Excellent post Stacy. I agree it will take a cultural shift in order to move the energy industry into this new method of communication. The only comment I would have for these companies so hesitant to embrace the idea is that all the key groups opposed to their business practices are already using these tools (GreenPeace, Pembina, etc) not having a voice in the conversation appears to show guilt simply by lack of response. You don't have to engage in heated debate via Twitter to be leveraging Social Media, rather the simple process of allowing some realistic discourse with the concerned public will create some much needed transparency. That alone would go along way towards their public perception.

Thanks for the comments JW. The old silence is compliance kicks in there. The ENGO's own the social media arena right now. Mostly because there is a lack of opposition. Not to mention they have very little to lose.

Stand up and be heard or take what you've been given.

Gas and oil are no different from any industry in that they have customers and should have ways to connect with them beyond a monolithic web page and press releases.

Using social media successfully requires understanding the context of the conversation and engaging in a normal and interesting interaction. It does not have to be the edgiest conversation out there. Some companies use Twitter to provide valuable information on simple things such as press releases.

Think about how people that follow you are using Twitter. What is their purpose? Support that goal and win.

Great post Stacy. I agree with your statement about “Cultural Change” in companies. I find companies are dealing with several trends right now, not only the aging workforce walking out the door with decades of knowledge, but also experienced hires coming into their businesses who need to understand a new corporate culture. Companies have an opportunity to supplement their existing collaboration capabilities with newer tools such as pod casts and social networking to accelerate the sharing of knowledge, increase teaming and to better communicate between their workforces in different regions. I believe companies will start to be more open to this method as a younger generation moves in.

Some great posts here!

Yes, there is definitely a place for oil and gas in Social Media.

JW, I think hesitancy isn't the issue at all anymore. But jumping in would be both a logistical nightmare and foolish. The vast majority of the 40 or so key people who attended CAPP's forum are past Social Media 101. As Stacy mentions in his post, many in industry who understand Social Media are now carefully creating strategies and becoming increasingly aware. Some are actively involved right now, and more are joining in. The cultural change is underway!

Some parts of the cultural change aren't going to be that difficult. There are a half million or so industry employees across Canada. I’m sure many participate on their own in some form of Social Media. It's those voices that will make a difference because they understand the culture of Social Media. They know the subject-matter better than anyone, and their voices will help bring transparency, facts and clarity.

Other parts of the cultural change will take a little longer. I think the biggest challenges for corporations will be learning when to use Social Media, acknowledging that there are many voices not one, and - maybe the biggest challenge - defining legalities for things like personal responsibility and individual privacy.

I think we can agree that the culture of Social Media communication has moved from the fringe into the center in a very short time. Lack of industry participation thus far has nothing to do with guilt and everything to do with learning and understanding the culture.

Here’s a question: In the early fringe days of SM, do you think maybe it was more of a one-sided conversation that was mainly rant-driven? I tend to think so, and I would argue that industry wasn’t really welcome to join in. I think SM is maturing with balance, and the balance is giving credibility to the medium. (And I guess that ultimately answers Yes to the title of this discussion!)

I completely agree with this. In my online conversations I see there is a lot of misunderstanding on how the Venezuelan oil industry works, and that is perhaps because in Venezuela social media such as LinkedIn is not widely used (Facebook is, but that is another niche). I expect great changes to happen in 2011 rather than 2010, as there is still a threshold to be met.

Thanks for all of the great comments and discussion. Chris made a great point and @dblacombe suggested the same during the forum 'Find out where your stakeholders are conversing and go there'. The point is well taken. If they're on Twitter, you should go there. If they're on LinkedIN, same and so on.

To address Tony's question, I agree that the onset of social media was driven largely by individuals who wanted to rant or voice their opinion. If it's on the Internet, people will at least feel like they've been heard. Big companies were not welcome in that sphere nor have they been interested.

Up until about 6 months ago, I had a hard time buying into Twitter. Why did I care if someone wanted to announce they were at a boring movie? Then I found the conversations and information I am actually interested in. Something that provides me with value and that was the turning point. I believe that it is the same for corporations... Big Oil included.

Awesome discussion... Thanks!

I'm glad that everyone agrees there is a place for social media in the oil & gas sector.

At TheOilCommunity, we believe the next generation of social media and related collaboration tools can help maximise productivity and better facilitate knowledge capture and sharing in preparation for “the big crew change”.

Our goal is to go beyond first generation networking sites like Facebook and LinkedIn, by delivering content specific to the Oil sector, and a include wide range of collaborative tools for learning, career development, and lifestyle. 

One website where Members can network, reconnect, share knowledge, collaborate with their peers, find information, watch videos, read reports, articles, and industry news, and then customize all their settings to they receive only the information they’re interested in.

One community bringing together industry professionals, students, academics and corporations, encouraging healthy technical debate, higher graduate intake, and a revolution in recruitment by connecting job seekers and employers directly.

We've made a great start, and have plenty of business and media partnerships with event organisers and service providers to the industry, but getting oil companies involved is a much slower process.

But we're doing our own industry survey "Oil & Gas Collaboration Survey 2010" which will investigate the potential of social media and related collaboration tools, which we'll present to oil companies in the near future.

Cheers

As Chris mentioned, Gas and Oil have customers and should have ways to connect with them beyond a monolithic web page and press releases.

It's a long way from the romantic era of Fitzgerald gas stations with smiling attendants with beautiful designed logos hung behind, whistling a waltz while they top it off. The Gas and Oil industry has not said or done much in the way of promoting themselves in customer friendly way, in a long time.

As a result of the inability their customers to express their ideas, complaints, opinions, has been building frustration for years.

Unfortunately, the way most communities are structured, at least in the US, makes it difficult for the average person to protest Gas and Oil, by dropping off the grid. It is too cold and the distance from home to amenities and job are too far (indicative of another problem altogether for another blog post).

Class-action lawsuits, picketing, etc. These are hard, time-consuming and costly means for their clients to express themselves, and obviously only negative.

Gas and Oil, should engage in social media, they should be most present where their stakeholders are, yes, however, they need to give a more public face and be where most people are: Facebook & Twitter.

Will they have friends? Will they have a fanpage? No, not probable, however they need to have a public face with some big shoulders underneath that face, because they will have to confront a deluge of public rancor. It is only natural and to be expected.

In time that will trickle to a minimum. And they might be able to begin to show what they are doing for the good, and listen to how they might change.

Hopefully two things will happen:

1. They would hand in there long enough to make it through all the rants and rage of public voice.

2. Those with something constructive to say, will take advantage of this possibility to lead as opposed to rant.

The one pivotal point that Gas and Oil should consider now is this: it would be better for them to enter the waters now while they are somewhat calm and take the time to acclimate themselves, than wait until the next accident, crisis or confrontation and seek out social media as a way to damage control.

Monoliths move slowly. Social Media and public opinion do not. Best to set those gears in motion now. Hopefully in a positive conciliatory direction.

Thanks for the insights Chris and Jesse!

I think I understand Chris when he discusses the importance of having social media communities of like-minded industry people to discuss the issues and challenges. I feel that many industry associations like CAPP do a great job of that.

Jesse brings in a great point about being present where the stakeholders are. I think that the discussion industry people are having should be held in forums where non-industry people would join in. It's great to have a meeting of the minds where everyone agrees but, in my experience, those discussions tend not to be the 'REAL' issue. And as such, we gravitate toward group think. This is a dangerous position for an industry that has become a hot bed of controversy.

Besides, why would we spend time to convince people who already agree with us. Let's bring that discussion to the fore front and have the general public weigh in. People will tell you what your image is if the industry is willing to listen.

Please refer to how my views on social media have evolved since I started using them, between Nov. 2008 and de. 2009 on http://www.rroopstr.com/facebook.html

Great to see experts from the gas and oil industry weighing in on this topic. Social media can seem a bit glamorous or too fast for certain industries at first blush but think it is great that some are getting the point. Every industry and sector will be "socialized".

Would look forward to seeing some interesting examples of the use of social media in gas & oil posted here. Perhaps integrated into the website, used as a service response system or providing updates on status of projects, etc.

I think the term "Social Media" is a little confusing. To me, it just means many-to-many communication. In 2010 the term Social Media will begin to wane as people realize we're just talking about communicating. Social Media will begin to look less social, more exclusive, and more valuable....while filtering out the clutter.

The next big thing will be a greater sense of personalization and location-based offerings. Social media will get smarter and use more "Push" technology. People will search less for information, products, and services, because it will be delivered to them via social media.

Individuals and Corporations will begin to leverage social media. Individuals will spend less time searching for information relating to performing their job, and become more productive. Corporations will uncover cost savings, serve their customers more effectively, and see the power of content distribution and customer engagement through content.

It took the radio broadcasters 38 years to reach 50 million users, television 13 years, and the internet just 4. Facebook hit 100 million users in less than 2 years, and went from 100 to 200 million in less than 8 months. Social Media clearly isn't a fad, and could represent the biggest shift since the Industrial Revolution.

The website we've developed http://www.theoilcommunity.com/ is an example of the next generation of social media that's more exclusive, more valuable, less social, and with less clutter.

Within the oil & gas industry, the impending retirement and handoff to the next generation of employees has been referred to as “the big crew change”. The US Department of Labor refers to it as the “demographic cliff”. This is in reference to the fact that the industry will lose up to 50 percent of its current workforce over the next five years, and perhaps 80 percent by 2018.

A huge amount of knowledge exists only in the minds of the older employees who are about to retire, and as a result there is an increasing need for greater capture and sharing of knowledge and insight.

This is one of the biggest issues facing the industry, and we believe that the next generation of social media and related collaboration tools can help maximize productivity and better facilitate knowledge capture and sharing in preparation for “the big crew change”.

President Chávez just unveiled the new strategies for Venezuelan heavy oil foreign investment in the following decades. It seemed like he was summarizing all my blogwork that I have published in http://www.riverocooper.com and http://www.rroopstr.com as all the topics he addressed have been previously sent out to the world through my various social network. My intellectual property for which I have not earned a dime yet.