This report explores the importance and development of social media as a digital technology in business. It discusses the different platforms and software used in social media and how it is used as a business tool. It also examines the relationship between digital technology and business management theories.
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Digital Technology and Business 1
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Contents INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3 MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3 A. Why it is deem to be importance social media..................................................................3 B. How social media has developed.......................................................................................3 C. Detailed description of technology used in social media and what it is used for..............4 D. What technological platforms and software used in social media.....................................4 E. What type of business and organisation use this technology.............................................4 F. How is social media used as a business tool and is effective.............................................5 Discussion on the nature of relationship between digital technologies and theories on business management and structures and practices..............................................................................5 CONCUSION..................................................................................................................................9 References:.....................................................................................................................................10 Books and Journals...............................................................................................................10 2
INTRODUCTION Digital technology is being used in business firms to enhance efficiency and accurate and precise results. The digital age of corporations has enabled business firms in various industries to enhance their overall output and reach international audience in a cost effective and easier manner. The improvements in digital technology provides various opportunities to business enterprises. Social media is the digital business technology selected for the report. Importance and development of social media is explained in this report. Technological information related to social media such as platforms and software are provided in this report. In addition to this effectiveness of social media as business tool and technological platforms associated with social media are also provided in this report. The relationship between digital technology and business management theories is described in this report. MAIN BODY A. Why it is deem to be importance social media. Technological advancements and globalisation has made the rapid and frequent use of internet across the globe making it easily affordable and accessible by around half of the population. Giant established and new emerging internet and communication companies have created a intense desire among the people of world to make use of internet at affordable prices as it reduces the geographical barriers and making the work more efficient and instant. Social media is a computer based technology which provides sharing of ideas, information and thoughts through establishing virtual networks and communities(Hsieh and Wu, 2019). It allows user instant electronic content of communication in form of images, document, videos or information. It is a common platform where people sharing common interests or beliefs can come forward to build network via web based platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter etc. B. How social media has developed Belongingness and social relationship is essential for everyone and concern for interacting with family and friends across long distance have rise to creative and innovative solution of social media. Earliest mode of communication was in the written format delivered hand by hand thus making it delay in delivering important messages. Evidently, technology began to change and in 1980 home computer began as common necessity and sophisticated use of social media. First social media site was developed in 1977 enabling user to upload a picture and make friends(Bag 3
and et, al., 2020). Subsequently, first blogging site become popular which gave intense strike to today’s social media world. LinkedIn and MySpace become popular in the year 2000 and sites like Photobucket and Flickr facilitate user for online sharing of pictures. And Facebook and Twitter became popular in 2006, available to most of the user across world. C. Detailed description of technology used in social media and what it is used for Different technologiesused by social mediaare Facebook, Twitter,Instagram,LinkedIn, YouTube, and Pinterest. It was originated with the intention of connecting with family and friends, entertainment and providing solutions to people; but now holds significant position in business also, enabling business firms to reach, nurture, communicate and engage with target audience regardless of location. With the help of these platforms business firms can promote and sell their offering to the large target audience and reaching to a wider target audience in a short span of time. Unlike traditional mode of promotion and advertising, social media technologies is cost friendly and more effective than before(Gao and et. al., 2019). D. What technological platforms and software used in social media Majorly used technological platforms and software in social Medias are Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter and LinkedIn. All these platforms enable users to interact with family, friends, and business; share knowledge, skills and information; sharing of media and make use of services provided by these platforms. Companies makes use of these platforms together to have a broad and positive impact thus in order to integrate all these platforms along with effectively management of data and content, there are some best known software used by business firms are HubSpot Marketing, Monday,com, Zoho Special, HootSuite, Tweet Deck etc(Kraus, Roig-Tierno and Bouncken, 2019) E. What type of business and organisation use this technology Social media is used by business firms in various industries as it is one of the most effective marketing and can be used to connect with employees as well as consumers. Business firms in the retail sector utilise social media to interact with consumers and build a digital brand image (De Oliveira and et. al., 2020). Some examples of retail corporations using social media to interact with consumers include TESCO and Marks and Spencer. In addition to this social media also acts a s platform to publish content digitally. Business firms collaborate with social media content creators and influencers to promote their firms. This practice is adopted by the tourism 4
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and hospitality industry as accommodation providers such as Hotels collaborate with influencers to promote their services and establishment on social media. Another industry which utilises social media is the telecommunications industry. Telecommunication firms such as Vodafone promote their products with the help of social media campaigns designed and implemented in a way which to grabthe attention of the consumers and also to gain large amount of consumer data. F. How is social media used as a business tool and is effective Social media provides various benefits to business firms. Social media acts as an effective business tool to promote the products offered by the company and create a unique brand image. Social media enables business firms to directly communicate with consumers and react to their responses which is not possible in other methods of communication. In addition to this social media can be used by business firms to gain consumer insight and influence consumer decision making process (Duane and O'Reilly, 2017). Personalised and targeted promotion is a social media feature which is used by corporates to influence consumers decision making and ensure that the potential consumers prefer the products offered by the company instead of rival businessfirms.Socialmediaisalsoaneffectivetooltoensureeffectiveworkplace communication is enhanced. This is because business firms can communicate organisational goals, values, mission and vision to their entire workforce in creative and cost effective way. In addition to this organisational changes can be communicated to employees and ensure low employee resistance by directly communicating with employees through social media. This depicts the effectiveness of social media technology as a business tool. Discussion on the nature of relationship between digital technologies and theories on business management and structures and practices Relation between management theories and social media Bureaucratic management theory This management theory is part of the classical management theories and is considered one of the most impactful business management theories. As per this theory it’s important to structure an organisation into an hierarchy and ensure implementation clearly defined rules and regulations in order to attain goals of the company (Thomas, 2019). In addition to this rational decision making is a central idea of this theory. This theory states that creation of bureaucracy helps business firms attain their goals. The six principles of the bureaucratic management theory 5
include proper division of labour, creation of chain of command, separating personal and official property of the company, selection and promotion on the basis of capabilities and qualifications and application of strict rules and regulations (Farazmand, 2017). The relation between bureaucratic management theory and social media is that social media can be used by business firms to enforce various bureaucratic management theory. The principle of bureaucratic management theory which focuses on selection of qualified and skilled employees and giving promotions on the basis of capabilities can be implemented with the help of social media. Social media pays an important role in attracting suitable employees to the firm as it builds the brand of the employer. Social media can also be used as a tool to understand the personal traits of employees and determine their future interests and their suitability with organisational culture. This helps the company identify skilled employees which are suitable for the workplace culture and will make significant contributions in development of the company. Social media helps recruit people on the basis of their skills which ensures enforcement of this management theory. Contingency management theory This management theory states that there is no best way of managing, organising, and leading a business firm or taking business decisions. The action plan taken by business firms needs to dependent on external and internal conditions of the company as there is no bets way of management which provides effective results in every situation. Utilisation of contingency theory includes determination of internal and external forces affecting the firm and making management decisions on the basis of various factors (Rissolo, 2019). This management theory enables business firms to change business policies on the basis of the changes on situations. The relation of this theory with social media is that business firms can identify various external forces and changes in external situations with the help of social media platforms. The consumer insight provided by social media platforms can help business firms understand changingconsumerpreferences,interestsandmarkettrends.Thechangingexternal circumstances can be understood with the help social media networks as these platforms generate large amount of consumer data on a daily basis. Business firms utilise this data to understand external conditions and make more effective management related decisions. This is related to contingency theory as the theory focuses on margining and decision making on the basis of external conditions. 6
McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y Theory X assumes that primary source of employee motivation is monetary and security. This theory assumes thatmost people are self-catered and as a result, they must be closely controlled and often coerced to achieve organizational objectives. In addition to theory X also includes other assumptions such as lack of creativity and contribution in organisational problem solving by employees (Cote, 2019).Employee resistance to change is assumed as a fixed factor under this theory. Social media is related to this theory as it enables business firms to control every aspect of the professional life of employees. In addition to this social media can also be used to reduce employee resistance to change and enhance employee acceptance. Theory Y states that organisations have high capacity of creativity and work can be completed naturally by employee just as play if favourable conditions are maintained. The ability of employees to self direct and importance of rewards is highlighted in this theory (Johariand Jha, 2020). Thistheoryisrelatedto socialmediaplatformsasemployee recognition provided by social media can be used to reward high performing employees and increase their motivation. Business firms can ensure that employees are creatively independent as various social media tools enable employees to form creative results. This is related to the theory Y as it emphasises the creative capacity of business firms. Relation between management structures and social media. Team management structure As per this management structure, business firms consists of teams which work toward a common goal. This management structure is not hierarchical and involves employees in the decision making process of the company. Employees in various teams are encourages to present ideasandparticipateinproblemsolvingbymanagersunderthismanagementstructure (Vieregger, Larson and Anderson, 2017). The relation between this management structure and social media is that business firms areabletousesocialmediatoensurethataneffectiveteammanagementstructureis implemented by business firms. Social media can be used to ensure that each employee of the team is in direct communication with the company. This helps build stronger teams and ensure that high perfuming teams are maintained. Business firms can utilise social networks to implement team management structure and ensure that collaboration between team members is 7
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high. This can be completed by connecting employees on social media network and ensuring that employees coordinate with each other effectively. 8
CONCUSION From the above report it is determined that social media is an effective and importance digital technology. This technology utilises different software and is related to various theories on management structures and practice. This includesteam management structure, McGregor’s theory of X and Y, contingency management theory and bureaucratic management theory. Social media is also an effective business toll and is being used by various industries such as retail industry and others. 9
References: Books and Journals Kraus, S., Roig-Tierno, N. and Bouncken, R.B., 2019. Digital innovation and venturing: an introduction into the digitalization of entrepreneurship. Hsieh, Y.J. and Wu, Y.J., 2019. Entrepreneurship through the platform strategy in the digital era: Insights and research opportunities.Computers in Human Behavior,95. pp.315-323. De Oliveira and et. al., 2020. Towards a framework for innovation in retailing through social media.Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services,54. Duane, A. and O'Reilly, P., 2017. A conceptual stages-of-growth model for managing a social media business profile.Irish Journal of Management,36(2). pp.78-98. Thomas,T.,2019.Reorientingbureaucraticperformance:Asociallearningapproachto development action(pp. 13-30). Routledge. Farazmand, A., 2017.Crisis and emergency management: Theory and practice(pp. 1-10). Routledge. Rissolo, S.L., 2019.Development and Evaluation of a Nurse Leader-Directed Substance Abuse Contingency Management Program in Adult Recovery Homes. Wilmington University (Delaware). Cote, R., 2019. Motivating Multigenerational Employees: Is There a Difference?.Journal of Leadership, Accountability & Ethics,16(2). Johari,S.andJha,K.N.,2020.Impactofworkmotivationonconstructionlabor productivity.Journal of Management in Engineering,36(5). p.04020052. Vieregger, C., Larson, E. C. and Anderson, P. C., 2017. Top management team structure and resource reallocation within the multibusiness firm.Journal of Management,43(8). pp.2497-2525. Gao, S., and et. al., 2019, January. Digital transformation in asset-intensive businesses: Lessons learned from the metals and mining industry. InProceedings of the 52nd Hawaii international conference on system sciences. Bag, S., and et, al., 2020. Procurement 4.0 and its implications on business process performance in a circular economy.Resources, conservation and recycling,152. p.104502. 10