USA & Malaysia and worked with clients such as British Telecom, Telstra & Siemens. He has worked for companies that are significant players in the ICT/BPO industry such as Accenture and Virtusa. He works on a BPO human resource capacity building venture for Sri Lanka called The Lanka BPO Academy (www.lankabpoacademy.lk). Yasas is happy to answer ICT/BPO related questions via this column – email him at yva@lankabpoacademy.lk .
Courtesy - The Island
