Wednesday, 14 August 2019

Learning assignment #4 & Peer Evaluation

For this assignment I am evaluating my implementation plan that was done for learning assignment #3. I will also do a peer evaluation on two other blogs made by the students on this course

SELF-EVALUATION

Structure: The stucture of the plan is clear and compact. I used the template that the course provided us, so that the plan would include the needed information.

Needs of the selected target group: I think that the needs of the target group was recognized and good solutions were found.

Selected tools and environments: The tools chosen worked well together and are easy to use. Many people already use these tools, so utilizing them would be easier.
 
Content improvements for the future: The plan could be more detailed and more personalized for a specific field

New ways to utilize social media: Social media have huge potential when it comes to recruiting and companies should start using it more.

MY LEARNING:

I learned a lot of new and useful tips on this course about social media. I had not heard about some of the platforms before that were mentioned in this course and I got to learn many platforms deeper. I found learning assignment #2 that was about privacy and confidentiality in social media especially interesting because I have experience about information leaks and it was very useful to learn more about the subject and think about my own behaviour on the internet.


PEER EVALUATION 

Blog 1: http://elinalehtinen.simplesite.com/

This blog had a nice and clear layout, which made finding all the assignments easy. The student had done all the assignments for the course correctly and the content was useful.

Blog 2:  https://oppija19.vuodatus.net/

 Like the other blog, the layout is clear and all the assigments are listed clearly. All assignments were completen in a correct way and like the blog number 1, the content included everything needed even though it was not too detailed.

Sunday, 4 August 2019

Learning assignment #3


IMPLEMENTATION PLAN by Veera Nurminen (veera.nurminen@tuni.fi)



Section I. Background

This plan is for small companies that want to expand and start recruiting new talents and find interns. The aim of the plan is to find new employees easier and with less effort. 

Section II. Target group

The target groups for this implementation plan are small enterprises that are looking to expand and need to find new employees. Smaller companies rarely have the resources to hold broad recruitments or market their open position properly. This can cause lack of good applicants, so this implementation plan is important, so that the employers don't have to settle for applicants that are not that suitable for the positions. 


Section III. Social media tools and services and how they are used

The tools chosen for this plan are LinkedIn and Instagram. LinkedIn is a great platform for scouting potential employees and many students are looking for internships there. In LinkedIn you can immediately see the person's skills and school/work history. If the company does not want to hold any public recruitments at all, they can scout job seekers through LinkedIn themselves. LinkedIn is also a great way for the company to share content about themselves and build a reputation/brand. Open positions can also be published through LinkedIn.

Instagram is a good way to build a reputation for your company by posting interesting content actively. Most people (especially the youth) prefer Instagram over Facebook these days and by posting ads about your company and open positions can be really beneficial. It is possible to choose target groups and areas for the adverts, so targeting open positions ads for the ideal candidates.

These tools were chosen for this plan because I think they are the most relevant platforms that companies should use currently and by using them, best results can be achieved. Smaller companies should prefer young, but qualified employees, for example freshly graduated students or interns. Hiring them usually costs less and they can deliver fresher ideas.

Companies need to be careful when posting on social media to protect their privacy and reputation. While looking for employees or doing anything related to work, employees should use company accounts (email for example) and be aware of what they are posting.

Section IV. Updating and maintenance

For the future, companies should keep updating their social media pages regularly to raise awareness about themselves and to become more attractive to job seekers.

The implementation is open and can be adjusted to many companies but if the companies choose to publish ads on Instargam that will cause costs.


Sunday, 9 June 2019

Learning assignment #2

2A

When employees use social media, they need to consider how their content affects the company where they are working. If you have a professional account that is for work use or you are representing the company's social media, you should not post any personal opinions or information in my opinion. If you are posting content on your personal accounts, I think that everyone should be able to post what they want as long as it is not hurting anybody but be aware that content on personal pages can still hurt your company's reputation and your personal reputation in the company if you are e.g. in a superior position.

With openness and transparency in online discussions, it is a good thing if you can see the persons real identity because it usually prevents people from sending hate or posting harmful things to the discussions. Seeing the person's job position and company where they work can help the employers to see if the employees are breaking any code of conduct or doing something that could hurt the reputation of the company.

When it comes to sharing personal information online there can be some benefits, even though generally it is seen more of a negative thing in my opinion. When employees and employers share personal information it can help the working environment because everyone knows each other better and the trust relationships can get better. It can better the employer-employee relationships as well if the employee has something in common with the employer and sharing personal information makes the employer more human and relatable.

Privacy issues inside a company can cause major problems and hurt the companies reputation. Information leaks can cause harm to the clients of the company if their information is accidentally made public. Company "secrets" can cause the competitors gain advantage if they are leaked as well.

I was struggling a lot when trying to find discussions about privacy in social media, but I did find good blog posts about the topic that I liked:

https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/scicurious/social-media-privacy-no-longer-personal-choice

https://futurism.media/social-media-and-our-privacy


2B

When typing my full name to Google, couple of my social media profiles pop up such as my Facebook and Instagram profile. In picture search couple of my pictures that I have posted on my social media showed in the search. All the information I found was correct and I am quite happy that not a lot of information about me showed but I have not really shared my full name on the internet so some profiles and content might only show if you google my specific usernames. I did not find anything that I would not want to be on the internet so I would say that I have control over my information. Over the years I have deleted a lot of content and information from the internet and haven't seen it since so you can delete information but if you have a lot of followers e.g. on social media there is someone you have probably shared your information/content forward or taken a screenshot of it so definitely is not always possible to delete information online. 

Everyone has a digital identity and they way it forms is, in my opinion, pretty much up to the person themselves. The base of your digital identity is your username/account. Many people base their digital identity their own personal identity, so they are "themselves" online but some people never reveal their true identity and create a whole new one. A person can be shy and reserved in real life but online they are social and open. I think it is okay if you want to be the best version of yourself online or create an online identity if it is not causing harm to anyone. Manipulating information online is a huge problem, e.g. pretending to be someone else and using their pictures to make people think you are them. Manipulating pictures is also not okay if it's taken to the extreme. For some people the lines of their digital identity and true identity can get blurred if they differ a lot from each other and cause issues. All in all, in my opinion you should be able to express yourself the way you want online as long as it does not cause any harm to anyone else or the person himself/herself.

2C

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a regulation that became enforceable in 2018 (Wikipedia 2019) and Article 13 is not yet enforceable. GDPR is an regulation for EU countries and it gives individuals more power over their personal data. People need to be informed about the collection and use of their personal data. Article 13 makes websites responsible that the content on their page does not breach copyright.

I think it is good that individuals have more power over their own personal information and knowledge what data will be collected from them. With Article 13 I think it is great that it would help the creators to get the compensations that they deserve from their work and it would probably minimize the illegal downloading of music e.g. but on the other had it could have an negative impact and it could kill internet sensations such as memes. (Swain 2019).

Article 13 relates to social media a lot, because memes are a big part of social media platforms and a lot of creators post out content that is probably copyrighted.



References:

Swain, F. 2019. NewScientist. Article 13: A guide to the new EU copyright rules and the ban on memes. Read on 09.06.2019. https://www.newscientist.com/article/2197907-article-13-a-guide-to-the-new-eu-copyright-rules-and-the-ban-on-memes/

Wikipedia. 2019. General Data Protection Regulation. Read on 09.06.2019 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Data_Protection_Regulation



Tuesday, 28 May 2019

Learning assignment #1

1A

Facebook
The social media tool that I am very familiar with is Facebook. Facebook is is the biggest social media platform in the world (Statista 2019) and they are constantly adding new features and services to their platform. Facebook was established in 2004, so it has been around a long time. Facebook is mainly a networking service but over the years it has become a big channel for companies to find new customers and market their services. For some companies it might be their only channel to reach consumers.

In addition the regular features such as adding friends and following their posts, Facebook has many groups where people can socialize. You can follow celebrities or other interesting pages. For companies, Facebook offers an added service called Facebook Business Manager. This tool helps the companies to monitor and create ads, manage company accounts and customize their target groups.

LinkedIn
A social media tool that I am not familiar with and wanted to know more about is LinkedIn. I was introduced to LinkedIn when I started university and I have have an account there but I am not an active user. LinkedIn is owned by Microsoft and was launched in 2003. Like Facebook, it is a networking service but the networking in LinkedIn is different compared to Facebook, where people usually connect with their friends. LinkedIn is for professional networking where people that are seeking jobs can connect with employers. (Wikipedia 2019).

You can add your work history/experience, your skills and other useful information that can help you in finding a job. You can network with other people and make posts on your page, so LinkedIn has similar features that Facebook has. You can also search open positions and employers can search potential workforce candidates. LinkedIn has great potential and it can make recruitment process a lot easier for both, the job seeker and the employer. Using multiple sources for recruitment can also attract better talent.

1B

The organizations whose pages I searched were Vincit an Lumene, which are both Finnish companies. Vincit is a software company and Lumene is a cosmetics company and they both have a presence in Facebook as well as in LinkedIn.

Both companies seem to use their Facebook pages actively and their pages are clear and structured. Lumene's page has more different tabs, e.g. a community tab. Because the companies produce different kinds of services, their social media content is going to be different as well. Lumene posts about new product launches etc and Vincit posts about events where they are going to be present and conferences they might've attended to. Both companies provide feedback section in their pages where customers can leave their input.

Lumene uses LinkedIn mostly for recruitment purposes and their page is full of ads about their open positions where as Vincit posts very similar content that they post on their Facebook page as well. Vincit is a lot smaller company than Lumene, so they don't need to recruit as much people of course.

For day to day activities, as I mentioned earlier, Facebook Business Manager is a great tool for companies. They can share responsibilities but still handle operations such as customer service or marketing/advertising.

LinkedIn offers advertising services as well and it can help companies to raise their awareness. LinkedIn is also great for searching fresh talent and professionals that you probably would not find through traditional recruitment process.


1C 

As a business student who is majoring in marketing, social media is a crucial part of my studies and the working life after finishing my studies. Social media marketing is a good way for companies to market themselves and it is more engaging to consumers than a regular advert on TV for example. It can also be less expensive but a lot more effective. Social media can also be a good way to job seekers to market themselves to employers. That is why you should think about what to post and how you want to present yourself in social media.

People use social media differently but there are some guidelines you might want to follow to keep your social media looking professional. Even though you might not have a big following you should still think about what content you want to put out, because content can't always be deleted and can always be re-posted. Putting out content regularly can help you to build a following and it is good to "cleanse" your social media pages every once in a while. Network with people but do it with people but don't accept requests from any strangers. (ICA 2019).

Sharing too much of your personal life can be harmful or even dangerous and it is not professional in my opinion. You should also avoid posting your ideologies if you are not going to be active or in the public eye defending those ideologies. (ICA 2019).

-Veera


References:

International Compliance Association (ICA). 2019. Using social media wisely. Read on 28.05.2019 https://www.int-comp.org/careers/cyber-security/best-practice/using-social-media-wisely/

Statista. 2019. Most popular social networks worldwide as of April 2019, ranked by number of active users (in millions). Read on 20.05.2019.  https://www.statista.com/statistics/272014/global-social-networks-ranked-by-number-of-users/

Wikipedia. 2019. LinkedIn. Read on 22.05.2019. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LinkedIn

Sunday, 12 May 2019

WELCOME TO MY BLOG

Hello! This blog was created as a part of course called Social Media as a Tool in Work Communities. Hopefully you will enjoy my texts!

- Veera