Burton Group's "ACES" Framework For Social Media

Blogger: Mike Gotta

At our Catalyst conference this morning I delivered a 4 hour tutorial on social media covering a variety of issues related to external and internal adoption. Below are several screen shots that provide some insight to what was discussed and how such concepts can help organizations to frame the conversation when considering business and organizational strategies in this area.

The tutorial organized the social media discussion around four drivers: innovation, user-led innovation, corporate social responsibility and strategic talent initiatives. The common thread: participation, community and outreach. We also reviewed several social media examples: Kodak, GE Research, Patagonia, Deloitte, Down Chemical, Cisco, Abbott, McDonald's, Wal*Mart and Zappos.

"ACES" reflects two sides of the social media coin. There is one perspective on social media that relates to participation, community and outreach. In this context, the focus is on "awareness", "connection", "engagement" and "sharing" as fundamental tenets. But there is also a flip-side to social media that examines the strategic planning and governance program necessary to execute on the effort. In this context, the focus is on "audiences", "capabilities", "enablement" and "sustainability".