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In French
Welcome back to a new day at www.implementingscrum.com.
Good day.
I am sorry I was unable to write about this topic further last evening. Life happens and I thank you for staying with us.
You know how some days you just know things will not come out sounding correct? Last night I had one of those feelings.
So. I stopped.
Until tonight.
Without further ado….
I am blogging about Social Networking Sites.
Now…. before you think you hear crickets singing in the trees from the dead silence you may think this topic deserves…. please hold on and let me explain. There is actually a reason for using Social Networking Sites when you are on Scrum Teams.
Can you think of some off the top of your head?
Seriously.
Think of the possibilities!
Got some? Write them down, as that list — I hope — will motivate you to sign-up or become more active in some of the sites I mention this evening.
Trust me. I know there are a ton of Social Networking sites out there (heck, I am working with a few clients who are developing their own portals for niche markets today!).
I’d like to talk about the main Social Networking sites I am using today, along with “why” I am using them, and for how long. Will it be an exhaustive list?
No.
Do they work for me?
Yes. In different ways.
And.
In an Agile fashion, if it is delivering the results you expect, maybe that is “good enough” for now.
Will these change in the future?
Of course.
So.
Here is a snapshot of a few “Social Networking Sites” I use today (along with my links to them) with the main reasons why I use them.
I use three main Social Networking Sites today.
They include the following:
- Plaxo
- Twitter.
I use Plaxo to keep my address book on my computer and iPhone up-to-date.
Why is this important?
I see a lot of people move around quite a bit — both personally and from company-to-company. As people become members of Plaxo, it keeps me up-to-date. If I have a business relationship with a person who moves from Company A to Company B, at least I am aware of it. As people then move from Company B to Company X, I know about it and stay informed.
From a Business standpoint, I find this information valuable so I can keep in contact.
Or at least try.
Which brings me to the next one I use, LinkedIn. I have been a member of that service since the product was in Beta many years ago. My personal network has over 500 people (who I have worked with in the past!) and the way this works is to “link you” to other people’s connections — out to what they call “degrees.” From spending the time using this tool, I am approaching almost 4 MILLION other people I can actually contact through the connections my direct contacts with me have.
My link to this profile is just below on the button.
This has been a powerful tool for me at the business level both for introductions to others — and making connections for people that I know and trust. Also, this is a place where people can find out more about me at a professional level, and even feel free to leave (or read) comments from people I have worked with in the past. It is something that I also use when talking to new people I meet and may want to do business with.
At the personal level, I got pulled into 2008 with FaceBook. OK… so this is what I thought would be a totally “personal” kind of site. It turns out that a lot of my contacts from the two services listed above also use FaceBook… and I am learning more about them too.
My “profile information” can bee seen in the little signature thingee below.
Are there other Social Networking sites out there?
Yes.
Will I join them.
Maybe.
I do think as the “open standards” (where the different Social Networking Sites start “talking” to each other and “sharing” information) come about in this space, it will be a lot easier for people to become even more involved.
If they want.
I have personally not hopped on the Twitter bandwagon yet, since I really do not think people need to know everything I am doing every second of every day. Um. I don’t even want to remember that sometimes LOL.
OK. I am now on Twitter. Follow me! Man, how hip am I now!?!?!?
What does this all have to do with Scrum?
Remember.
Scrum deals with what?
People.
Not technology. There are plenty of other Agile Software Development techniques out there for that.
People.
People.
People.
Are you beginning to see how there may actually be a connection to these Social Networking sites and Scrum?
Do some thinking about it.
And get out there and do some personal and professional networking.
It is a small world.
Trust me. I travel it regularly (smile).
Gotta run!.Please send comments, questions, criticisms, ideas, or whatever here.
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January 15, 2008
4 Comments! to “Social Networking and Scrum. Is there ANY Connection in Reality?”
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March 27th, 2008 at 1:52 am
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April 4th, 2008 at 5:57 am
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September 23rd, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Mike, these are exactly the same four social networking tools that I use, all for very much the same reasons!
December 8th, 2008 at 10:42 pm
[...] feel free to pass this site on to your friends and talk about it on twitter and other social networking [...]