Page 334 - Using MIS

302 Chapter 8 Social Media Information Systems

When employees are looking for an internal expert, they can search SharePoint for people who
have posted the desired expertise. SharePoint 2013 greatly extends support for social media be-
yond that in earlier SharePoint versions.
The risks of social media in human resources concern the possibility of error when using
sites such as Facebook to form conclusions about employees. A second risk is that the SM site
becomes too defensive or is obviously promulgating an unpopular management message.
Study Figure 8-5 to understand the general framework by which organizations can accom-
plish their strategy via a dynamic process supported by SMIS. We will now turn to an economic
perspective on the value and use of SMIS.

Q3 How Do SMIS Increase Social Capital?

Business literature defines three types of capital. Karl Marx defined capital as the investment of
resources for future profit. This traditional definition refers to investments into resources such
as factories, machines, manufacturing equipment, and the like. Human capital is the invest-
ment in human knowledge and skills for future profit. By taking this class, you are investing in
your own human capital. You are investing your money and time to obtain knowledge that you
hope will differentiate you from other workers and ultimately give you a wage premium in the
workforce.
According to Nan Lin, social capital is the investment in social relations with the expec-
9
tation of returns in the marketplace. You can see social capital at work in your personal life.
You strengthen your social relationships when you help someone get a job, set a friend up on
a date, or introduce a friend to someone famous. You weaken the strength of your social re-
lationships by continually freeloading, declining requests for help, and failing to spend time
with friends.
In your professional life, you are investing in your social capital when you attend a busi-
ness function for the purpose of meeting people and reinforcing relationships. Similarly, you
can use social media to increase your social capital by recommending or endorsing some-
one on LinkedIn, liking a picture on Facebook, retweeting a tweet, or commenting on an
Instagram picture.
What Is the Value of Social Capital?

According to Lin, social capital adds value in four ways:

• Information
• Influence
• Social credentials
• Personal reinforcement
First, relationships in social networks can provide information about opportunities, al-
ternatives, problems, and other factors important to business professionals. On a personal
level, this could come in the form of a friend telling you about a new job posting or the best
teacher to take for Business Law. As a business professional, this could be a friend introduc-
ing you to a potential new supplier or letting you know about the opening of a new sales
territory.
Second, relationships provide an opportunity to influence decision makers at your em-
ployer or in other organizations who are critical to your success. For example, playing golf

9 Nan Lin, Social Capital: The Theory of Social Structure and Action (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press,
2002), Kindle location 310.