Thanks for the post.
The Social Media initiative adopted by Xerox is quite similar to IBMs social media strategy. Employees empowerment in social media increases transparency
In my Fortune 500 series I’ve profiled a lot of companies who have used social media for a bevy of programs - external communications, employee relations, support, marketing and even product development. Xerox Corporation, which has been slow but steady in it social media adoption, has found a formula in which to leverage social media from the inside out. Meaning, while branding and customer communications is an important objective of the company’s social media activities, Xerox is putting employees front and center by encouraging them to blog and use their own social networks to promote the brand. I did a quick Q&A with Christa Carone, vice president, marketing & communications for Xerox, about this approach.
Q. Why is educating users a motivator for Xerox’s social media program?
A. As with any initiative, education and information are critical for early adoption and ultimately, success. Motivating employees to embrace social media tools is by far one of the most unique initiatives Xerox has taken on in recent years because, in many cases, it links employees’ personal communications with professional. Finding and defining the balance has been critical. How do we want employees engaging for work? Joining corporate fan pages and participating in conversations that matter and help them work smarter are two great examples of how. In fact, our employees were our biggest champions and supporters when we launched our corporate Facebook page, “So, what DOES Xerox do?” in March 2009. We generated more than 800 fans and 125 glowing wall posts within 24 hours of our official launch - largely employees expressing their excitement for the future of the company and encouraging our continued use of social media.
We recently rolled out corporate social media guidelines to help employees feel empowered to use social media in an informed and responsible manner on behalf of the company. The guidelines are housed as a resource on our Web site: http:www.xerox.com/citizenship. We know that many companies are working to define how to roll out similar guidelines to their employees, and we want to share what we’ve learned.
Q. What are the company’s overall goals in this regard?
A. Ultimately, we want social media to bring awareness to the Xerox brand, products and services. As a global company, we also hope it will help bring employees together from different regions to share successes and best practices. In addition to various Facebook pages, Twitter handles, blogs and a YouTube channel that continue to gain popularity with external audiences, we also encourage employees to contact each other on a one-off basis via these tools.
In regards to the external tools, we’ve found that they’re most effective in reaching our corporate goals when linked in with existing initiatives. Whether it’s hosting a Tweetup at one of Xerox’s major tradeshows, or using a widget to encourage participation in Xerox’s Let’s Say Thanks program (an initiative that collects and prints messages of hope for U.S. troops overseas) we’ve found that engaging audiences with social media tools generates the authentic responses we’re looking for. Encouraging our employees to provide helpful responses to e-mails and posts from the public helps Xerox build its brand as an innovator and reflects our willingness to encourage open exchange and learning.
