As UK politicians look to agree a way forward this weekend we find that this election wasn’t really driven by the Internet as many of us thought it might be. What the Internet did do is allow for the issues to ripple through the electorate rapidly. There were many calls of #fail as late voters were locked out of polling stations and YouTube made prime time election coverage as mobile users beat local TV crews to the scoop.
There was more awareness of the election amongst younger voters leading to record turn outs in some areas. Facebook Groups sprung to life, although a bit late in the day, as status updates announced friends issues with government and policy. Twitter hash tags were fighting for popularity as updates of the nights events were encapsulated, 140 characters at a time.
So the Internet, or indeed Social Media, didn’t topple any government. But it’s immediate nature did allow for the speed of communication many Digital Natives have come to expect. We know the effects Social Media has had on business, we can see the interest it can drum up in once unpopular subject matter. As this method of communication infiltrates the workplace, what will be the expectation of tomorrows managers in terms of communication?
