Over the last several years, social media has become more of a necessity than an option. For both the consumer and enterprise, engagement in social media has taken on an entirely new level of importance. For the consumer, we use social media for our entertainment, shopping decisions, job searches, recipes, dating lives, and the list can go on forever. In the enterprise space, companies are engaged in social media not only to advertise and evangelize their brands, but also to listen and respond to public opinion, both positive and negative.
We thrive off public opinion. Whether it’s Facebook, Linkedin, YouTube, Spiceworks, Twitter, Pinterest, or any of the other (insert a number that is too ridiculous to research) social mediums, we constantly check, update, and interact in these social platforms to share and validate our everyday lives and opinions, teetering on the edge of OBSESSION.
For these social media empires, their missions are relatively universal:
Facebook– “To give people the power to share and make the world more open and connected”
Linkedin– “Connecting the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful”
Pinterest (I still do not have one. Hmm…)-“Connect everyone in the world through the ‘things’ they find interesting”
The common theme in this space is both simple and profitable, and the power of connection is a magical thing. As much as this movement has taken over, we’ve just scratched the surface.
What if we could use social networking within our own organizations to bring together business units that are normally never seen in the same room? Imagine being a marketing assistant for a large corporation and just strolling into the CEO’s office and giving your advice on a direction for the company. FAT CHANCE! Imagine an IT Admin actually listening to the Sales Team, or Marketing talking to Sales, or distribution talking to the finance team. Imagine the cafeteria conversations!
But why would these different business units actually want to converse or collaborate? Better yet, why would corporations want them to!?
*Cliffhanger*
To be continued…
DanWolkenstein 
Not to reiterate my last comment on Part II but its refreshing to see someone cover this topic and stress the power of social media the right way