Groundswell

Because Groundswell is a book written in the early 2000s, many aspects of social media have changed, but some basic ideas were very similar to strategies we are still taught today. What I found most thought provoking was the case study on Dell computers. Living in the social media age that is happening as we speak (or I type, rather), the idea of listening to brutal customer dissatisfaction for weeks (even a year after the initial bad review went viral) before acting upon the problem was difficult for me to fathom. In all crisis communication lessons, we learn the most important time in a crisis is the first 24 hours. When I read that case study, a little part of me shuddered before reminding myself it was 2006, and times were indeed different.
It was interesting to read all of the parts in the book that were similar, though. The numerous examples given of opened communication between the high executives and lower workers, such as the Blue Shirt Nation, proves to still be a major component of reaching out through social media. There will always be people who resist the change because they are used to doing it their own way, but the idea of being able to talk to all employees and have an easy way for them to give feedback on big changes in the company is priceless in my opinion. As mentioned in Chapter 12 (regarding Jason and Hugh), our generation is part of this growing technology, and we have the opportunity to grow ourselves and our company (or future company) with it.