Another great Spring Management Conference is in the books for GAWDA. One thing that was different about this year’s meeting was the fact that there were no simultaneously scheduled breakout sessions. If you ask me, I think this is a good thing.
Last year there were three sessions (technology, HR and GAWDA Consultants), and attending one meant missing possible great takeaways from the other two. If your company sent multiple people, it would be possible to divide and conquer, but for many, it meant missing important information. This year, everyone sat in on the technology discussion. I believe this was an important conversation for all to hear.
Following Tuesday’s session, I had an interesting conversation with a young distributor employee, who shared an exchange with his company president during the session. The distributor president told the young employee, “I’m so glad you were here to see this discussion on Social Media. I wish there was a separate session for guys like me.” Although the president recognized the importance of Social Media, he perhaps did not recognize the importance of his involvement in it. The young employee, taken aback, told the president that he needed to be there too, and that the conversation about Social Media was one he needed to be a part of as much as anyone.
As the MI Committee stated in the technology panel discussion, when implementing new technology, whatever that technology is, employee buy in starts at the executive level. For employees to embrace change, the leaders of that company must embrace it as well. Social Media is not just about IT and technology—it’s about building relationships and communicating with customers and industry partners. And it is not merely a young person’s game. The over-55 age group is one of the fastest growing demographics on Social Media.
It was great to see so many people embrace Social Media at the SMC. I was live tweeting throughout the event, and saw quite a few people join the conversation as it went on throughout the conference. If you haven’t joined yet, it’s not too late. The industry conversation is always going online. Drop me a line on Twitter at @GasWeldEdge.
Take a look back at the SMC conversation on Twitter. View the complete #GAWDA chat transcript after the jump.
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