I think the future of workplace dysfunction is grim, and that’s a good thought. I’ve experienced both good and bad workplace situations. The best don’t require extensive management; they have leaders who lead by example and foster creativity, growth, and innovation. The worst are ‘managed’ by strict command and control, and their futures are doomed.

As more and more people test the social media waters outside the workforce, these new adopters will expect the same experiences within the workforce. Per blogger and Internet pro Anthony Johnson, ” In essence, a company is its own network of people, and therefore in order to embrace social media from an organizational standpoint, a company needs to think like a social network. Social media is not just about having a buyer/seller (or employer/employee) relationship–it is about having a person to person relationship. It is a totally different way of thinking than what companies are used to.”

Companies must remember, today is the day for stakeholder engagement and be brave enough to break old habits of communications for push marketing. Think of all the knowledge that resides in the minds of every employee and every customer. No need to ‘reinvent the wheel’ to solve new problems or develop new products and services when you can push boundaries and foster a genuine conversation between coworkers, the company and customers…all by using social media.

Resistance to adopt social media requires use of cultural and change management best practices. Some causes to overcome include:

• Fear of the unknown
• Not seeing a cost justification or return on investment
• Privacy and legal concerns
• Lack of trust toward employees, and vice versa
• Laziness or unwillingness to change the status quo
• No interest in participation

Johnson points out, “There needs to be a balance between what is possible with what is realistic.

When faced with the decision to implement social media, it’s best to study what similar companies are doing and to what degree of success. Don’t jump on the bandwagon if you are seriously worried about proprietary company information being put at risk. I’d recommend creating a task force (not a focus group) to begin looking at how to implement social media at your organization. Successful social media collaboration begins with trust, so build that trust up front. Be sure to invite workers from all levels of the organization. Doing so sends signals to workers that you trust them to help solve the huge challenge of social networking and better collaboration and business at your company.

Read the blog post Using Social Media Internally – Is Your Company Ready?