Support Change - Don't Be A Resister

Have you ever had a root canal? It’s not as much fun as it sounds, trust me. I was sitting in the dentist’s (actually, he’s an endodontist – these guys should all be dressed like Jason from the Halloween movies) chair one morning recently waiting for that full-face numbing that anyone who’s had dental work knows and loves – one of the worst things ever, actually.

Anyway, with plenty of time to think, and my speaking ability completely disabled (a welcome relief to those around me), I got to thinking about some of the new stuff going on that companies can take advantage of to get their employees involved in the conversation. A lot of companies have had blogs, and IM for a while, but new social intranet products are making inroads with good reports from the companies using them.

It's not unusual to have some hesitance when companies introduce new communication tools. There's some hesitance from a few, usually skewing into an older demo. That’s understandable – it’s new, and, “I don’t do Facebook.” Yeah, I get that too, but if you think of it more as a resource for getting to know your colleagues better, collaborating across locations and departments, and getting the latest company information, it’ll be much more useful for everyone.

Sometimes change for the sake of change is good, but change for the sake of improvement is always a good thing. Changes like this are made with the hope of advancing the company both internally and externally - getting more people involved in the conversation, and facilitating open communication. Initial hesitance is understandable with new things, but resistance rarely advances positive initiatives. I encourage everyone to embrace social intranets, and help continue to move the company forward.

You know what the dentist/Jason said to me as I was leaving? He said, “The good news is that this will only be uncomfortable for a couple of days, but at least you know it’s going to get better real soon.” Introducing a new social intranet is very similar: It may be uncomfortable until you get used to it, but all signs point toward positive things. Be an enthusiastic supporter. It helps the cause, and it’s more fun anyway.