My former Forrester colleague Shar VanBoskirk wrote a quick summary of what’s great about ExactTarget.

Last week, I helped facilitate a client’s global social media summit. Dachis Group was asked to share the latest and greatest in social business and lead discussion among corporate and their portfolio of brands. The best part of the day, in my opinion, was the brand roundtable. As managers from each brand presented on the coming year in social media, they turned to us for validation, additional insight, and expert advice.  Then, as they presented their past year in social, they began sharing and discussing the pros and cons of their tactics, internal best practices, and areas where they’ve fallen short.

It’s the last part that I was truly impressed with. In our experience many large companies struggle with internal knowledge-sharing; it is practically non-existent. In fact, some of the companies we’ve helped see competitive relationships between their brands. In some cases, none of the brands wanted to share successes or warn others of potential failures. It’s not all that surprising, given the structure of some portfolio inter-company relationships. Typically, each brand has their own budget, resources, and agencies. So, it takes a vested interest on behalf of corporate to coordinate an event for all of their brands and a thoughtful framework for collaboration to encourage sharing.

It was refreshing to see successful and organic collaboration happening during the summit, especially given that a number of our strategy projects to date have included a strong focus on setting up frameworks for people to collaborate and have open discussions. This injection of structure and creation of a forum for open conversation sets the stage for collaboration.

To organizations that seek to foster internal-sharing, the most important factors are the intentional creation of structure and the involvement of a neutral, third-party participant (who can provide value to all parties involved). Once a framework is in place and a reliable moderator has been chosen, brands can begin sharing their ideas: big wins, potential pitfalls, and future action items to help each other achieve common goals.

This past weekend, while watching the Cowboys (alas, another loss) I started thinking about the striking similarities between Social Business and football. Would social business teams be more effective if we thought about them the way we think about football?

First and foremost, the strategic and intentional design of structure is critical to the success of each. Professional football organizations spend significant time and resources putting together a team of talented individuals that will be able to execute on thoughtfully devised plans. The team and their ability to work well together are paramount to success.

At the head of the team stands the coach, or CEO, who oversees all the moving pieces of the organization. Directly underneath him are the coordinators who, much like executives, make the calls and run their respective teams. Their support of an idea, a play, or an initiative are essential to the actual implementation of a new way of doing things. On the offensive side, the quarterback, leader of the offense, takes the mandate from his coordinator, conveys the message to his team on the field, and asks them to carryout their respective tasks. Prior to being given their marching orders, the team needs to know their role, understand their tasks, and be prepared to execute in a coordinated way.

The offense must do this while dealing with an opponent defense that refuses to accept their forward-moving progress. In order to keep their efforts moving in a positive direction, the offense must anticipate and react to any adjustments that the defense might make to thwart their efforts. By learning from the defense’s past M.O., the offense can identify the most aggressive defenders and create a response plan to mitigate their negative impact.

Unfortunately, the reality within a lot of companies is that the dedicated resources for an enterprise social team simply don’t exist. It is impossible for a quarterback to win a game without the rest of his team even if he was playing against a weak defense. Likewise, you can’t expect the leader of your enterprise 2.0 team to successfully implement an enterprise 2.0 program without help. So, as companies make decisions regarding social business initiatives, they should seriously consider dedicating several resources to help their enterprise 2.0 “quarterback.”

How are you helping your internal quarterback to win?

Photo source: en.wikipedia.com

Some refer to this position as a Chief Social Media Officer.  I don’t think the social business evangelist necessarily needs a specific title, but I do believe the person to shepherd social business possesses five characteristics.

• Passion for the business
• Appreciation for the organization’s cultural heritage
• Limitless determination and stamina
• Ability to influence
• Skills to maneuver the political landscape

These five characteristics are in addition to excellent interpersonal skills and a passion for social media.

Passion for the business

Passion for social media isn’t enough.  The evangelist has to be passionate about the business and people associated with it.  People who are passionate about the business are deeply committed to it and driven by intrinsic motivation rather than extrinsic rewards according to John Hagel.

Appreciation for the organization’s cultural heritage

Culture makes or breaks social business.  For many large companies, social business requires a cultural shift from traditional structures (command and control, information hoarding) to shared responsibilities and transparent processes.  This shift does not happen overnight because it requires a change in behavior. This also requires new types of motivations.  An evangelist needs to understand and empathize with colleagues who are apt to resist change in order to know how to motivate them.  If colleagues feel the evangelist has blue-sky hopes that are unrealistic for the organization, they will lose faith that the evangelist can impact real change and resume old ways of working.

Limitless determination and stamina

According to Jaime Punishill, Director of Strategic Planning and New Channel Development at Citibank, the time it takes to evangelize social initiatives within an organization should not be underestimated.  During our Social Business Summit, Jaime said he spends 25% of his time giving the same exact speech about why and how Citibank should operate as a social business.  Jaime illustrates the need for an evangelist to keep pushing the vision and maintain momentum through ongoing education, especially when social initiatives lack desired results and disillusionment overcomes initial excitement.

Ability to influence

Evangelists need a vision that gains buy-in and support from the top (C-suite) as well as the bottom (entry-level).  At the end of the day, the evangelist must have the political capital to influence the right people within an organization to make change happen.  This can be as simple as getting as many people as possible within the organization to participate in the socialization process.  When people participate in the process, they feel more invested in the outcome, which increases the likelihood of that outcome occurring.

Skills to maneuver the political landscape

Many businesses are consumed by debates over who owns what piece of the social strategy, especially during a time when resources are scarce.  The evangelist should be able to rise above and maneuver corporate politics without getting tangled by them.  This means the evangelist is best positioned when he or she can operate independently of a specific department or group.  Obviously, this isn’t possible with an evangelist who emerges (versus hired).  To be effective, the evangelist must be aware of competing agendas and demands and find a compromise that will maximize benefits for the whole.

Does your business have a social business evangelist? Are there additional characteristics you would add to this list?

Two weeks ago, Kate Niederhoffer spoke on the “Social Psychological Principles of Change” at our Social Business Summit here in Austin. Mainly, bringing about change by promoting positive behaviors, rather than punishing negative ones.

In her presentation, Kate said to start focusing on changing behaviors rather than changing attitudes. As humans, we have an inherent need to belong. We want to be in agreement with the people around us so that they’ll like us and we’ll fit in. As a result, we will agree to ideas that we don’t fully accept. More and more, social psychologists find that people will generally say they support the stated goal in a group setting, i.e., “Let’s do social!” but then actually behave in the opposite way when no one is looking. So, their attitudes end up saying, “YES!” while their behaviors say “no.”

How can you change individual behaviors and, in turn, company culture? Realize that it’s easy to “talk the talk,” but you have to get people to “walk the walk” too.

1. Start by exposing people to their anti-social behaviors and show them how to develop new behaviors, possibly through a pilot program.
2. Don’t make a list of “no no’s.” I have personally seen companies make this mistake often, most obviously in their social media policies. A list of what not to do exacerbates anxiety and seems to more firmly root people in their old behaviors. If you want engagement, you can begin to encourage interaction by telling people what they can do, rather than what they can’t.
3. Introduce a new behavior set, not just new tools. Pair newbies up with those who have been playing in social spaces for a while. I think training is key to success. Once people know what they can do, help them understand how to do it. Fear of the unknown can be a major roadblock.

In reality, this concept is one we’ve been exposed to all our lives. Your mom tells you not to touch the hot stove, and all you can think about is touching the hot stove. Now, as an adult, you tell your employees not to email and all they can think about is emailing. It’s difficult to stop old behaviors and develop new ones, but your business can never be truly social without first addressing culture change.

What are you doing today to facilitate the culture change that a social business demands? If you’ve got the buy-in for “social,” attitudes are already in line. Now it’s time to start addressing the behaviors that feed your corporate culture. Don’t let your social strategy stall because you fail to encourage the right behaviors.

With these new additions to our Dachis Group Social Business Design team, now over 50 worldwide, we are pleased to be able to continue to offer our clients our industry’s most advanced perspectives with the depth, breadth and proven ability to deliver them.

Caroline Dangson, Consultant

Caroline Dangson joins Dachis Group with experience as a research analyst at IDC covering online advertising, digital media and social business software. In addition to forecasting opportunities and challenges for both vendors and buyers of social software, Caroline has explored the cultural and operational transformation required for companies to realize the full potential of social business initiatives.

Prior to IDC, Caroline served as a research coordinator for Harvard Medical School where she administered a battery of cognitive assessments to patients for research studies sponsored by the National Institute of Mental Health. Caroline has also worked for FOX8 WGHP-TV News in North Carolina and public relations agency Ruder Finn in New York.

Caroline has been cited as an industry expert in publications including Wall Street Journal, The Economist, USA Today, Reuters, CIO.com, and VentureBeat.

Caroline graduated with highest honors from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication.

Join Caroline’s conversations on Twitter @cdangson.

Cynthia Pflaum, Consultant

Cynthia joins Dachis Group from Forrester Research, where she focused on helping clients understand how consumers use social technologies through data-driven insights and research. Her reports have been quoted frequently in the press, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Advertising Age. In addition to writing research and consulting with clients across industries, Cynthia helped manage Forrester’s Social Technographics product globally. Her data analyses were featured in the award-winning business book, Groundswell by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff.

Prior to Forrester, Cynthia worked as a research analyst for Knowledge Networks, where she conducted qualitative and quantitative brand research studies.

Cynthia holds a B.S in Mass Communication and a B.A in Psychology from Boston University.

Join Cynthia’s conversations on Twitter @cpflaum.

Tom Cummings, Consultant

Tom joins the Dachis Group from Forrester Research, where he focused on writing social media research for the Interactive Marketing role. Additionally, as part of Forrester’s internal social strategy team, he helped develop several companywide social guidelines, including Analyst rules for blogging and engaging on Twitter. He also served as a Community Manager for an internal employee community and worked closely with web marketing on several client facing projects.

Previously at Forrester, Tom was a client facing Market Research Data Advisor, providing on-demand insights from consumer technology data to media, marketing, and automotive clients.

Tom graduated with a Bachelor’s in Economics from the University of Vermont and studied econometrics and resource economics at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.

Join Tom’s conversations on Twitter @tomcummings.

Brian Kotlyar, Associate

Brian Kotlyar is an Associate at Dachis Group. He joined the team from expert network firm Gerson Lehrman Group where he was Research Manager for a broad portfolio of financial services, professional services and corporate clients.

Prior to this, Brian was a collaboration and social media analyst at market research firm Yankee Group.

Brian graduated Magna Cum Laude from the Commonwealth College at the University of Massachusetts with degrees in History and Social Thought and Political Economy.

Join Brian’s conversations on Twitter @bkotlyar.

Kate Rush Sheehy, Associate

Kate comes from a diverse background of business development, non-profit marketing and event planning, and agency experience.  Prior to joining Dachis Group, Kate directed the business development efforts for a consulting firm that specializes in Atlassian implementation. She served as the liaison between company and client for a number of enterprise-level software and technology firms.  During her time at The Richards Group she worked in account service on interactive campaigns for Home Depot’s ESPN Game Day and La Madeleine.

Kate holds a B.S. in Advertising from the University of Texas at Austin.

Join Kate’s conversations on Twitter @katerushsheehy.

Amanda Johnson, Operations Associate

Amanda Johnson is a communications professional with a breadth of experience in event planning, marketing and social media systems. Amanda recently relocated to Austin from New York City, where she worked as a Senior Analyst on the event marketing teams for both Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers.

Amanda holds a Bachelors of Science in Communication from the University of Missouri and is a member of the Austin Junior League.

Follow Amanda on Twitter @akjnyc.

These are exciting times and I am often humbled in the midst of such a talented group of people and the work they do for our clients.  This continues to be the case with Dachis Group‘s newest additions.  If you are coming to the Dachis Group Social Business Summit, make sure to track them down to say hello and please welcome Caroline, Cynthia, Tom, Brian, Kate and Amanda to our team.

After the presentation, I met the guy during a smoke outside (he was smoking, I was just chatting with a colleague) where he said in all honesty that this was not going to fly with his client. Why is that, was my obvious question. He explained that his particular client suffered really hard from the economic downturn and didn’t invest anything anymore in technology related projects. He argued that this makes sense because the company was in the process of mass firing people, so how could they justify spending money on technology transformation projects if it couldn’t even pay its own employees?

I have to admit that as an external consultant, you are not always realizing the daily sorrows and worries that a company and its employees have. You’re often parachuted in, firefighting on a project, start up something, but after a relatively short time you leave again to your next engagement. However, this situation was so real. The account manager was genuinely concerned about the faith of his client.

Keep on moving like a shark

I kept on and off thinking about that one particular case for a while and the Aha-Erlebnis came a little later after coincidentally hearing about the fact that several shark species need to keep on swimming, otherwise they die.

Does this hold for companies as well, or more specifically for this particular client? Is the approach from the executive management to stop almost all investments and focus on the reality of today, rather than tomorrow (since there might be no tomorrow) a good or a bad thing? Will this “stop swimming” cause the death of that company, as it will do for a shark?

Internet driving competition in traditional markets

In order to better understand the background of this particular business (sorry can’t disclose exactly what market it was in), you need to understand that it was in a very very traditional market sector. A certain type of service that existed already far before the first computer was around.

As with many other sectors, it regarded the rise and ubiquity of the Internet as a big threat for its business. You can say the same for the music, movie and newspaper industry.

But is it really a threat, or is it an opportunity?

I’m pretty sure that the average music and newspaper executive that grew up before the Internet era, is convinced that it is a threat. Look at the way certain big newspapers are closing off all content behind a pay wall, or how fiercely the music industries hunts down downloaders.

But let’s be honest with each other, how much innovation have we seen in the above-mentioned industries? Decades long, we’ve seen very few innovations happening that were started or pushed by these industries. You can almost say that they had a monopoly in their market and all of a sudden their biggest fear is not a competing newspaper or a record label, no it’s… innovation itself.

In a liberal economy, we stimulate competition because that drives innovation. If you only have one supplier in a market, that supplier has no urge at all to keep improving its services and products. Why should they? It’s not that its customers are going to buy from another non-existing competitor.

So, is the Internet – and actually technology in general – the big driver for innovation in those markets? You’d think so, yet they still fight fiercely against it.

“Wait a minute…”

… I hear you saying, “what about all those bands that don’t get money because people download their music, and what about the loss of income for the record label?”

Very valid points, but what if the whole concept of “record label invests and pushes artists in the market and gets money for it” is outdated? What if that system we know already for decades became obsolete? How can these bands still earn money then?

Well, what about the mineworkers in coal mines? What about them? In a short time span, the industry moved on to other sources of energy and coal became obsolete.

I’m just trying to explain here that it’s not because we know something is working already for decades, that it will be relevant for an eternity. ESPECIALLY if that particular business or industry almost refuses to innovate.

One piece of advice: never fall for the trap of feeling comfortable in your success. I’m not that old yet, but I did see some successful businesses come and go in a matter of a few years, because they failed to keep on going for that extra mile.

Oh, and regarding how bands can earn money… In China, the place where they invented copying as it seems, they’ve been quite creative with this. Several artists actually explicitly distribute their copied CDs in markets almost for free. This gives them a better chance of being heard by people and they get their income from sponsor deals and performances. So, as you can see, the music industry CAN adapt to changing market conditions and be very innovative in their delivery model!

Stop becoming obsolete

Now, to link back to the story that started this blog post: what about the account manager’s client? In hindsight, I should’ve said to provoke a discussion: “well perhaps they just deserve to become graciously obsolete then”.

Knowing the account manager, he probably would’ve slapped me in the face and yelled “help me getting this client back on track, stupid!” and I would’ve secured a nice new gig

One of the key mistakes that almost all of these “being threatened by becoming obsolete” companies make is the lack of focus on… people. I said it before, and if necessary I will repeat it every single day: BUSINESS IS FUNDAMENTALLY HUMAN!

That is a key message in our Social Business Design philosophy: your employees, your customers and your partners are human; treat them with that respect and dignity. The moment you start only focusing on your products and forget that it is actually the people that bring you these profits, you are becoming obsolete.

So, tell me. Do you want to succeed or survive?

Ping me on lee.provoost@headshift.com or http://twitter.com/leeprovoost to help your company becoming a social business.

This post originally appeared on the Headshift blog.