MMC 540 - 21st Century Technologies Week 10 Blog Entry

Electronic group interactions are unique because individuals can alternate their communication style.  There’s no need to worry about public speaking or other distractions which can make some people nervous in a group or public setting.  Unfortunately, an important key to success is always the interactions in group dynamics.  Everything must now be tailored to fit an electronic version of this.  We were able to take advantage of and use the same tools and knowledge that we’re learning in this course to complete group assignments.  Web 2.0 covers a lot of digital and electronic advantages that we currently use to complete our required work.  We had to use the Internet, email, blogs, skype and group discussion boards in order to work together.  Additionally, Bellevue University also aided in this process with the update of their Blackboard Academic Suite.  These tools definitely made our use of interactive technologies a great environment and huge success.    

MMC 540 - 21st Century Technologies Week 2 Blog Entry

Create an entry for your blog which outlines your thoughts about how to use a blog to reach out to people at a place of employment. Follow the POST method.

What is the POST method (People, objectives, strategy and technology).  “POST is the foundation of groundswell thinking – a systematic framework for assembling your plan” (Li & Bernoff, 2011).  This concept is a great tool that can be applied to any organization, even non-profit organizations.  The key is to think deeply about how technology as a whole will affect your organization but involving all aspects of the process.

People:  This will probably be the most difficult part of the whole process.  There will is a huge gap in age and cultures and I don’t think that everyone is big into blogging.  If my unit wants to engage everyone, they’ll have to do so by introducing this concept and getting them to buy in on it.  There may be some resistance but we’ve crossed similar bridges before and it’s paid off. Objectives:  Our main goals would be to educate everyone about our expectations and explain in detail how to use to product.  The more people know about technology, the more they would be willing to use it.  Those personnel who are proficient on the subject will be leads and will aid in energizing other customers about blogging and other great ideas.  Strategy:  In the military, we all have to work together and we are all each other’s customers.  Therefore, it’s important that we branch out to help aid other units to try and enhance their productivity.  We will need to get feedback from everyone and address those issues that are preventing us from “unfreezing” during the “change process.”  

Technology:  It’s important for everyone to buy in and get familiar with the changes and evolution of technology.  Ignorance is not an excuse.  I think that my organization has taken advantage of the POST method and are constantly striving to enhance mission effectiveness through the use of technology.  Blogging is something that is not familiar to a lot of people but can be a great tool if used in organizations for what it’s intended for. 

Li, C. & Bernoff, J. (2011). Groundswell: Winning in a world transformed by social technologies (rev. ed.). Boston, MA: Forrester Research, Inc.   

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Why is it that the people who are out of shape and far from being fit want to give me advice all the time about working out and lifting weights?