Digital Destruction

An excellent video from Erik Qualman. A progression from the death of the wrist watch to the emergence of the Digital Leader.

Destruction may seem a harsh term to some. After all, these devices and services have been replaced by something better. All of it social.

However, that being said the way some of the corporate drones in the public service (and businesses destined for the scrapheap) carry on it seems to me that deep down they do know they have reached their use by date. With that thought in mind it is worth listing what organisational behaviours and practices are destined for digital destruction courtesy of social media.

The doomed:

Managerialism – Gone in an age of social hyper connection.

Micro management – There are still many of these types around, but their capacity to influence is waning.

Corporate functions – In an age where connected people are the corporate function, functions like corporate HR, internal communications and assurance are costly indulgences.

Hierarchy – Traditional hierarchical structures are being eroded by the social organisation emerging all around them.

Power – Traditional notions of power – read hierarchy – are essentially self interested and are doomed in an age where common interests emerge from large scale social connection.

Depersonalisation – Traditional hierarchies barely recognise the contributions of individuals. In the social media age the contributions of individuals are seen by the community. Consequently, it is difficult to appropriate the work of individuals.

Culture – Traditional notions of of organisational culture are destined for the scrap head. The corporatisation of culture will give way to the building of organisational culture from there ground up by the connected people that are your employees.
Leadership – The notion of the leader sitting at the top of the pile will persist for a while longer. To be replaced by a realisation that leadership is a quality that can reside anywhere. Arrangement for formal leadership will be built around the ebb and flow of how people organise their work together.

So that’s my list of digital destruction. And maybe, the music goes something like this.