The Path to Social Organization II

Analogous to how the “process dimension” endowed our organizations with the scalability necessary to capitalize on essentially demographic growth in a supply-side market, the new “social dimension” will give our organizations new capabilities to adapt to change, manage increasing complexity, and connect with the collective genius of the organization’s people in an essentially demand-driven market.

It is becoming increasingly clear that, at least for the next few decades, the media will be the driving force behind the great transformations that are already taking place in our traditional management models. Our organizations have already embarked on a journey of no return, of which we know their starting point – hierarchical, essentially opaque and power-oriented organizations – but of which we do not know the point of arrival in detail, as it is yet to be defined.

The fact that it is yet to be defined does not mean that we know nothing about this new destiny, about this uncertain future that awaits us. We can say, without fear of being wrong, that it will be populated by more transparent, people-oriented organizations: by organizations with a new social dimension. The path towards what we will now call Social Organization – a new organizational model shaped, structured and defined, essentially, by the preeminence of the means of social communication – is not at all easy. Not surprisingly, choosing the path of collaboration as a model of value creation, as opposed to the commitment to more traditional approaches, calls into question the principles and mental models of many executives, who continue to consider that formal authority, opacity and “command and command” are the most effective tool for coordinating human efforts and achieving operational results. But, as much as it costs them, these executives will have to learn that the path to Social Organization does not imply a rejection of efficiency and planning, but the recognition that the business challenges we face – in a complex and uncertain global context, let’s not forget – require less planning and control, and much more capacity for dialogue and interaction with new social realities. It is, in short, about looking for a new point of balance. A balance that allows us to coordinate individual efforts and produce results without sacrificing people’s creativity, motivation and purpose. In this situation, the key question we must ask ourselves is the following: what is the right balance point for our organization? The answer may not be simple at first. But there are some things we can be sure of. For example: that in the current economic context, innovation is not an option that we can choose or not. We imperatively need to innovate. We need to mobilise time and resources to take our organisations from the past to the future, from the “business as usual” to future opportunities. And to achieve this, we all have to change. We must change to achieve the right balance. A reasonable and bold balance – not at all suicidal – that makes it possible to coexist between innovation, future growth, day-to-day efficiency and quarterly results. The starting point for this journey must necessarily be based on three axes: to begin with, a commitment at the highest level of the organisation; to continue, the creation of new

Contribution frameworks, which make mass collaboration possible as a new model for creating business value; and to culminate, a new roadmap that allows us to maintain the results and productivity of the organization along the way. In today’s reflection, I propose a look at the future that awaits us. A look that is, by force, a reflection on the way in which the transformation we have talked about can be achieved. And on how we are helping, today, in a concrete way, our customers to address the changes.

Social Organization as a Destiny

The characteristics and emerging values of social organizations are, to a large extent, known. In fact, we have explored their cultural DNA in previous reflections. What we are not yet very clear about is how to build this new social contract that allows us to coordinate human effort without sacrificing, to do so, the creativity and passion of people.

In this regard, I found it very interesting to read the book “The Social Organization: How to Use Social Media to Tap the Collective Genius of Your Customers and Employees”, by Anthony Bradley and McDonald Marcos, senior executives at Gartner. In this innovative book, the authors develop their organizational proposal for the Age of Collaboration in terms very similar to those that, both in analysis and in ideas and thoughts, we have been pouring into our blog since its inception. And as a result of the experience lived in countless organizations that are already using social media beyond pure marketing and corporate communication, the authors draw the following conclusions:

1. “Social organization is one capable of translating mass collaboration into a strategic advantage.” The greater competitiveness of the social organization is given by its adaptability and its ability to be perceived and valued in the new context. Collaboration and co-creation not only make it possible to emerge new relationships with customers, but also improve business results and foster more productive and lasting relationships.
2. “An organization becomes social when it discovers the power of mass collaboration in solving its business challenges.” The collective search for solutions to day-to-day problems not only clears the way for the emergence of more creative and innovative solutions, but also greatly accelerates the adoption of best practices by the entire organization. Consequently, the way in which the social organization decides, invests, innovates, and works is very different from the way traditional organizations have been working.
3. “The real potential of social media is that it makes possible a new social dimension in our institutions and organizations.” Perhaps for the first time in human history, people can aggregate their individual contributions and self-organize around a common purpose to solve challenges far beyond their individual capabilities. In short, it is a matter of identifying those business challenges in which mass collaboration – made possible by the existence of social communication platforms – can generate value for the business.
4. “Social Organization is a management and leadership challenge, and not a mere matter of technology or platform.” Technology, by itself, does not generate new behaviors. We need a new management model focused on people’s relationships, with new leadership approaches capable of developing the collective intelligence of our organizations. We need to make mass collaboration the new engine of growth, both in productivity and in business competitiveness.

Sounds familiar, right? If you follow this blog, you will surely have been surprised by the coincidence of Bradley and McDonald’s postulates with our reflections on the organizations of the future, Leadership 2.0 and new models of value creation in the Age of Collaboration.