Week 2 Blog - Twitter and Inevitable Change
Twitter is one of the most influential global online
social media and networking services currently existing. Essentially, it is a
microblog service in which users can send and read short 140-character messages,
also known as “tweets”, that may include plain text, URL page links, images,
and acknowledgement of other users (Riquielme & González-Cantergiani,
2016). The
company website shares that Twitter is all about “what’s happening in the world
and what people are talking about right now” (Twitter.com), providing free
access and usability to anyone who wants to “spark a global conversation”
(Twitter.com). Twitter’s website also provides the company’s mission statement
which is:
“to power
positive global change by fostering respectful conversations, creating deeper
human connections, and encouraging diverse interactions among individuals and
teams, across our organization, and on the platform resulting in a more
globally inclusive culture and more globally diverse workforce” (Twitter.com)
Today, Twitter has replaced traditional methods of receiving
information (e.g., newspaper, magazines, etc.) through its capability to quickly
diffuse content instantaneously and enable connections and continuous
dialogue between users (Narbona, 2016).
Leadership Benefits from Twitter
There is no denying the benefits that Twitter can
provide for the field of leadership. Leadership has found a new place to thrive
in its ability to influence others not just in the real world, but also digitally
(Sturt & Nordstrom (2017). Twitter boasts that over 500 million “tweets” are
being sent daily with millions of people using its services to explore links,
articles, and trends to find out what is happening in real-time (Twitter.com). As
someone working in the field of sport psychology, Twitter sounds very enticing
in its ability to connect me to relevant audiences, whether it be for the purpose
of bolstering my brand, promoting new products, or simply looking to gain more recognition
via followers and likes. Through active participation, Twitter affords me the
opportunity to become a social leader and expert within my field by engaging audiences
through the primary means of sharing information and providing advice (Narbona,
2016). In other words, this new digital style of leadership has provides me the
opportunity to increase my relevance and range of effectiveness through my own
personal Twitter account (Narbona, 2016).
Yet, not all information is created equal, and
bolstering one’s leadership image is contingent upon the value of information that
is shared, whether it be originally created or shared from other users
(Narbona, 2016). Reputation across the Twittersphere is also dependent upon a
variety of metrics. For example, research suggests opinion leadership has less
to do with socio-demographics and is more strongly associated with network size
(i.e., number of followers) and level of engagement or participation such as
posting or retweeting others’ posts (Park & Kaye, 2017). Twitter also has a
business platform that provides several recommendations from its employees on
how to build or enhance your leadership presence through its service at
business.twitter.com. For example, while exploring the platform I came across
many helpful tips such as how to build thought leadership influence on Twitter
(Heald, 2017), how to use Twitter to build business to business thought
leadership (Reese, 2019), and insider tips on how to utilize Twitter for 2019 (Bruce,
2019). Some of the suggestions I found most valuable included directly replying
and building personal relationships with other key influencers in my industry
(Heald, 2017), using the technology to educate others rather than sell to
others (Reese, 2019), and not being afraid to share my point of view even if it
might not be popular opinion (Bruce, 2019).
The Downside of Twitter for Leadership
The
promotion of free speech is a core tenet of Twitter, however, this does not
mean that there are potential drawbacks to the technology. Considering the vast
number of active users and the substantial number of tweets being sent daily,
it is very easy for one’s tweets to go unnoticed within the mix (Cornell,
n.d.). Although Twitter has been around for the past decade, it is still a
relatively new technology and like many other social media technology has had
to deal with its fair share of patrolling unwanted spam (Cornell, n.d.).
Twitter also limits user posts to 140 characters and limits video sharing to
links to other sites (e.g., YouTube) whereas other social media technologies like
Facebook provide users the opportunity to write as much as they desire and
upload videos directly (Cornell, n.d.).
From
a leadership perspective, it has been suggested that leaders avoid sharing or
posting any information that may seem controversial (Sherman, 2019). In other
words, the downside can potentially outweigh the benefits if what is shared can
be damaging to one’s reputation or affiliated organization. For example, the
General Manager of the Houston Rockets NBA team recently fell subject to extreme
criticism from Chinese businesses for supporting freedom protests in Hong Kong
(Sherman, 2019).
Twitter
and the Inevitable
In his book, The Inevitable, Kelley (2006) talks about the inevitable
disruption that digital technology has caused and will continue to cause
society. According to Kelley (2006), “digital technology rattles international
borders because it is borderless” (p. 5). Rather than fighting technology, Kelley (2006)
asserts that we need to embrace it and work alongside its development because
the world is constantly in flux and moving away from “fixed nouns and toward a
world of fluid verbs” (p. 6).
Twitter embodies many of the verbs that Kelley (2006)
describes in the first three chapters of the book. Twitter demonstrates a sense
of “becoming” because we currently live in a world in which we constantly crave
knowing what is going on in real-time and have fear of missing out. The term “protopia”
is described to be the appropriate term for the state of “becoming” because it indicates
a process in which things will constantly evolve to be better than they were
yesterday (Kelley, 2006). However, this constant state of “becoming” also blinds
us to the minute changes that occur right before our very eyes (Kelley, 2006). While
it may be easy to think that Twitter was created and has developed by means of
its creators, in reality, Twitter continues to evolve as a byproduct of its audience
and users.
Cognifying is another verb used by Kelley (2006) to
describe the ways in which artificial intelligence (AI) has made everything
more new, different, and valuable. AI is capable of doing more than humans
could ever imagine, cognitively enhancing everything we do. Twitter is a form
of AI that is constantly collecting information that attempts to predict what
we do on a regular basis starting from the time we wake up in the morning. It
is no coincidence that what we find on our Twitter feed is intentionally and
targeted specifically for us based on patterns that are observed in the what we
post, what tweets we like, and what tweets we decide to share.
Lastly, Twitter embodies the verb of “flowing” in
that we are entering a third stage of computing whereby all information is now streamed
in real-time (Kelley, 2006). Twitter demonstrates many types of generative
value such as the immediacy in which information is shared and discovered, personalization
through ongoing conversations between users, authenticity in the ability to
obtain information directly from the source desired, accessibility in the ease
of acquiring information assembled through Twitter’s platform, and discoverability
in relying on others’ recommendations for valuable content (Kelley, 2006).
Summary
Technology disrupts society and the manner in which
people live and work (Shirky, 2016). According to Shirky (2016), when
technology gets to a point where it becomes cheap and unrestricted, real social
change starts to occur. Social media is one type of technology that has
expanded the range in which people across the world collaborate. Yet, new technology
does not just equate to success overnight. Instead, new technology goes through
incremental changes whereby course corrections are a necessary part of the
process for it to ultimately prosper (Shirky, 2016). Twitter is a prime example
of how technology can create social change, and happened once the company ultimately
discovered its purpose was to track the lives of people through the use of cell
phones (Shirky, 2016).
References
Bruce, L. (January 11, 2019). Five insider tips for
using Twitter in 2019. Business Twitter. Retrieved from: https://business.twitter.com/en/blog/tips-for-using-Twitter-in-2019.html
Cornell, S. (n.d.). The disadvantages of Twitter. Small
Business. Retrieved from: https://smallbusiness.chron.com/disadvantages-twitter-54112.html
Heald, E. (December 15, 2017). 4 ways to build your thought
leadership influence on Twitter. Business Twitter. Retrieved from:
https://business.twitter.com/en/blog/4-ways-to-build-your-thought-leadership-influence-on-Twitter.html
Kelley, K. (2016). The inevitable: Understanding
the 12 technological forces that will shape our future. New York: NY:
Penguin Random House LLC
Narbona, J. (2016). Digital leadership, Twitter and Pope
Francis. Church, Communication and Culture, 1(1), 90-109.
Park, C. S., & Kaye, B. K. (2017). The tweet goes
on: Interconnection of Twitter opinion leadership, network size, and civic
engagement. Computers in Human Behavior, 69, 174-180.
Reese, N. (February 05, 2019). How to use Twitter to
build b2b thought leadership. Business Twitter. Retrieved from: https://business.twitter.com/en/blog/build-B2B-thought-leadership.html
Riquelme,
F., & González-Cantergiani, P.
(2016). Measuring user influence on Twitter: A survey. Information
Processing & Management, 52(5), 949-975.
Sherman, A. (October 7, 2019). The
NBA’s China crisis is another reminder of the dangers of Twitter for corporate
leaders. CNBC. Retrieved from:
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/07/the-nbas-china-crisis-is-another-reminder-of-the-dangers-of-twitter.html
Shirky, C. (March, 2014). The disruptive power of
collaboration: An interview with Clay Shirky. Mckinsey & Company. Retrieved
from:
https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/technology-media-and-telecommunications/our-insights/the-disruptive-power-of-collaboration-an-interview-with-clay-shirky
Sturt, D., & Nordstrom, T. (May 5, 2017). Leading
in 140 characters or less: How great leaders use Twitter. Forbes. Retrieved
from:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidsturt/2017/05/05/leading-in-140-characters-or-less-how-great-leaders-use-twitter/#3b7cbd763e72
Interesting synthesis of the 12 inevitable forces shaping our future and the capabilities and uses of Twitter. I recently read an article about how cognifying algorithms have altered our sense of time.
ReplyDeleteThe 2010s Have Broken Our Sense Of Time ( https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/katherinemiller/the-2010s-have-broken-our-sense-of-time ).
By pushing things from the past to us based on our interests, legacy content is new, different, and attention grabbing in the present, as you indicated. The author asserts it bloats and distorts the ever growing now. If Netflix shows us endless episodes of Friends, there is probably little harm. But if an interest in wildfires, for example, produces an overflow of related material from the recent past - the last few years - our sense of the problem could be distorted and overwhelming.
As a leader, if I am communicating broadly using social media or even email, I wonder how concerned I should be about the repetitive tics that might be revealed by easy access to months of messages. Would it reveal something about my leadership? Is that even something I should consider?
Hi Joe! Great point about attention grabbing in the present and distorting our sense of perception. This makes me think about the amount of fear that social media and its ability to connect everyone at a global scale has created. Take the topic of kidnaps as an example. This was not such a big fear when I was growing up. I would constantly leave school at the end of the day and play around the neighborhood with friends unsupervised for hours until returning home at dark. Today, parents hear about kidnaps that take place not only locally, but around the globe, and has created a distorted fear amongst parents to leave their kids unsupervised. I would be interested to know if the number of kidnaps has escalated in the past 20 years, but I am inclined to think it has not – just heightened attention more through the use of easy access to information on the Internet and social media platforms. To your point, yes! As a leader, I think it would be wise to be concerned about the number of repetitive tics that are revealed by access to months of messages. However, I also think it is important to keep things in perspective and not make automatic assumptions based on the amount of information that is streaming in real-time. To your example, a recent wildfire will most likely produce an overflow of information in real-time and from the past. But this also does not mean we should overreact and prepare for wildfires to occur on a daily basis (which they do not) just because of the overwhelming amount of attention it may be receiving in real-time. I am not sure if I sufficiently addressed the main question you were raising, but it sparked this line of thought I had, and I am happy to keep the conversation going. Thanks!
DeleteThere are times when I feel as if Twitter is my guilty pleasure. While I recognize the times when it has become a tool for divisiveness in our society, I have shared more than a few posts supporting candidates and advocating for specific causes. It isn't difficult to recognize Kelly's (2016) verbs, especially when considering the impact Twitter's development has had upon our lives. I suppose we have the presence of smart phones and watches to thank for municipalities' successes in using it to share immediate alerts.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I missed the Odeo bus, it was interesting to hear Shirky's description of how its ashes yielded Twitter. I'm interested in your thoughts on whether the recent decision to ban political ads from Twitter is a course correction or a 1A infringement. Thanks for your post!
References
Kelley, K. (2016). The inevitable: Understanding the 12 technological forces that will shape our future. New York: NY: Penguin Random House LLC
Shirky, C. (March, 2014). The disruptive power of collaboration: An interview with Clay Shirky. Mckinsey & Company. Retrieved from:
https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/technology-media-and-telecommunications/our-insights/the-disruptive-power-of-collaboration-an-interview-with-clay-shirky
Thank you for your reply and question! I was also surprised to see Twitter recently made the decision to ban political ads, especially since the company promotes individual expression and free speech. According to CEO Jack Dorsey, the reason is because Twitter believes “political message reach should be earned, not bought” (Heer, 2019). In other words, the main issue has to do with controversy over fact-checking political ads and for providing a platform in which truth can prevail over lies. This also happens to be something that Facebook has been overly criticized for doing. I also wonder if another factor has to do with the sensitivity and strong opinions surrounding politics and its ability to easily arouse public interest. Twitter does have rules or policies that it enforces for those who use its services. Part of those rules include the avoidance of abuse and hateful conduct – such as the targeted harassment of someone or others, or attempts to intimidate or silence someone else’s voice (Twitter, n.d.). So, I wonder if this is another factor in the equation. Thoughts? Thanks again for commenting and for the question.
DeleteReferences
Heer, J. (November 1, 2019). Twitter just banned political ads. Hold your applause. The Nation. Retrieved from: https://www.thenation.com/article/twitter-facebook-political-advertising/
Twitter. (n.d.) The Twitter rules. Retrieved from: https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/twitter-rules
Twitter is a tool that I have often heard of but has gratuitously passed me by. I have never truly felt the need to subscribe to twitter or use it for anything other than marketing. However, you bring up some interesting points about leadership and how Twitter enhances various aspects of how leaders communicate, disseminate, and interact. You make excellent points how Twitter helps leaders connect with relevant audiences and business partners, but how might you think Twitter enhances leadership within the company? I’ve always imagined that internal communications were better left to other outlets such as emails, intranet, meetings or company announcements, but does Twitter have its uses as an internal leadership tool?
ReplyDeleteThank you for the question! In my opinion, I think Twitter can not only help leaders connect externally, but it can also help connect to individuals internally. First, I think leaders who are actively engaging on Twitter can use the platform to promote the good work that is being done in the organization by those internally, and not only to bolster the organization’s brand externally. When employees see leaders of their company advocating on their behalf, or promoting the good work they are doing, I think it can create more employee commitment and a sense of pride for the work they do. Also, I think many internal employees see leaders of their organization from a distance and do not feel as if they have the opportunity to engage with them on a more personal level. I think Twitter provides an opportunity for internal employees to perceive leaders as simply regular people (just like them) and not as some mystifying force that separates them from the rest of the organization. Thoughts?
DeleteI have never been a big fan of Twitter. I do not understand its importance beyond the economic value. A quick search on Google indicates there were approximately worldwide 330 million active users, twice as many accounts, and they are in decline from 2018 numbers. In the U.S., users number 68 million that use the account monthly with roughly 42% using daily. Roughly less than 10% of the United States uses twitter daily. Who are these people using Twitter and why are they more important than the rest of us? If 90% of the population is not on Twitter, I would think profits are bigger elsewhere. From a social engineering play I see lots of poor outcomes.
ReplyDeleteGreat point on the number decline of Twitter since 2018. I wonder if this could be due to the sheer volume of people that have already joined, with less joining than what has shown in past years. Twitter seems to have become the new and popular method for receiving news, and in real-time, even if it is the 10% of the United States using Twitter for that purpose. I would also imagine that the number of people buying or reading news through traditional means (e.g., printing press via newspapers and magazines) is also on a huge decline. They are also not free resources. You make a great point about Twitter’s ultimate purpose and function in society. I do not necessarily agree with the assertion that people using Twitter are more important than the rest of the population that does not. It just seems to me that today’s society is more interested in getting access to information immediately and for free, and wanting to know what is currently happening - Twitter provides this capability. As Kelley (2006) suggests, we can’t stop the massive copying of free information, and this will continue to exist with Twitter unless something comes along and shows to be a more valuable source of receiving content. Thoughts?
DeleteFree information. Speed of delivery. None of the cautions of first reports. You only get one opportunity to under-react.
DeleteWhen does data become information? What level of certainty is required to produce information? When is information actionable? These are extremely different questions than Collin Powell's 40/70 rule. Powell was not dealing with unreliable, unvetted resources.
I have struggled with Twitter as a leadership tool. I've been on the platform for a number of years, and when I first joined I used it frequently and for a while attempted to tweet at least once a day to get in a habit and to build my "brand." Similar to LinkedIn, over time I have stopped using the platform for anything but getting updates on news, local sports, and a few preferred Twitter users. I've backed off for two main reasons: the first is that Twitter and LinkedIn feel like resume building resources in a lot of ways (LinkedIn more so than Twitter). The people I'm likely connecting with in thought leadership content are other bankers and industry people, and the likelihood is they are not local. I don't see anything wrong with building a brand on Twitter or LinkedIn, but in my own experience, I have much more impact and demonstrate more leadership through what I'm doing locally in my community. Twitter feels relatively superficial in this regard. I'm sure there are many exceptions, and my own experience doesn't necessarily translate to how others utilize the platform. The other reason is a combination of time and information overload. I get overwhelmed with the content on Twitter and I've never found a happy balance of people to follow and content to consume. There is so much out there that it is difficult to find what's really relevant, and I haven't seen enough value to spend the time figuring it out.
ReplyDeleteI'd be interested to hear what others think about the idea of building a brand on Twitter and if it has had any relevant impact on a local level for them.
Hi Brendon! Great point about the impact that Twitter can build for its users. Like you said, you see yourself having much more impact with what you are doing locally in your community. My question would be, do you want to have impact that extends beyond your community? If so, Twitter provides you the capability to do so with other users that may want to follow you outside of your community. Also, I would imagine that things occur in the banking industry on a global scale that will inevitably impact the community level. By being a leader and authority in the industry, your opinion on the changes that occur could provide value to your followers, no? Yes, I agree that Twitter does feel superficial because everyone who posts or tweets presents their ideal self and rarely talks about the hardships they are experiencing. This can create a false sense for people who read others’ posts and wonder, “why does everyone else seem to be doing well while I am not?” The amount of information constantly streaming on Twitter is overwhelming, but equally overwhelming if one chooses to read everything! My suggestion would be to skim over posts that don’t seem relevant and be selective on the issues you do decide to engage on, especially as it applies to your audience and community. In having a voice and presence on Twitter, I think you would be surprised on how much word-of-mouth from others choosing to follow you and retweet your posts could spread and provide impact. Thoughts?
DeleteAt the risk of bringing politics in to this discussion, the New York Times did a fascinating analysis of President Trump's use of Twitter yesterday - https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/02/us/trump-twitter-takeaways.html
ReplyDeleteIn some ways, the President's use of Twitter is a case study in leadership ... just not going to suggest in what way! :-)