Happy Social Year!!

A few years back I made a dramatic change in my life. From being a pessimist I decided to become an optimist. I know sounds good, he?! "Where do I find that button?" Well you don't. It took a lot of hard work and self-reflection to make a chance like that and it still is a work in progress. But overall I think I'm doing pretty well.

To give you an example of how melodramatic I used to be I will tell you a story my mum used to tell me....

As a kid, I must have been about 7 years old, she found me sitting on the stairs holding a melting ice cream, crying my eyes out. Startled she asked me 'what was going on?'. My answer between two heartbreaking sobs: "In a few minutes my ice cream will be gone!" Yep, seriously, I was contemplating the end of my ice cream and that literally tore me up.

So I refuse to be like that nowadays. I take life as it comes and try to enjoy the moment (eat that ice cream before it melts!). I don't plan beyond what I can handle and I don't regret the past either. In stead, I see the mistakes and problems I had, or caused, as lessons to do better in the future. And to remind myself of that I started blogging. Three years long I wrote down all the little (and big!) embarrassing, funny, silly things and mishaps that happened to me and most turned out to be really funny. Reflecting upon them put things into perspective and  often made me chuckle. Now, "Where do I find that blog?!?" I hear you ask... Yes, well it is online (here) but it's in Dutch so most of you won't be able to read it.

The last few years though I haven't been writing on that blog anymore. Oh I still have my embarrassing moments worth chuckling over and I still do! The medium changed, the fun didn't. Nowadays I put them on Twitter, Facebook or share them with my friends and coworkers. Really, my life is like an open book and I'm the one having the most fun about it. By being open and honest about both my successes in life as well as my trip-ups I show people who I really am and show them I'm fallible just like everyone else. Both in private as well as in business this has made me stronger and more secure. And most importantly it has resulted in lots of new friends and contacts.

So on the brink of 2012, looking back on 2011 I can only say I had the most awesome year! I made lots of new friends (in real life as well as in cyberspace), had the most amazing experiences (becoming an IBM Champion, walking part of the Camino de Santiago, running a 15k, doing a Redbook Residency) and found a renewed love for my work with Social Business and the IBM community.

Someone wrote me a message stating "your enthusiasm about being social is contagious!" and I'm taking that as the biggest compliment there is. I can't wait to see what 2012 is going to bring us, so Happy New Year, make it a fantastic year, make it a Social Year!

Instagram - Let's capture the LS12 mood!

I stumbled upon Instagram a while back. A nifty little iPhone app (I don't have an iPhone but use it on my iPad) that lets you quickly share photo's that portray your mood of the moment to the world. Not whole series but snapshots that really give others a quick glimpse of what you're up to. The simple interface and the nice filters let you enhance the pictures before posting them and make it a joy to work with.

I love it! It's just another form of social Media but in some cases a picture says more then a 1000 words and as it allows you to post the pictures to Twitter and Facebook as well it's a great alternative if words fall short (or inspiration is lacking).

Last Week, after posting an Instagram picture, Bruce Elgort DM'ed me a link with the text "Working on this....".
On opening the link I got a collection of Instagram pictures for Lotusphere and IBM Connect..... Now I didn't realize immediately what I was looking at and as the pictures were from previous Lotusphere's it took me a while to realize what he and Serdar Besegmez had been working on. A site that collects all the Instagram pictures (regardless of who's posting it) that contain the #ls12 tag and shows them in one big photo album overview. Of course the current selection is very limited but come Jan 15.....

So I love this initiative. We're all going to follow what is going on around Lotusphere on Twitter, on Facebook, on the communities but what better way to portray the mood and excitement of the community coming together then pictures!
So if you've got an iPhone or iPad then download instagram and start posting. And while at Lotusphere take a picture of what Lotusphere is to you and post it to Instagram with the #LS12 tag. It'll be a great way of looking back on the event of the year!

Serdar & Bruce thanks for coming up with this!

"Hello?!? I understand you are not there but where do I go now?"

It's that time of year again! The holidays are here and most of the companies I work with are closed for the week or working on half power. Nothing wrong there. Heck, I'm officially 'off' myself at this moment!
Sending out messages right now is knowing you'll receive lots of Out-Of-Office notices back. I know, and I expect it. There is one thing though that can really irritate me: The inconsiderate OoO.

Some people seem to think that if they're gone that all work around them stops too. So messages like "I am out of the office" without any further details can really baffle me. Surely there will be someone that I can reach in case of an emergency?!? Some co-worker or central helpdesk... surely?

So I plead for ran Out of Office etiquette:
1. Put your return date in the message so that I know when to expect you back
2. Put in contact information for a co-worker or central desk that I can reach in case of an emergency
3. Put in any Office closure details so I know the whole company is closed if that is the case

But most importantly.... Don't forget to activate it. Because the thing that irritates me even more then getting an inconsiderate OoO while you're on holiday is not getting an OoO message at all...

Happy holidays!

Lotusphere-less... NOW WHAT?!?

If you are anything like me you probably had the dates for Lotusphere 2012 inscribed and blocked in your calendar as soon as they were announced last year and spend the last 11 months bugging your boss about letting you go (yes, I did). Still, not everyone gets to go..... 

DISASTER!, now what?!? How can you NOT be there where it is all happening!?!

Breath in.....ok, relax. I know it's a disaster and I feel for you but in the incredible situation you're actually not going, there are still ways to participate. So, to help you overcome this horrible scenario, some tips from someone who lived through it last year (and yes, that was hard!). Because you might not be able to be there physically, you can still be there online:

• Keep an eye on central sites like the Lotusphereblog and official IBM Lotusphere site for relevant links, news and updates. 

• Try and find a Live feed that allows you to follow what's going on. Last year I ended up watching the whole OGS through a LotusLive web meeting feed. With running commentary and a very active comments section with like minded people who weren't there. It gave me the comfort of knowing I was not alone, pining behind my desk in a cold & rainy place far, far from sunny Orlando...

• Check out the #ls12 hashtag. Anything going on at or around Lotusphere will in general be tweeted with this hashtag. Even better, check out the IBM Social Aggregator for Lotusphere site that lists tweets & blog posts about Lotusphere all in one convenient web page with link backs to authors profiles and other blogs.

• Listen to the podcasts that are around. There are several out there like Taking Notes and This Week in Lotus for instance that are really worth listening to if you want to know what's going on in the Lotus Community. Leading up to and during Lotusphere they tend to do lots of interviews and even live recordings from the conference itself.

• Check out PlanetLotus. The place to go for all blog's Lotus and during Lotusphere the place to get the latest scoops. 

• Check out the Greenhouse Lotusphere Community (register for free with Greenhouse if you haven't done so yet to get access). An online Connections community where people can connect, post pictures, links and video's, search for information, post questions and get involved while at Lotusphere. But also open to anyone not there.

• Follow and connect with people on twitter that are there. This is the best way of getting to know what's going on. Who to follow? Well there are lot's and finding the right ones can be difficult if you're new to this. A good basic set of active Lotus community tweeps is to simply follow the IBM Champions twitter list. These are some of the most active members in the community and it's an easy starting point to broaden your network. Don't be afraid to interact with them either. These are people that were recognized by IBM for their active role in the Community so in general they are really open and willing to engage with you.

So although none of the above really replaces the actual 'Lotusphere experience' itself these could be tips to get a little bit of the feeling of being there. And, if you're smart, you can use it to get the arguments to convince your boss why he should let you go next year.... :)

This list is far from complete. Any more tips I might have forgotten? Add them to the comments!

"IBM 5in5" five predictions for the next five years

IBM regularly comes out with predictions about the future of Tech. Not always accurate, most often very futuristic. On the Building a Smarter Planet Blog 5 of those were publicized today. I can't help thinking that some are a bit too optimistic but then I was one of those that 3 years ago thought that 'Social' would never become a Business thing..... Now how wrong was I on that one!

to get an idea of the ideas check them out via the below links. Curious to see how accurate they turn out to be in 5 years time!

1. People power will come to life 

2. You will never need a password again

3. Mind reading is no longer science fiction

4. The digital divide will cease to exist

5. Junk mail will become priority mail

Lotusphere Sparks session!

It's getting close to Lotusphere. The excitement is building up with the session overview being announced today and less then a month to go till OGS! Busy times especially for the speakers who's slides are due any day now.  

Not selected as a speaker? There is still a chance for you too. The "NERD101: Spark Ideas, featured by the Nerd Girls" gives everyone that has an inspiring story to tell a chance to be on that Lotusphere stage!


Courtesy of  NerdGirls: 

There is a new type of session at Lotusphere this year and the speaker is..... you!

Spark Ideas is session in which we bring together a group of people to discuss what inspires us. Lead by Kristen Lauria, Vice President Marketing for IBM Social Business, a group of speakers will share their experiences, inspiration, challenges, etc., during a compilation of five minute talks.

Want to participate?  There’s still time to submit your abstract!  The topic can be anything that you feel is relevant from how you were inspired by your math teacher to go into computing, a unique personal experience or story, how you juggle your busy job and coaching little league soccer, or describing your hobby or family project.  Whatever you think would inspire your colleagues and friends in the room!

So don’t hesitate if you feel you’ve got something to contribute.

How?? To sign up, simply send your abstract (maximum 500 words) to info@nerdgirlgroup.com with a short bio telling us who you are.

But be quick because time is running out!  Submit your abstract by December 19, 2011.  Final selection of abstracts will be made public in the beginning of January.  

We hope to see you in January in Orlando, let's Spark!

social fun risks

I can be kind of goofy. Love a good laugh and am always in for a joke. So when someone starts a Twitter meme by tweeting a picture of his feet while in a meeting with the hashtag #TweetYourFeetFriday I will join in. 
Just for fun, I mean how detrimental can a picture of two feet be?
Well.... I got told about the risks quite soon when someone who saw it pointed out the risks of certain fetishists picking up on it....

Mmm... ok yes. The idea actually had passed my mind when I was posting it but somehow I really didn't fear that too much. Does that make me gullible? Probably, but at the same time I really don't want to live my life looking over my shoulder every second for alternative motives. Do I expect them to be out there? Sure, do I want to mind? Nop. 
 
So call me crazy but I will do (good natured) crazy stuff some times. I do it in real life (ask my colleagues) I do it online (follow my Twitter). Most times it's received as intended (good natured), sometimes its not. 

So does it mean I sometimes hit myself on the nose? Yes it does. Still I refuse to be anything less than the spontaneous, sometimes slightly crazy me!



ps. Why a picture of shoes and not the one of my feet? Well, I'm not that gullible as to putting the words 'feet' 'fetish'  and a picture of my feet in one blog post. :-)

Trusting the social way

In 2009 I was on a IBM Redbook team, today I am again.

I love it. This is such a great opportunity to learn, to meet, to share and to get a glimpse into how other people topple topics like Social, Collaboration and connecting at the business level.

I've come a long way over the last few years. Back then I arrived in Cambridge, MA for a three week Residency not knowing anything about the people I was about to experience a very intensive three weeks with. Being hesitant and even feeling a bit awkward. Apart from their names I didn't have a clue who they were and what they did. Getting to know them took several days.

This time things are different, totally different.

Right from the moment I got my acceptance letter I started connecting. Googling the names in the mail, finding, following and interacting with them on Twitter, trying to get an idea who they were from their Social profiles and reading up on blogs and published materials. Now not all of them had an online (public) presence but in general you can find a lot. And so it was that when I flew out to Raleigh, NC on Saturday I'd already arranged to meet up for dinner that night through twitter and spent the rest of the weekend exploring Raleigh together.

No, not people I had previously met but people I only knew from twitter and who's only connection with me was that we were all going to be on the same Residency. By using social tools to connect we got a head start in talking about the things we were going to talk about in the Residency, getting an idea of each persons specialties, interests and areas of expertise and doing exactly what we where there for: Share & learn.
 
So when I tweeted about being in the ITSO Redbook facility with the Social Business Social Media team today and got this tweet reply:

@FemkeGoedhart LOL why does the "social team" need to get together in person...or even use email for that matter? #justteasing

I couldn't help but reflect on that. Because although I really love and 'live' the Social ideal, I also believe that it is NOT a replacement for face-to-face meetings in doing business. It's not there to take over or replace. Its simply a strategy to build stronger ties, be it active (by engaging with people) or inactive (by sharing so people can find you and learn about you). But more importantly it is about building trust. If you would have said three years ago that I would fly half across the world, arrive, meet up with this person I'd never seen or talked too before and had only exchanged about four 140 character messages with and go out for dinner 3 minutes later.....I think I would have declared you crazy.

Social has come a long way in making this possible and we're only at the beginning. It is about being out there and being true to yourself and your environment. It's about accountability that fosters trust and its about enjoying that human need for connection.

So call me an idealist but in a world torn apart by wars and mistrust  the 'Social' revolution clearly proofs that that fundamental need for a human connection is as strong as ever. Especially in Business.

This Week in Lotus 81 - yep I can't spell my own name

Ok, so there's a first time for everything and this week it was being a guest on the This Week In Lotus podcast discussing the Redbook Residency, abstracts and NerdGirl activities at Lotusphere 2012. It was nervewracking.... Lets say that some great editing by @StuartMcIntyre and @DarrenDuke eventually saved the day.  

Still, had lot's of fun doing it and it accounted for some great bloopers (included in the last 3 minutes of the podcast).

and for those who wonder... Yes, in normal live I'm perfectly able to spell my own name :-)

Google+ Ripples #2

In October I wrote a blog on Ripples a Google+ feature that shows you how your public posts are being shared accross yours as well as others networks. I loved it (and still do) but somehow I never got to see the Ripples link when I was browsing my stream.

As I knew a workaround by getting the post id and copying it into a Ripples URL I could use it but that was far from easy and I couldn't figure out why I didn't get to see the Ripples option in the post menu's. Today I finally figured it out.  

Could it be it simply wasn't available for my language? Nah...surely not! 

But to make absolutely sure I tried setting my Google settings language from Dutch (my native language) to US English and bingo there was the "View Ripples" option.

Apparently Ripples is only there for the English speaking folks as its not showing up if you set your language to Dutch, French or German (didn't try any other languages but pretty sure most wont work either). I'm reporting this to Google, let's see why they aren't showing this to us. If it's simply a question of translations then surely 6 weeks should have been more than enough to translate that 1 paragraph of text on the Ripples page. But even without translation I really would have liked having this so please open it up!

Spark Ideas - Brought to you by Nerd Girls

Do you know how some stories can be really inspiring? Stories and ideas that you never heard or thought of before and that really hit you right in the heart? Ideas that spark…..

Can you tell such a story?

Then we are looking for you. We are proud to present the Sparks session. A Lotusphere session brought to you by Nerd Girls where up to 6 people will have a chance to share their awesome experience with the crowd in a short 5-6 min presentation.

The topic? Anything you think is relevant, from how to inspire kids to go into ICT to how you managed to incorporate your cart racing addiction into your work. Anything goes as long as you can tell it in under 5-6 minutes and feel it could inspire the rest of us!

But… You have to sell it in a short abstract to us.  Based on these abstracts a panel will decide which speakers will be allowed to tell their awesome story.  Do you need to be a NerdGirl?? No! This is open to everyone, both men and women. It’s not about gender it’s about inspiring your fellow Lotuspherians and Sparking your idea in their mind. Will it get me something? It isn’t a contest so there won’t be any prizes but it will give you the opportunity to climb on an official Lotusphere stage and tell your story to a captivated audience.

So don’t hesitate if you feel you’ve got something to contribute. I’m sure there are more than enough people out there that have some story worth sharing. Spark your idea and sign up!

How?? To sign up send your abstract (max 500 words) to info@nerdgirlgroup.com with a short bio telling us who you are. Final selection of abstracts will be made public in the beginning of January.
And don't hesitate to alert others to this if you know of people that have something worth telling.

Let's spark some ideas!

Social seating

KLM yesterday (unofficially) announced that they are looking into ways to make the seating process more social by allowing people to upload their Social Media profile information on check-in. The idea is to have people pick a seat based on the profiles of people sitting next to them so that people can check beforehand with whom they will be spending their precious hours in flight.

An innovative idea and certainly something that got them some attention but I must say I wonder whether it would be a success. Especially among the business travelers they are aiming this for.

As a business traveler myself the one thing I do when on a flight is trying not to have to socially engage to much with people next to me. You're in each others space already and for the next 8hrs of so you can't get away. So the last thing I want is to start a conversation that I can't politely get out off if it turns out to be not what you expected...

it's not as if you're making friends for life. So apart from a polite 'Hello' and 'could I pass you for a moment' I generally don't engage at all. I read my e-book, watch a film, prepare some work or sleep. That's it. The last thing I want is people rambling on for hours about how they love tulips and windmills because they read on my profile I'm from The Netherlands.

So what would I use it for.... Well frankly (and I really don't want to offend anyone with this, simply stating the obvious) to check if the person next to me is big. Yes, you heard it. I'll admit that is my worst nightmare on any flight and the first thing that came to mind when reading about KLM's initiative. Because space is already very limited it gets really frustrating if you have someone encroaching on that. Even though they can't help it and go out of their way not to, as they find it just as embarrassing. Because let's face it, most airplanes (especially short haul carriers)  have an absolute minimum of space alloted to each passenger and do not cater to the current situation in which at least 1/3 of people in the Western world is overweight. 

So from a personal viewpoint I think making the flight experience more 'social'  would be accomplished much better if they gave each passenger a bit more space, not by sharing our profiles... Still, I love and commend KLM for trying to think about ways to make the flying experience more social and will certainly give it a try if it gets activated.

LotusLive & Lotusphere

So today was D-day. The Lotusphere 2012 abstract acceptation/rejection messages were being send out which meant lot's of people (including me) got disappointed. At the same time it means others that really deserved it got really happy so I'm not to bummed out about it. I know I'll be seeing lots of great sessions and I'm really looking forward to that. It also means I have more time to concentrate on all the good stuff Lotusphere has to offer so I'm just going to sit back and enjoy it!

One of the session that I submitted with my co-worker Roland Driesen was on LotusLive. More specifically on how we, for the last year, have been actively using it at Silverside. Not just to collaborate internally but more importantly externally. Silverside really put the pedal to the metal by not just trying to get our customers to engage in LotusLive by using Guest accounts but by doing an experiment where we gave a large group of them (payed) accounts & training so they could fully collaborate with us in projects using activities, file sharing and IM. Not only did this allow for better project collaboration, it also allowed these customers to have the full LotusLive experience for themselves.

The results were mixed. Some really got the idea and used it actively, others looked at it and dismissed it more or less right away.  


The one thing that was really loved and turned out to have most ROI effect was the fact they now had Sametime access to us directly. The people we gave the accounts to in general were project owners, decision makers and IT managers. In stead of having to rely on mail or phone calls they could now easily and quickly connect to us..... and not just during office hours!
Yes, it may sound weird but most revenue was gotten from informal Sametime chats outside of office hours, sometimes late at night or in the weekend where an IT Manager needed to know something quickly and used LotusLive Sametime. In more then one case those informal chats resulted in concrete projects or opportunities.

So was it a successful project? Yes and No... It did help us connect better to our customers but there is still a lot to improve on LotusLive. For instance try explaining to a user that when he uses the search box in the right upper corner to search for a document he first has to switch to the Files section to actually find anything relevant.... If I get a search box, I expect it to be able to search through all of the content within my system (LotusLive), not just in the section I'm stuck in at that moment.
On the up side the project certainly helped us connect more to an important group of our customers, becoming a better integrated partner to their organization.

For now I'm just looking forward to announcements for LotusLive at Lotusphere. The one I really hope for is the addition of Sametime to the guest accounts as I really think IM/chats is what can open lot's of organizations to the idea of Collaboration. So that could really be a big benefit when getting external partners on LotusLive..... and of course that search option, simply because it bugs the hell out of me!

The class of 2011.....social media

http://www.flowtown.com

Social translate... Google Giveth and Taketh

For the last year and a half or so I've been an avid user of Yoono. A browser plugin that allows me to review and update my Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Foursquare activity streams from within a side bar in my Firefox. I love it. It's easy, simple and because it's integrated in the browser it always keeps my Social streams in my perephial view. Right where I like it to be.

Now one of the things that I discovered recently is that it has a function to translate tweets right there and then in the sidebar itself. Simply right click the tweet and select "Translate (via google)". The translated text is shown right there and then in your stream.

Ok, yes. Google translations aren't exactly accurate all the time but in general they do the trick. And it means I could follow people I would otherwise not, simply because I can't understand a thing they are saying.


Like Mitsuru Katoh (Katoman), a Fellow self-proclaimed Domino Geek and IBM Champion from Japan. My Japanese is next to zero so this translate function really helped me and made it possible for me to socially connect to someone I would otherwise probably not even know about.


Unfortunately this morning the translate function didn't work and a tweet to @YoonoSupport helped clarify:  

@Yoono The translate (Google) function doesn't seem to work this morning. Anything going on?

 Bummer! 

Ok, I can understand Google wanting to make a buck out of this (although I'd wonder who'd want to pay for the crappy translations they give) but maybe Google had an alternative reason as well. I can (somewhat) understand them trying to promote their own networks so maybe this is a function they wanted to keep free exclusively for their own platforms..... aka Google+! I know Mitsuru is on G+ so lets check it out.....
Well, you guessed it. No function there to translate from within the stream itself.

Yes I know about the other Google translate options for translating whole sites but that is not really an option to me. As a Dutch national I read & write in English, Dutch, German and (a little) French and I follow people in all of those languages. Now I don't need (or want!) those translated as that sometimes means you lose part of the underlying sentiments and jokes. I want to be able to control which tweets I want translated and which I want to read in their original language. And I want to do it from within my active streams itself, not by having to step out to a different site. That takes out the whole social context in which I'm operating.

 So for now it seems I will have to unfollow Mitsuru... Not because he's not nice or interesting but simply because I can't understand his tweets (Sorry Mitsuru, I'll buy you a drink at Lotusphere).

Oh and for those (like me) wondering what that second tweet form Mitsuru said? I ran it through the ordinary translator and it came up as "That I was better with an umbrella. Worry.". 

I guess it was raining in Japan :-) 

Nerdgirl Geekiness

So I'm going to Lotusphere 2012...Yeah!!! Ok, I understand probably not very exciting to you but for me it is. And I'm looking forward to it!!!

One of the things I'm particulary looking forward to is the Nerd Girls "Great Geek Challenge". A battle of the Geeks and THE moment for the community to glorify it's geekiness and have some fun.  Ok, yes, overdoing it a bit here but just love the geeky thing.


Check out Gabriella Davis blog on Turleweb or the Great Geek Challenge site for more details. This is one 'session' you shouldn't miss!

Who is using Google+ ..... infographic

Interesting infographic by www.flowtown.com on the usage of Google+. There have been a lot of jokes around the internet on whether or not Google+ is really being used or if, after the initial hype most users returned to their old and familiar platforms. This seems confirmed by this infographic that shows only 17% of registered Google+ users is considered 'Active' and a 'Frequent Google+ user'.

So did they loose the battle? No, I don't think so. If you manage to pull in over 40 million users within a couple of months you must be doing something right. They just have to find their edge and unique selling point and that 83% that is currently inactive will be flocking back. The problem seems to be though that they don't really know yet what that unique selling point is....


Flowtown - Social Media Marketing Application

Best in Breed

We might have already known it but now the rest of the world seems to catch up too. IBM Connections was awarded the V3 "Best Business Social Media Product" 2011. 

for now just a category in a long list of awards but I'm sure this category is gaining importance fast and can't wait to see how the new and improved IBM Connections (of which little sneak peeks were released over the last few weeks) is going to do. I'm sure it's a definite leader on a market that seems to gain momentum really fast!

For the full list of awards & winners go here

Social calendar

I found this great blogpost on what 'Social Business' is. Read it its worth it.

What prompted me to actually search for it was that I lay in bed yesterday checking my calendar for this weekend realizing it was empty and that I was happy with two days of no obligations and appointments. It made me very aware of the fact that for the last year or so I've been really busy. With work, with friends, with running but mostly with being 'social'.

True, I've always been somewhat of a workaholic, checking my mail day and night, happily responding to messages at all hours of the day. But as most people (unlike me) shut their mail down when they go home around five it meant that the number of messages outside of office hours was limited.
That changed however when I became more socially active. The difference is that unlike mail, social micro blogging isn't confined to work only. People micro blog about everything from work to hobbies to kids to personal challenges. Not just during office hours but at all hours of the day. Offering an inside glimps to who they are, but more importantly: Humanizing them. And that is a real revolution.
I now sometimes meet customers and relations I've never seen or talked to before but that feel like old acquaintances simply because I've interacted with them in chats and on social platforms far before they even got to be of interest business wise. And because it's two way you are more familiar to them too, taking away normal barriers that are put up in business relations. Yes, you make yourself vulnerable but what you gain is trust and a deeper relation and that to me is totally worth it.

I immediately hear the 'but....' coming from all corners here. Because how does this improve your business?!? and How do you make socializing cost effective??

Well read that blogpost I mentioned at the start, I'm not going to repeat what was said in there but two of the poignant things that really hit home for me were:

"The historical [...] separation between the inside and the outside environments of a company is loosing importance"

"The ultimate reason of existence for the [social] corporation is no longer to generate value for its traditional stakeholders but to maximize the exchanged value between the company and the entire ecosystem". 

 Hello world! Its no longer about just making big bucks and putting up a nice facade to the outside world its about really working together at a personal level. Putting the individuals in the center of the process, not just the mechanism of work. Respecting that we all are part of the process and that each of us, whether you are a customer, contractor, relation or supplier, has a personal as well as corporate gain. And that by realizing and utilizing that we ALL stand to win.

Why? Well because when you see and respect that everyone involved has more to offer than just what was said on their job description, you suddenly end up getting much more value for your money. Suddenly you find that people are more than just output machines but that they are human beings with creativity, ingenuity, knowledge and intuition. Some of which might not even be related to work at all. But that by bringing all that together you end up getting something that is much more valuable and stronger than what any individual, even 'Guru' could realize. It's no longer internal vs external, contractor vs client its teamwork.

So how does that make it cost effective? Well sometimes you have to 'give a little to get a little' but in general working together like this enhances the products, improves employee involvement and builds stronger business relations making the difference in getting future projects. And that to me is making my work a real joy. I'm a people person. I love to connect to people. And for the first time I'm seeing that that part of me is not just something I do because I like it but something that is actually becoming an integral part of my job and can help drive revenue.
 
And it's not just my work that is changing because of this. It's my personal life too. As stated above I've always spend lots of time on my work and people have accused me of having no personal life at all. Maybe they were right for a while there.... I've always been good at my job, but although I'm ambitious I never saw myself as a 'guru' and for years that made me feeling insignificant and holding back. I had trouble defining who I was and what I had to offer.
What changed is that I started realizing that I didn't have to be a 'guru' to contribute and that just being me in all it's uniqueness as a human being was more then enough as that made me a valuable part of the process and of the teams that I operate in. Both personal as well as professionally.

'Wisdom of the crowds' already described how crowds know so much more then individuals but its the Social revolution that is giving a platform to those crowds to actually leverage that wisdom. So bring it on! I love this new era in business. It's daunting and challenging and we are destined to make mistakes but as long as we do it together I'm sure we are on the right track.

And in the mean time I'm going to enjoy my busy calendar and Social activities and live life to the fullest. Because for the first time in my live I can truly say that my work is my hobby and NOT feel insecure about it.

IBM Social Business social media residency

You know that Redbook Residency I wrote about a couple of weeks ago.....?

Well I got accepted! So for the next three weeks I will be in frantic mode to get everything arranged, book flights, reschedule appointments, rearrange work and concentrate on Social Business. Fantastically exciting times! Will of course keep everyone posted about it through this blog, Facebook & Twitter.

But in the mean time don't hesitate to point me to relevant topics and information to take along for this residency. It's called the "IBM Social Business social media residency" so what better way to start than to involve my Social network!

IBM redbook site

7 Hills run 15km of dying.... and surviving!

People who know me know I've always struggled with my weight. I still do. A couple of years back I lost a lot of weight and started running. I was terrible at it but at the same time loved doing it. I pushed myself to achieve things I never thought possible. Like running a half marathon which I did twice. Since then however I slacked of, gained some weight again and stopped running.

I hated that but finding time and motivation to start running again was really hard. So for the past 3 years I had to decline when colleagues asked me to join the company running team for the 15km Seven Hills run in Nijmegen. Ironic as I was kind of the one that got the team started.
But today I finally joined and ran that 15km. It was REALLY hard and my time is not exactly a world record but I'm proud of it nonetheless. I did something that was totally out of my comfort zone and managed to succeed.

A perfect end to a perfect week!

So when you see me smiling like a mad man with a medal around my neck then know that I fought for that thing and died a thousands times doing it.....

I'M ON TOP OF THE WORLD RIGHT NOW!!!

21-11-2011: One day later and fully suffering all the muscle ache it's time to put things into perspective. My time (1:59:49) gave me the 25934th place out of 25964 finishers. Which means I didn't come in dead last but came pretty close to it. 
Still... considering 31000 people registered I at least managed to finish!

#StuffIBMersSay

Hot trending topic around the Lotus community on twitter tonight: #StuffIMBersSay. All kinds of things IBM people have said that are silly, funny or simply plain absurd. Good fun and definitely worth reading! It was started by two IBM'ers as a joke apparently but spread around the world in hours, reaching thousands of IBM'ers, business partners and customers.

Humor is the best way to communicate, Social Media is the perfect platform. That was definitely proven tonight!


Small selection of those tweets below. Spotting a trend here....There is a lot of web and phone conferences going on!

@DelphineRB:  Do you mean 3pm ET or GMT or EST or CET ? #stuffibmersay

@kate_motzer: "Someone is breathing heavy into the phone - can you please go on mute?" #stuffIBMerssay

@seralewis: Did anyone hear the recording start? #stuffIBMerssay

@FlemChrist: I swear that guy writing the Dilbert cartoon works here. #stuffibmerssay

@creckling: sorry i'm late, i was looking for a hotspot. #stuffIBMerssay

@ragtag: "Larry? Larry? I think we lost Larry" #stuffIBMerssay

@Chappers5: Can everyone on the call press *6* please as there is a dog barking in the background #stuffibmerssay

@wesmorgan1: Working as designed. #stuffibmerssay

@tpeisel: I can do that @2 ...i'm only doublebooked then #stuffibmerssay

@FemkeGoedhart: "Let me just mute my cat for a moment" #stuffibmerssay

@HP_Dalen: Will you action these deliverables? #stuffibmerssay

@linny2777: well - we have beaten that horse dead #stuffibmerssay

@wesmorgan1: We'll do a 360 postmortem on that... #stuffibmerssay

@mmoyer: We'll start as soon as the speakers join the call. #stuffibmerssay

@mmoyer: Who's on the call but not in the meeting? #stuffibmerssay

@blm849: Let's put that in the parking lot and then circle back at the end of the call #stuffibmerssay 

@lina_farr: Can't do that right now, I'm in a sea of red! Ping you when I'm free... #stuffibmerssay

ps. Seeing a perfect opportunity here for IBM to use it's new Analytic tools to analyze this social phenomena!

 

public hashtag report

No email day - The conclusion

Today was 'No Email Day' and I decided I had to put it to the test. So last night I activated my Out of Office with the following text:

'Global no email day' Go Social!

Today (11/11/2011) is 'Global No Email Day'

A day to see if we can live outside our mailbox.... I think it is possible so I'm giving it a try for a day! What does this mean? Well that I will try not to use my email today. Will that mean I'm not available? No, I'll be available, just on alternative communication channels like Sametime, Skype, Twitter, LinkedIn and ofcourse through my phone number or texting (SMS).
So if you want to connect to me today then try using one of the channels I'm listing below. Give it a try, you'll see it's an experience! Or if you don't want to, then don't worry. I'll try to at least scan my messages once during the day for urgent matters and otherwise I will be back to my mailbox on Monday.

Up for a try? These are the channels where you can find me:
http://twitter.com/#!/FemkeGoedhart
http://nl.linkedin.com/in/femkegoedhart
Skype: search for my email adress
Mobile phone/Texting (SMS): +31 (0)6 xxxxxxxxx
Sametime: Search for me on Greenhouse, LotusLive, Bluextend or Bleedyellow Sametime communities

Hope to connect to you!

For more information about 'Global no email day' and about living 'Outside the inbox' check out the following sites: 'outsidetheinbox'  & 'No email day' Or contact me, I'd be happy to tell you all about it! Femke

Broadcasted my intentions to the world and started the day with all the right intentions of not using mail.

To be honost, it was hard at first as it just is second nature to me to react to each #PLING# from my mailbox. But after realizing this, I simply muted the sound and from then on it was more or less plain sailing. Being at a customer location, in my car and at a dinner with friends helped keep my mind of it and as I kept other channels like my Skype and Sametime open as much as possible I kept connected to the world.

The only real hickup I had was when I found I didn't have access to Sametime/Skype. Which I solved by activating them on my iPad through a Mobile connection. In itself not a problem were it not for the fact that I've got a dual SIM with a single number that I use for my BB & iPad. I conveniently forgot that only one can be activated at a time...

So what was the conclusion at the end? 
I recieved 37 emails of which I only read 2 (urgents). I did not send any email myself. I used Skype & Sametime as well as Facebook. I send out some tweets but less then other days (simply to busy). I couldn't use my phone most of the day due to my own stupidity but still managed to have some valuable calls done after I figured out my mistake.
Most importantly though I had some great discussions on using the Social Business strategies and on Document Management.

I now have 35 unread messages in my inboxes.... It's tempting to read them (it's past Midnight) but will leave them for tomorrow. I know, It's weekend, I should actually leave them for Monday but lets take this one step at a time...

I totally love social but I'm also still hooked on my email #PLING#!

Living outside the Inbox

IBM Benelux launched its "Outside the Inbox" campaign today with an inspirational video by Luis Suarez about working & living without being consumed by email. Must see for everyone!

Link to the official site here

Bye bye email?!?

The Social Business revolution is here. We are living in a new world and one of the 'old' relics being under attack is email. Email a relic?? Yes in the eyes of some, it is outdated and in need of retirement. Nowadays it's all about new forms of communication. more direct, more interactive, less static...and all kinds of initiatives like 'Global No Email Day' and IBM's 'OutsideTheInbox' are started to get people to realize this.
I can totally relate to this idea. Mainly because it seems that lately it isn't us that is consuming mail but the mail that is consuming us. More importantly: consuming our time.

Ok, so I agree, but then I started thinking. How many mails do I actually get in a day.....? 
I've got 5 email addresses. One for work, one for friends, one for non-work-non-friend related stuff I deem important and 2 for spam. I use those last two when I need to register on some obscure site and I never check those two unless I'm looking for something specific. So those don't really count towards my email consumption. The other three gave me a total of 12 messages today, 7 of which were notifications from other systems.
Now that isn't extreme! That is actually pretty low if you consider I work in IT and was working at home today. I know people that get hundreds of messages, especially while working at home. So why don't I? Does this mean I don't work, don't communicate.....?? No, I actually communicated with several of my colleagues and customers today as well as had interactions with several people around the globe. So lets analyze this....

I started the day with an email notification from Quickr about a document I'd put up for review. It was reviewed by a customer in the USA and she'd updated the document in the Quickr environment and used the notification option to let me know. As I noticed the customers project leader was online on Greenhouse Sametime I used this to have a short discussion about the review.

I then proceeded with opening our new IBM Connections test environment that we set up specifically for demonstrations to customers. To get some filling all employees were asked to fill out their own fictional profile as well as provide some fake content. While doing this I noticed some problems with the test installation. Instead of using mail I put a message on the Administrators notice board, telling him about the problem.

He responded back on the board which was promptly shown in my Status Update widget in my Lotus Notes client.

Now I could just as easily have used our internal Tweet application as well but as it was Connection related it seemed logical to respond within the environment itself. Using mail didn't cross my mind once.

Roughly at the same time I was invited into a Skype call by another customer. During this call I had to verify something with a co-worker and with a Partner of us. So I used LotusLive Sametime to connect to my co-worker and set up a second Skype chat to ask my partner contact. He wasn't up yet (Canadian) so I just left him a message in his chat to pick up when he returned.

While all this was going on I was also setting up a test environment for a migration project. It was not exactly going as planned and I used Twitter and Facebook to vent some of the frustrations with getting the thing to work. Apart from the fact this helped me to vent some of my frustration it also delivered a handy tip from a guy that responded to my tweet and sent me a helpful link.
Through the social media app I use I also noticed a new invitation request on LinkedIn that turned out to be a business relation that wanted to connect. As I'd been wanting to talk to this person for a while I used the opportunity to send him a direct message in LinkedIn and set up a phone call.

For the rest of the day I made several phone calls to customers & relations, used text messaging to make an appointment with a good friend, had a lengthy call with a co-worker on the server I was trying to set up and congratulated my niece with her birthday on Facebook.

So looking back on my day and talking about the 'Less mail' initiatives, I can honestly say I'm actually doing pretty well already. I'm not email-free yet (nor do I want to be, there's always something that is better done through mail) but in general I can definitely say I'm not being consumed by my inbox.

There is however another side to this. Remember that Skype chat I started with the Canadian guy that wasn't online yet? He did get back to me but by that time it was evening here. And that is the whole crux in this story....

Because one of the downsides of using more interactive forms of communications like Social Media, Skype and Sametime is that it is stretching my day. Timezone differences mean I have to adept to other peoples day regimes if I want to speak, chat, Sametime or Skype with them and that means I tend to spend a lot more time at night behind my laptop, sometimes stretching well into the night.

So are these forms of social communications the future? Yes, definitely! It allows you to not just  communicate  but to really build a relation with the other person, something that email just didn't do. But I don't think it will put email out of business yet. If not for the fact that lots of people still are hooked on mail then for the sanity of those that need to sleep....

Redbook recidency

In 2009 I had the honor of being chosen to be a part of the last formal Redbook by the Lotus brand. It was the "Self Assessment and Strategy Guide for Migrating from Domino Document Manager" Redbook. A Redbook that tried to help customers on DomDoc make their choise as to how to migrate of that platform as it was being discontinued.

I'd always hoped to be a part of a Redbook team but never really thought I made a chance and when the number of Redbooks being publiced for Lotus products diminished so was my hope of ever being part of one...
So that Friday morning in 2009 when my boss sent out a message asking if there was anyone interested in doing a Redbook I lept at the opportunity. I never even hesitated and just replied immediately. This was my chance, and I had to take it! Two weeks later after a couple of hectic weeks arranging things, I boarded a plane for a 3 week residency in Cambridge, MA.

It was everything I hoped for. The discussions we had as a team and with product specialists, developers and Brand managers of IBM. The opportunities we got, to see new developments, test them and write on them and the feeling of being able to create something that would help thousands of people do their migration... It was better then I had hoped for.
But it was hard work too! The 3 week residency itself was only the beginning. After that a 6 month period of writing, revising, rewriting and discussing (skype) started. All of which happened mostly at night or in weekends as my daily job didn't stop either. Part of my task was to write a chapter on the comparison between Quickr and DomDoc and a chapter that outlined a step-by-step actual migration using a migration tool. I think I did at least 50 test migrations for that one alone. There were times that I got really fed up by it all.

So when the postman finally came to deliver that hard copy of the Redbook with my name on it. I was sad and happy at the same time. It had been hard work but it was so rewarding. Most importantly it showed me that I had something to offer. Be it small, I could actually help other people. For someone who used to be very shy and insecure that was a real eye opener. Since then I've become more outward going, wrote blogs and articles, spoke at conferences, became very active on Social Media and connected more to other people in the professional community.

No wonder that when I saw this on facebook last night....

....I couldn't help but jump for it again. It might not be a Redbook in the way I did it before, it does incorporate everything I love and do so I would be crazy not to! At the same time I'm aware that this Residency is going to be really popular and that my chances of being picked are slim at best.
But if there's anything I learned from my Redbook experience it is that you have to grab any chance you get! Besides, even if I don't get picked I still got the thrill of reliving the great times I had again.

So if you are considering nominating yourself but not yet sure?... I can say only one thing: Go for it, take that chance! This could change your life. It did for me!

Choices.... where to post what

Nop, not mine but so excellent I can't help but post it. Love the Google+ one as it is so accurate!!!

I got it from Facebook but the original actually came from this blog post.

Social Media Myth Buster

Great video by Louis Richardson on Social Media Myths from a keynote he gave in Danmark. Worth taking the time to look at if your company is wondering why it should become 'social'.

Google+ Ripples

So Google+ is still there. Yes, I know lots of people really like it but I'm still not there. The main reason? I STILL can't update from any of my social apps like Yoono and Hootsuite (Google+ API not released yet) and it STILL looks like crap on my iPad (iPhone app makes it a bit better but not much).
If they think I'm going to drop all my other networks and switch over just like that they are dreaming.

But in the mean time they are clearly working on it and this week an interesting new development was the release of Ripples. An option that shows you how your public posts are being shared accross yours as well as others networks. Yes, have to admit. I'm impressed. Will this win me over?? Not yet (see above) but it does make me wish Twitter will copy this one really quick because I'd love to see this kind of detail on my Tweets!

User friendly

Sometimes images just speak for themselves......

 

If your site shows input examples to show users what is expected of them, than make sure your example entries match the fields validation rules! Putting in an example with an underscore ("j_smith") while an underscore is not allowed is really stupid and very annoying!

Announcement: Partner

Since 2008 I've had the pleasure of working at Silverside. A Premier IBM Business Partner dedicated to offering their customers advice and services around Document & Process management, Collaboration and Social Business. A company with a great team of people and heart for its customers.

I'm proud to announce that as of now I've become an official partner and shareholder in Silverside. I look forward to continue working with this great team and our customers to deliver high level services.

 

Tech war winners & losers of the week

It has been an exciting week so far!
Lotus Notes 8.5.3 got released with some nice features and an entitlement for using Connections Files & Profiles greatly improving the future of Lotus Notes as part of the Social Business Strategy. The new XWork server license model was introduced by IBM to allow the selling of xPages without having to have it 'Lotus Notes'  branded. And Apple revealed their new iPhone5....ehhh..... Nop, sorry not yet we'll milk out the old one first with the iPhone4S.

Furthermore IBM passed Microsoft on the inside in market cap and Apple revealed..... ehhh..... nop.

Ok, week isn't over yet. Let's see what else comes up but so far I like it!

Demo of Lotus Notes 8.5.3 integration with Connections:


Ok, is my view colored? Yes. Am I biased? Yes but hey, aren't we all..!

Beauty of technology...

Google+ continued

Ok, now the whole Google+ hype has died down a bit and most of my 'friends' activities are back to normal (e.g. Twitter & Facebook) they've finally officially released it to wider audience. Unofficially everybody could join anyway (simple get an invite from someone already on it), but now it's open to the bigger community.

As my earlier posts might have already demonstrated I'm still not fully convinced on Google+. Ok, yes I can see they've got some really nice things in there and their interface is slick but after two months the main feeling I get from Google+ is:

Who the He.. are all those people adding me to their circles??

I mean I've posted only about 20 posts on Google+ in the last two months but had over a 100 people actively adding me to their circles. It took me a lot longer to get even close to these numbers on Twitter or Facebook. The problem is though that out of that 100 a considerable amount of people who added me really don't seem to be interested in what I am about. They're just following me so that I follow them back it seems.
On Facebook where you need to actively accept friendships I know or at least can place anyone I befriended and on Twitter, where following someone means their posts show up in your main stream I know or can place at least 80% of my followers. On Google+ however you can add someone and then just park them in a circle. There is no investment it seems. So although Google+ does seem to yield more 'followers', I feel less connected to them. And that makes it a lot less 'social'  to me.

Social Networking for me is all about broadening your community and I would lie if I said I was immune to the joys of seeing my followers list grow. Your social reach (follower base) is more or less the currency in Social networking. It determines how well your message gets around and it allows you to build relations with people you would otherwise never meet. But it's not just the amount of followers you have that is important but also why those people would want to follow you. Are they genuinely interested in what you have to say or just adding you in the hopes of being followed back?!?
How valuable are followers on Google+ as social contacts if they have the ability to add you and then bury you in a never read circle?? Ok they are 'following' you but they might never actually read any of what you are posting. And that is exactly what makes me feel less connected to them and less inclined to actually post on Google+.

A lot of the people that added me on Google+, I feel, were just doing that: Hoping that adding me would mean I add them back ('I follow you if you follow me'). When I don't follow them back a lot of them removed me from their circles just as easily as they added me in the first place.
True, this happens on all social networks, including Facebook & Twitter but with the circles model of Google+ it just becomes so much easier to distinguish between the people you are really interested in and the ones you simply added as 'social currency' that it makes it feel impersonal to me. It sort of sucks out the Social aspect of it all.

So on we go. I'm not counting out Google+ yet. I still think it's a strong contender that will grow significantly. I think a second grow spurt will happen when the full Google+ API's will be released. Allowing social apps like Tweetdeck, Yoono, Hootsuite, etc to incorporate it. So avid Social users like me can post to it simultaneously with our other social networks (Facebook, Twitter, linkedIn, etc). Until then it will remain something I look at periodically but hardly use I guess...

Social Media Week & IBM's new approach to collaborative intelligence gathering

It's Social Media Week! Did you know? Ok, I'll admit I didn't either until it was pointed out to me. But there are some really interesting experiments going on this week around the topic 'Social'.

IBM is joining in and performing a Smarter Commerce Scan.
An experiment where they are trying to see if it is possible to gather intelligence by posting tantalizing topics around different aspects of Social Commerce to the Social grid. Each day a new question is posted and by the end of the week an Executive summary will be made highlighting key themes and trends as well as top responses.


The first question posted:

One of the central tenets in the emerging idea of “social business” is that people do business with other people, not companies:
How should all aspects of commerce — selling, buying, providing service, developing products and marketing them — become more human? More centered on building and maintaining relationships? More personal and personalized?

Wanna join the discussion?
Check the IBMSocBiz on Tumblr site for daily topics & responses and follow the hashtag #IBMSocBiz. Answer through Tumblr or use the hashtag #smwQ1 ('Q1' for the question of the day) in your social streams. There's even an app for iPhone & Android (see tumblr site).
Make your voice be heard, Social is the way to go!

Docova v3 - exciting new features!

DLI tools announced that they are soon releasing v3 of their Docova product. Docova which is a Domino operated web based Document Management system has extended facilities for managing documents, setting up document workflows and collaborating online.

Although I'm not at liberty to disclose any of the new features I must say I got enthusiastic when I saw the list! Certainly for clients currently in the process of migrating off the retired IBM product Domino Document Manager (DomDoc) as some of the new features allow for a more seamless transition. However, this product isn't just great for companies already invested in Document Management. It is a great product to start your Document Management strategy with as it allows for highly customizable as well as standardized solutions to your business needs.

For those still contemplating migrating off DomDoc and for all those thinking about implementing document Management: I can wholeheartedly advice you to sign in for their online sneak-peek event held on October 13th where they will disclose some of the new features.

Sign in on LinkedIn or check out the Docova website for more details