Use of Social Media for Internal Communication: A Case Study in a Government Organisation

Abstract

Enterprise social media is evolving internal communication in organisations. The networks produced by such technologies enable employees to communicate with a large number of people simultaneously across an organisation and conduct a number of activities; organising meetings and projects, sharing ideas, problem solving, creating awareness of work taking place in the organisation, and building social capital between work colleagues. This chapter will look at the main features of enterprise social media platforms, in particular Microsoft’s Yammer, and the implementation of Yammer as an internal communication tool at VicRoads, a Victorian state government authority. The main components to consider when adopting a Yammer network will be examined including network setup and gaining initial users, network development with the guidance of a community manager, and continued network growth through the use of engagement strategies. Examples are provided where VicRoads has used Yammer to enable communication between employees leading to improvements in communication, culture and business practices.