This is my second time celebrating Community Manager Appreciation Day (#CMAD), but my appreciation for the role and my company has grown exponentially since last year. When I accepted the community manager position at Social Edge, I knew I'd see a side of social collaboration and Jive Software that I'd never experienced as an end user. I looked forward to learning new skills and facing new challenges. But this year, I learned one of the best parts about being a community manager in Jive is the continued support you receive from your colleagues.
Have you been thinking about using an online external community to reach your customers in a truly helpful and "sticky" way? It's a fast-growing trend with which many large companies are exploring and experimenting. It makes sense when companies like McAfee, Wells Fargo, and Verizon Wireless are experiencing measurable successes with their external communities. McAfee, for example, reduced call volume by 26% and increased customer satisfaction by a whopping 25% (Source).
Social Edge president Andrew Kratz shares a story about one of the first "aha" moments he had with his company's internal community. With a simple update he posted, he was able to form connections with employees he may not have had the opportunity to connect with otherwise. Learn more about the benefits of transparency in the workplace in his post.
Some business leaders have expressed the concern that social interactions in an employee community will result in a loss of productivity. In this blog post, Andrew Kratz shares a story on how an interaction he had in such a social group ended up benefitting his organization and led to improved company outcomes.
