TM - February 2008 - (Page 23)

to facilitate and maintain these lifelong relationships. Enterprise, or corporate social networks, are online, affinity-based social networks through which relationships can be fostered and leveraged for business value. Similar in concept to consumer sites such as MySpace and Facebook, corporate social networking technologies allow organizations to easily connect employees, former employees or corporate alumni, retirees, new hires, interns, globally dispersed sales organizations and any number of other targeted employee subgroups — in the combination that makes the most sense for their business. Furthermore, corporate social networks are private and secure, open only to those groups identified by an organization, making the knowledge exchange much more valuable and trustworthy than is possible with public, open networks. The identified groups within the corporate social network connect with each other; build trusted relationships centered on common affinities; locate, share and transfer knowledge quickly; collaborate across geographical boundaries; share insights on work-life balance; search for job opportunities; and much more. Facilitating better connections amid the different employee groups and important constituencies leads to higher levels of productivity, a more engaged workforce, a solid sourcing and recruiting pool from which to hire or rehire, higher levels of employee engagement and retention, increases in new business and greater innovation. Once an employee leaves or retires, former colleagues and the organization can easily stay in touch with him via the network, keep him updated on company news, share relevant corporate information, and keep him posted on full- and part-time job openings and contracting engagements. Don’t Count Them Out: Today’s Retirees Want to Stay Connected If the average enterprise took an informal poll of its employees poised for retirement over the next few years, chances are most of them don’t have plans to immediately retire, or those who do want to remain engaged with the organization in some capacity. They want to stay connected to colleagues and the company, perhaps serve as consultants on projects, share and transfer knowledge to their younger team members, and even volunteer in the organization’s community efforts. With approximately 40 percent of the workforce eligible to retire in the next three years, this is knowledge, goodwill, brand ambassadorship and quality that organizations can’t afford to lose. Companies such as The Dow Chemical Company are building social networks to maintain access to the knowledge retirees hold and take advantage of the medium to help keep them engaged with their organization for flexible employment opportunities. With 40 percent of Dow’s workforce eligible for retirement over the next five years, the company is taking aggressive steps to help stem the associated brain drain of this large percentage of its workforce. The company recently made public its plans to launch a retiree network to access much needed talent “who may be looking to return for short-term projects” and prevent the loss of knowledge as boomers exit the workforce. February 2008 By maintaining relationships with retirees once they have left, through corporate social networking, com- talent management magazine www.TalentMgt.com 23 http://www.TalentMgt.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of TM - February 2008

Talent Management - February 2008 Editor's Letter - Talkin' 'Bout My Generation Contents Human Performance - Achievement Motivation: Top Talent At Any Age Leading Edge - Who's On First? Foundations - Managing the Next Generation Workforce Viewpoint - Talent Strategies That Work Are Talent Strategies That Stick Those Who Have Left: The Value of Building Employee Relationships Alternatives to 360s: The Manager's Role Compensation and Benefits For X&Y Build A Multigenerational Performance Management Strategy Development's Role in Creating A Culture Of Inclusion Tomorrow's Leader: Identifying the Next Generation Integrating Talent Management Systems Strategically Seagate Uses Yearlong Evaluations to Help Integrate Talent Efforts Western Union: Connecting Strategy and People Globally Advertisers' Index Editorial Resources Full Potential - The Best Time to Change? Right Now!

TM - February 2008

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