Recently reading research identifying a disconnect of Millennials not wanting to use Enterprise 2.0 systems at their “job”. That is they don’t see posting stuff on Facebook about how boring their meetings are. Or possibly afraid to share how cool an experiment went. Or proud of a report they got great feedback on. Or maybe even going to lunch with work colleagues. Which seems strange because we quickly see posts that resemble how bored someone might be on a rainy afternoon looking for excitement. Or posts to share a project someone had been working on with cool pictures. Or proud that someone received recognition on something they did well outside of work. Or people you know just going out to lunch with family or friends.
And maybe they are good reasons we might avoid posting at our “job”. Things like afraid of confidentiality rules (which are of course important) or the dreaded “getting fired”. The paper I’m reading goes on to suggest though, that CSNs or Corporate Social Networks must take on a new role today as Millennials are beginning to replace the older workforce.
And this raises an interesting question we ask ourselves today for those of us that participate in social media, “Is there a difference between our personal profiles and that of a professional one?” For example, Linkedin vs. Facebook. My personal reaction and reflection to the question is that, despite Millennials taking on more of an individualistic approach to life, we must remember that we are part of a team. A greater collective and that our participating must reflect this as well. Posting personal things and showing up to work eliminating our posts from our lives, demarcates two identities for the same person. But last time I checked, I’m still the same person at work and outside of work.
Play hard. Work hard. Live easy.
Shirish, A., Boughzala, I., & Srivastava, S. C. (2016). Adaptive use of social networking applications in contemporary organizations: Examining the motivations of Gen Y cohorts. International Journal of Information Management.