We’re all as bad as each other

In my last post I asked why public sector organisations seem so resistant to the opportunities of new media.  But, it seems, parts of the commercial world are just as short-sighted.

A recent survey by communications consultancy McCann Erickson found that while 86 percent of the marketing experts they spoke to agreed that social media were here to stay, only 34 percent said they had the knowledge to use it properly.

Amazingly, 46 percent said that their IT departments proactively block many social media sites, leaving marketing teams unable to monitor their brand reputations in cyberspace, let alone try to proactively shape what is being said about them.

And, while this research shows that commercial organisations are beset with the same resistance to new media that seems to be endemic in the public sector, there is the news that councillors in Harrow are being trained to use social media.  The move follows a report from council officers suggesting new ways for councillors to communicate with local people.

So my assumption that the commercial imperative has put the private sector ahead of the public sector in the use of online communications was a bit unfair.  It seems we can all be as bad as each other.