HUMAN RESOURCE

MANAGEMENT
TOPIC: Find three or four actual examples of
employers using social media for training
purposes. At what levels of managers are the
offerings aimed? What seem to be the most
popular types of programs? Why do you think
that’s the case?

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TABLE OF CONTENTS:

I. INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………….3
II. THE ANALYZES AND EXAMPLES OF USING SOCIAL MEDIA
FOR TRAINING PURPOSES………………………………………...4
1. About social media……………………………………………………….4
2. Examples of using social media for training purposes………………4
III. THE EVALUATION OF USING SOCIAL MEDIA FOR TRAINING
PURPOSES……………………………………………………………9
1. The levels of managers which social media training programs aim
at……………………………………………………………………………9
2. The most popular types of training programs on social media are
used…………………………………………………………………………9
IV. CONCLUSION………………………………………………………11

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I. INTRODUCTION

Today, the Internet has become an indispensable part of human life.

People go online every day to keep up with news, connect with friends, express
opinions and shop. Business activities are also changing so that they can reach
users more effectively. And many new terms started to appear, such as Online
Training, Online Marketing, Social Media, ...

In this article, we will discuss Social Media for training purposes.

Most of us use social media sites to catch up with friends, read the latest
news, and share life events. However, an increasing number of organizations
are now turning to social media for online training. For example, encouraging
employees to network with industry experts in order to upskill.

Social media has allowed corporate learners to evolve from passive

knowledge consumers to active contributors. With the advancement of
technology and the proliferation of mobile devices, social media has expanded
the possibility of corporate training like never before. Top social media sites
such as Facebook, Coursera, Lynda and LinkedIn bring together your
geographically dispersed workforce and offer them an increased array of
learning opportunities!

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II. THE ANALYZES AND EXAMPLES OF USING SOCIAL MEDIA
FOR TRAINING PURPOSES:
1. About social media:

Social media is any digital tool that allows users to quickly create and
share content with the public. Social media encompasses a wide range of
websites and apps.  While many people access social media through
smartphone apps, this communication tool started with computers, and social
media can refer to any internet communication tool that allows users to broadly
share content and engage with the public.

Social Media is divided into 4 basic groups as follows:

Social Community: This group will focus on developing networks of

relationships and connecting people with similar interests and interests. The
most prominent are social networks like Facebook, Twitter, etc. The highlight
of Social Community is its multidimensional interaction. Allows users to
connect, chat and share information.

Social Publishing: These are websites that transmit and disseminate

content on the Internet. It can be referred to as a blog; academic website; news
sites; microsite; pages to upload documents, music, videos, pictures, etc.

Social Commerce: This is a group that serves the purpose of supporting

transactions, buying and selling. By using online tools like websites. Social
Commerce is a part of e-commerce where sellers and buyers can be more
proactive and flexible in interacting and responding to opinions.

Social Entertainment: As the name suggests, this group is mainly used to

serve users for entertainment purposes. These include online gaming websites,
social game websites, etc.

When knowing about the main groups in Social Media, businesses and
managers can rely on it to find the right group for their training needs and
goals. They can combine groups to make training more effective.

2. Examples of using social media for training purposes:

a. Blue Corona company:

Blue Corona, an inbound marketing, analytics and optimization company,

provides a good example of what can be done with social media to conduct
efficient training. 
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 The company uses several social media tools to channel training, both
formally and informally. Its Facebook Page, along with employee updates and
funny pictures, also is used to post interesting, informational articles employees
come across. Moreover, the company has a wall of short YouTube videos on
several SEO and Marketing subjects. Primarily, these are useful for clients to
learn more about how things are done. However, these videos also provide
great information and insight for new employees, such as a video on the “5
common mistakes in SEO.”

In addition, the company maintains a regular blog with articles on a range

of relevant topics. Although this is, again, useful to clients, the blog has
virtually become a database of informational articles that employees can refer
to if need be. 

Perhaps the most interesting and creative bit is the company’s creation of
its own online university: The Blue Corona University (“Blue Corona U”).
According to the company, this online space was “created to facilitate the
onboarding and training of new employees by offering online classes designed
to transform students into Web marketing pros in 16 weeks or less. All courses
are delivered online and are available 24/7 via Blue Corona’s own e-learning
platform.” 

Ben Landers, president of Blue Corona, explains that this option has
allowed the company to efficiently cope with an influx of new employees
arriving roughly at the same time. He explains: 

“As a company, we’ve been growing at an exceptional rate. Fueling that

growth requires hiring, onboarding, and training lots of people. What we’ve
found is that there are a lot of smart people out there, but not nearly as many
with skills and experience in content marketing, analytics, PPC, SEO, and
conversion-rate optimization. We needed a way to bring smart people up to
speed quickly, so we created Blue Corona U.” 

The training program offers both informational and creative classes with
the subject of each course ranging from general company to role-specific
knowledge and general industry insights. Landers says the typical course
combines videos, multiple choice, fill in the blank, puzzles, games, and essays.
Each course is followed by a quiz. Earning certain quiz scores and completing
various course sequences earns employees’ prizes and promotions. 

b. British Petroleum Company:

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 BP plc (official styling BP p.l.c., formerly The British Petroleum
Company plc and BP Amoco plc) is a British multinational oil and gas
company headquartered in London, England. It is one of the world's seven oil
and gas "supermajors". It is a vertically integrated company operating in all
areas of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production,
refining, distribution and marketing, power generation and trading. It also has
renewable energy interests in biofuels, wind power, smart grid and solar
technology.

Development and maturity of the most popular virtual world - Second

Life - played a significant role in corporate movement towards virtual worlds.

Second Life was the first public virtual world that did not offer any topic,
or theme. Each user is free to create their own objects, personalized
environment, and / or to hold any events of their choice. This immediately
sparked the idea of creating meeting rooms and virtual classrooms, first within
academia, quickly followed by corporate users. Later, meetings and events
developed into more advanced uses, from training simulations and
communication training using robotic avatars, to 3D visualization, prototyping
and collaboration.

Second Life provided a wide array of tools for building 3D objects,

scripting language to apply required behavior to the objects and easy entry path
(users can register and try everything free of charge, and can purchase their
own land - to which they can control access - at a reasonable price).

Almost all organizations have certain ways or procedures of doing things.

Thus, procedural training is an important part of corporate training. Procedural
training involves memorizing step-by-step how to perform a certain operation.
Examples of operations can include anything from lock-out / tag-out equipment
procedures on a manufacturing plant, preparing an experiment in a chemical
lab, or various medical procedures performed by a nurse.

Procedures are impossible to learn by reading books, watching movies or

listening to instructors. A trainee needs to practice procedure multiple times to
receive the necessary skill. Virtual Worlds provide a unique fit for procedural
training, since they allow for creation of a realistic environment and tools for
trainees to practice at their own pace, any time until they know the procedure
by heart - without a need to involve real life locations, equipment and
instructors.

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 British Petroleum (BP) used Second Life to train new gas station
employees in the safety features of gasoline storage tanks and piping systems.
BP built 3-D renderings in SL of the tank and piping systems at a typical gas
station where trainees could “see” underground and observe the effect of using
safety devices to control the flow of gasoline. This allowed them to observe the
internal workings of a very complex system in a way they could never have
done in the real world. This not only improved the learning potential but also
allowed the highest level of safety training in an immersive and realistic
environment, with-out putting the learners at risk of danger from gasoline
fumes or the potential occurrence of combustion. There are now several
hundred organizations that have created places of learning in Second Life that
can be entered using any computer, anywhere in the world.

c. Free online training program on Facebook skills for agencies.

Blueprint is Facebook's global skills training and training program, aimed

at helping agencies, advertisers, and businesses achieve their goals across
Facebook's platforms.  Take advantage of free online courses to hone your
knowledge.  Test your skills to show you as a trustworthy person through the
Blueprint certification - high level professional qualification on the Facebook
platform.

Example: Community Management online courses.

During Community Management's online courses, you will explore

community building strategies and learn about how to censor and engage your
online community.  Lessons are organized around topics applicable to
nonprofit and interested communities, as well as brands and agencies.  Join the
Facebook Community Management Certification Study Group to learn with
your peers.  Check out this program as you build, scale, and maintain your
online communities.

Facebook creates a community curator content library:

- Define and establish a community

- Develop strategies and rules

- Provide strategic content to the community.

- Join and check 1 community

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 - Measure and synthesize community success.

After you complete the course, Facebook has a test to test what you have
learned and sends a certificate to you.

d. FPT Corporation:

Not only foreign companies, but many Vietnamese companies, especially

during the last Covid-19 epidemic, have used social media as an effective tool
for employee training. FPT Corporation is a typical example.

 FPT Corporation already has a set of regulations requiring its employees

to participate in online training courses on social media platforms. For example,
in 2021, FPT issued "Internal training regulations 2021" for all FPT employees
who signed official labor contracts and had working hours of 120 days or more.
In this regulation, FPT requires employees to complete a number of courses on
MOOCs and complete a level or a language course at websites such as Dulingo,
Englishlink, Busuu and Perfectly Spoken. More about MOOCs, MOOC stands
for Massive Open Online Course, which are large-scale open online courses.
Different from the classical educational method with course materials such as
videos and books, MOOC provides students with a forum for students and
professors to exchange with each other. By opening classes through MOOCs,
online learning platforms like edX or Coursera bring the best courses from
reputable universities to millions of learners worldwide. Because of the great
benefits that MOOCs bring, FPT has used these platforms in training and
improving the capacity of its own employees.  This corporation offers
recommendations for employees to take courses on Coursera, edX and Udacity,
along with coding courses on Codecademy and Codelearn, along with data
courses at DataCamp, DataQuest, etc. 
Besides, it is this corporation that created FUNiX - an online training
program on Information Technology. The materials are refined, gathered and
updated by FUNiX into a lecture system according to the training objectives. At
the same time, the lectures are supported by Vietsub and only need a device
connected to the network to start learning. 
So how does FPT encourage its employees to participate in training
courses on such online websites? FPT has set a responsibility to complete at
least two training courses for employees from January to November. If the
employee does not complete it, they will not be rewarded with a maximum
salary of the 13th month. As for employees who have learned many courses,
they will be rewarded with gifts worth up to 2 million VND. 
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 Thanks to such practical and modern training policies, FPT's staff has
always been strengthened. The quality of FPT's human resources has been
constantly improved and is able to adapt well to the rapidly changing technology
market. This has contributed significantly to creating a large FPT corporation
and being one of the largest technology groups in Vietnam. FPT is a prime
example for the successful application of using social media for training
purposes.

III. THE EVALUATION OF USING SOCIAL MEDIA FOR TRAINING

PURPOSES:
1. The levels of managers which social media training programs aim at:
Using social media in training is a great idea for all companies to develop
their own human resources. This method is suitable for all job positions
including all management levels. 
The reason given here is that the managers are people who must always
learn new things, delve deeply into the field they are managing to give better
direction for the organization but at the same time, they are also very busy
people. Therefore, training on social media platforms is considered the most
useful method for them so that they can study whenever they have free time. In
addition, a number of online training courses come from leading experts in the
world, so using this method, managers can be taught by famous teachers. If it
takes time to study, why not choose the best teachers? Furthermore, some
websites range from beginner to advanced training courses. This allows every
manager to choose courses at their own level without wasting time on
inappropriate training courses.
Training courses on social media platforms not only offer a large number
of courses in a wide range of fields, but also overcomes many of the
disadvantages of offline training programs. Therefore, all managers from line
managers to senior managers can be applied.

2. The most popular types of training programs on social media are used:
Technical training programs are perhaps the most engaged training
programs on social media because improving qualifications is always the first
goal of employees. The most recent evidence proving this is in the top 30 most
used online training courses in 2020 (by Class Central, a clearinghouse for
information on online courses), most of which are related to Excel usage,
computer science and business.
To do his/her work, an employee needs technical skills. These are skills in
the subject area related to the employee’s jobs. In an age where change is rapid
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and constant, employees must actively update new knowledge and skills to do
their job well, not expect “The On Job Training” from just superiors. These
skills help the employee to do their work as per requirements. If the job is a
marketing job, then the employee needs to have marketing skills and skills in
handling customers. If the job is related to software development, the employee
requires in-depth knowledge of the development tool. Most technical skills are
gained during education. In reality, there is a large gap between what a person
learns at college and what is required for a job.
Training can help update the employee with the latest developments
related to their work area and the technology used. It allows employees to gain
the skills that they need. It can be at a beginner level or a higher proficiency
level. Online training allows employees to acquire these skills in a structured
way at their pace and convenience. The immediate superior can monitor the
effectiveness of the training and suggest additional training wherever required.
Online training programs also allow for assessment of training effectiveness that
would be valuable.

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IV. CONCLUSION:
Personal blogs, message boards, social media and social networking
sites, and more...  - these online venues and resources are both a blessing and a
curse for businesses large and small, with a myriad of benefits and potential
hazards for employers and employees alike.
Social media and networking sites, such as Twitter, Facebook, and
LinkedIn, have become increasingly popular venues to post opinions and
network with friends and colleagues online. However, just one inappropriate
comment, tweet, text, or post could instantly bring a range of legal liabilities and
unforeseen consequences for both employees and their employers. These
consequences can include a damaged reputation and damaged business
relationships, negative publicity, lawsuits, loss of customer trust, and a loss of
business or opportunity. An organization’s success relies on all employees
understanding these risks and acting with integrity and responsibility when using
social media.
This engaging and interactive course provides essential knowledge that
all employees and professionals need to protect themselves and their employers
when contributing to such social forums, and develops an understanding and
appreciation of the consequences of inappropriate Internet communications.
Real world scenarios vividly present the dangers and potential
consequences of improper postings to public Internet forums and social media
outlets, while interactive learning activities and prescriptive best practices
highlight the safest path to follow. Knowledge checks reinforce learning, and
employees learn the risks and how to balance their own rights and duties with
those of your organization when participating in public Internet venues.

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