Measuring Influence with Employees

Choose a company that is using social media effectively to communicate with their employees, explain in a blog post:

The company that I have done most of my discussions on is General Motors. While I didn't necessarily find anything directly relating GM to social media and influencing employees I did find some good information on the UAW.

The UAW has taken to social media to keep their members informed of progress during each of their contract negotiations. "During the Big Three negotiations, the UAW brought instantaneous communication to its members through social media using Facebook, Twitter, robo calls, secure websites for members and e-wire messages letting them know what’s been going on behind-the-scenes and in real time." (Pietro, 2011)

By using the social media they were able to blanket their membership with information much quicker and more accurately than they could previously. Social media also allowed them to get feedback from the membership as well that wasn't possible before. The member base was very supportive to those that were in the negotiations giving them more confidence to get a better contract.

In the future the UAW will need to be diligent as to what gets posted on their social media outlets, especially during negotiations. While they are adamant that they want to be transparent with their employees, the new agencies are also picking up that information which could be misconstrued.

Pietro, D. (2011). Never has bargaining been this transparent. Retrieved from http://www.uaw.org/story/never-has-bargaining-been-transparent