| | NOVEMBER - 2022MANAGEHRMAGAZINE.COM8In MyOpinionWhat can professional influencers do for your organization? The answer seems obvious ­ influencers bring a fresh look at products, services, or ideas; they reach their target audience in a personalized way; their perspectives are often refreshing and distinctive, as each influencer works to position his or her personal brand. But consider a slightly different angle. We use influencers to market to the outside world ­ to our current clients, our prospects, and our stakeholders. We entrust these thought-leaders with a piece of our image, we allow them to reveal and reflect on who and what we are. But what if we brought that influencer mindset inside our organizations? Across an incredible range of industries, from fashion to scientific innovation to financial services to tech, across the galaxy of social media, the top influencers communicate incredible enthusiasm, energy, and curiosity, wrapped around sometimes surprising content (I once found an influencer who explained how to get rid of the rings that halo lamps make on glasses). This is why we follow these people: according to the well-known "trust equation", trust is built up through our experience of an influencer's credibility, reliability, and capacity to build intimacy; conversely, it is diminished when an influencer gives the impression of acting essentially to pursue self-interest. Now what does this mean for internal influencers, people inside our organizations who take up the role of internal promoters of processes, solutions, or strategies to their colleagues in the organization? These profiles exist and some companies try to stimulate this mindset, notably by implementing in-house social networks, blogs, and related platforms. They bring a fresh, personalized, user-friendly perspective. Yet their "influencer" position is more ambiguous than an external influencer, whose independence is well established. They can't be "appointed" and they already have their jobs to do. So what can organization development specialists learn from the "trust equation"(credibility, reliability, intimacy) to encourage effective emergence of in-house influencers? Credibility: Influencers are highly credible thanks to long experience and deep understanding of their fields. For "insiders", this credibility is easy to read because the career paths along which these people travel are marked with familiar signposts: having worked in a certain business line, been involved in a key project, or even lived through a well-known crisis. Organizations can communicate on these features to support credibility that is aligned with internal codes and rituals. Reliability: In 2022 our world has become so uncertain that "reliability" could seem out of date. We don't trust traditional social media influencers because they are always right, but because they adapt fast ­ they see new trends or issues and offer us a sense of security by helping us make sense of them. Internally, influencers walk a fine line between simply echoing an official policy and breathing life into it through the strength of their own analysis and mindset. The reliability of these influencers can be encouraged through a clear offering (and clear influencer choices) about format, timing, and chosen scope. By Jocelyn Phelps, Program Director, Leadership and Organization Development, Societe GeneraleWE ARE ALL INFLUENCERS NOW
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