Spreading the Social Networking Message

This afternoon I had the pleasure of presenting to a large group of teachers and principals on Social Networking and in particular some basics around Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. I was invited to present by Julie Parke, National Operations Manager at Beacon Foundation at their National ‘Bridging the Gap’ conference held at Bayview on the Park in Melbourne (follow @beaconites).

The conference is attended by principals and teachers from numerous secondary schools across the country to learn more about the ‘No Dole‘ program offered to Year 10 students and to be inspired to implement programs and initiatives back in their respective schools.

Many questions were raised whilst I was presenting, around child protection laws, harrassment and other safety fears teachers and principals have around the growing use of the web by young people to interact and share.  This is a conversation and discussion that needs to be happening and remain ongoing with the Education Dept and schools and educational institutions in Victoria but nation wide. I would love to be involved in these conversations.

Other attendees were grateful to get a better understanding of the technologies that are so often referred to in schools, the media and by their children. I took the group live into a number of tools including Twitter and Facebook, with another guest speaker Sam Cawthorn tweeting live from the back row to show the immediacy and potential use of the technology.

After the presentation I was approached by many people who appreciated the candid view inside these technologies which are being utilised by the students they teach and in many cases their own children. There is evidence that the reverse mentoring initiative I am managing inside IBM to educate members of our Executive team in these emerging social technologies could translate to all areas of public and private sector. With technology changing so rapidly,  we need to consider how we educate on the web and social networking platforms, so teachers are equipped to assist, give advice and  better understand the potential opportunities and challenges of these platforms.

I am very grateful for the opportunity to share my knowledge and that it was so helpful, I look forward to continuing this effort.

My New World

I haven’t posted anything for months and I think it about time that I did. My world has changed dramatically in the last year and I wanted to share some thoughts, stories and ideas for the future.

I consider myself extremely fortunate to have met some inspiration people in this time. Firstly, Jasmin (@wonderwebby) whom I met at IBM, while trying to piece together this Innovation/Collaboration strategy I was working on. Jasmin introduced me to a number of social technologies and what they were all about. I joined Twitter, started this blog, began using Delicious, investigated, observed and learnt about Stumbleupon, Tumblr, Digg and many other emerging social sites.

Like with most of the social platforms, I felt somewhat fearful of posting something ordinary, that no one would want to hear about anyway. So I entered these waters slowly, commenting on some blogs, tweeting when something interesting was happening and with Jasmins support, I have morphed my role at IBM into an exciting, challenging and fascinating one. One that involves educating, influencing, developing, demonstrating, discovering and encouraging employees, managers and our leaders in the area of social technologies as an enabler for a more networked organisation. I love teaching, sharing knowledge and stories about how these  new technology enablers are empowering employees to find knowledge, learn and discover things more easily without the need to involve managers and go through traditional heirachical structures.

Since I have been active online both internally and externally, my life has literally changed. I have now been able to establish strong relationships with colleagues all over the world across various disciplines and industries both inside and outside of IBM. I am able to find knowledge and expertise instantly or at least learn of where that knowledge might sit.

My last post was before I flew to Berlin for the Web2.0 conference in November 2008. This was an amazing experience and I met so many great people who have formed part of my global network. This included @andypiper, @elsua, @ragtag, @delphRB, @jfarsen, @yoverly, @wkulhanek, @silviaemilia and many many more who have influenced the direction I have taken.

I am very interested in the web and how it will impact the way we do things in the future. I will continue to watch, learn, listen, discover and educate people by sharing stories about the web and social technologies and about how is isn’t as scary as they may have first thought…will post again soon…

Disclaimer: the postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies or opinions.

Still enchanted, most of the time!

I haven’t written a post in a long while, and perhaps I am not one of those who will write often, hence will probably not have many people viewing this.

I have been so busy the last 6 months, sadly I have started to neglect things!! Basic things like paying bills and washing has been piling up!! I feel like I just need time to stop for a week!

The upside is I have been on a very steep but exhilarating learning curve. It has been years since I have felt this informed and connected. Maybe when it comes to social media and software, everything blurs… the lines between work and home barely exist — but I need a rest!

Luckily for me, I am off to the Web2.0 conference in Berlin surrounded by a 1 month Europe holiday! Can’t wait to see my sister in London, Grace in Paris and see Italy and Germany for the first time.

Be back with lots of fill you in on after my trip!!

Social networking, means business

It has been a long while since I have posted on my blog and I will endeavour to be more attentive and share my random thoughts.

I have been well and truly consumed in social networking, collaboration tools and researching what behaviours and culture prevent and are a barrier to innovation. I am excited with what I am finding! My networks and the tools I have started using are opening my eyes to a fascinating world of humans and their need to share.

I have met some amazing people and am constantly learning and developing my views and opinions. I love people, I am excited and filled with energy when I come across people like Jasmin Tragas and Luis Suarez. Its challenging to get the talent together and to join the dots in a very large global enterprise but social software is already doing this.

I have discovered experts around the world both internal and external, I feel so connected to the world and these people, and that must be a good thing! I have a great story of a very ‘late adopter’ in my team, who has, reluctantly become an early adopter. Having excitement, new ideas, new technology around you everyday, makes this happen.

The more I and others can spread the word about the use and connection that is created by engaging with people online, the more information will be shared – what an exciting future!

My next blog – creating the right environment for collaboration/Innovation.

Social Media Journey

I am really enjoying my entry into the social media world, joining virtual worlds, twitter, updating LinkedIn, Xing, creating this blog on wordpress! It can be overwhelming with what to look at, who to follow and how to take all the different parts in!

I am interested in hearing thoughts on a creating communities and best utilising the available tools, but more importantly, how to change the way people think about sharing information. I think that everyone has interesting thoughts and ideas, but may not be aware of this forum for sharing!

Very interested in who people chose to connect with and why, any comments on capturing this information and using to highlight the importance of networking?

I have already connected to so many new people, both inside IBM and out! Looking forward to continuing the journey…

“The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies or opinions.”

Fascinated

Over the last few months, as I have embarked on a new role with little boundary and scope, I have found myself feeling fascination mixed with a sense of being completely overwhelmed on a constant basis.

Fascinated at the pace of work and of life, the sheer magnitude of information, thoughts, ideas that are now accessible through the web and fascinated about people and their fears, hopes and why they resist change.

I have presented my strategy on innovation to a number of groups along with some ideas on moving to a new way of collaborating and working together and its taking time to get buy in. I understand that what excites me in terms of change, networking and technology doesn’t excite everyone, but I feel that if I can reach the tipping point, our organisation may start to open up and WANT to share willingly and value the formation of strong relationships for a greater result.

“The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies or opinions.”

Welcome to my first blog

Hello world,

This is my brave new entry into the world of blogging. My head is spinning with the opportunities and possibilities that exist in the area of collaboration and knowledge sharing through networking.

I am 27 years old and work at IBM, in my opinion, a place that oozes opportunities and challenges both personally and professionally.

I am very excited to be working with some wonderful, creative and interesting people and enjoying the journey immensely.

I have 2 sister, one older living in London and one younger here near me in Melbourne. Both gorgeous souls and I am lucky to have them as a part of my life.

I will finish up here, as I really need to get some sleep, but will add more to this blog very soon.

Take Care, Kaz

“The postings on this site are my own and don’t necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies or opinions.”