Networking for Results
Networks or networking is not new to humans. Every social interaction is in a sense is act towards building a network. Connecting to our neighbor or another person is much appreciated and widely practiced feature of human society. Rolodex is an example. However networks in the past were constrained by time and distance barriers. Today technology enabled networks such as social networks have transformed the range of reach and made the job of networking much easier and brought the privilege of being a part of network to every one's reach.
Technology-enabled networks are here to stay and grow. In fact they are growing exponentially. Facebook, one of such rapidly growing network has over 500 million users - meaning one in every 14 people on the earth is on Facebook. This fact has far reaching implications for each one of us: faculty, students and institutions. As our experience shows, our students who belong to digital natives generation and were born into "another time" are increasingly finding their social and professional homes on these networks. This new reality must be considered while planning our academic and as well as any student related activities. Each one of us must develop a personal and professional plans to harness this new resources. I shall cover this in my next post Networking Tasks.
Technology-enabled networks are here to stay and grow. In fact they are growing exponentially. Facebook, one of such rapidly growing network has over 500 million users - meaning one in every 14 people on the earth is on Facebook. This fact has far reaching implications for each one of us: faculty, students and institutions. As our experience shows, our students who belong to digital natives generation and were born into "another time" are increasingly finding their social and professional homes on these networks. This new reality must be considered while planning our academic and as well as any student related activities. Each one of us must develop a personal and professional plans to harness this new resources. I shall cover this in my next post Networking Tasks.