Buzzword

Mary’s Short Definition

Mary’s Explanation

Authenticity

Real, honest, and trustworthy --the opposite of contrived or phony.

This term can be applied to anything from an executive’s character to an organization’s brand (e.g. see the Arthur Page Society’s Authentic Enterprise white paper). Because we’re living in an age of transparency, and because people are a lot smarter than they used to be about the messages they receive, it’s very important to be authentic – whether you are a person or an organization.

Engagement

The ability to capture people’s attention and encourage them to act with or for you in a way that is non-manipulative.

True engagement builds strong relationships and full ownership of projects and actions. It usually requires some level of collaboration – from something as simple as engaging in a consultative sales conversation to joining a project team to take action on a strategy.

Cloud Consulting

Consulting services delivered entirely through the cloud.

Most consultants deliver the majority of their services through face-to-face engagements with clients. This model of consulting proposes to deliver all services electronically.

Corporate Character

Term coined by Jon Iwata of IBM as part of Arthur W. Page Society research project

The intersection of corporate reputation and corporate culture --including a company’s purpose and differentiating characteristics.

A company’s brand is the face it presents to the world. A company’s character is defined by the things it actually focuses on over time and by all of the behaviors and actions taken by people in the organization. In the same way that a person is judged by their character, so is an organization judged by its character. The actions taken by an organization and its members must be aligned with the brand and purpose or it will be perceived as inauthentic.

Group Engagement Technology

Technologies used to tap group intelligence and maximize group effectiveness.

These technologies are usually used when people are working synchronously (at the same time) rather than asynchronously (at different times). Some examples include: Wizerize, Unison, and CoVision.

High Performance Collaboration

Collaboration and engagement methods and approaches that are informed by science.

In a networked society, a whole new level of communication and collaboration competence is necessary. Many people consider themselves good communicators, but very few have leveraged the decades of social science and cognitive research that can enable them to be truly great collaborators. Here’s an analogy: Most people, even children, are able to run, swim and ride a bicycle with a reasonable degree of competence. But only those who apply a high degree of scientific knowledge about nutrition, body mechanics, equipment, and other areas can perform as tri-athletes. We now have the capability to create “tri-athlete” communicators and collaborators at every level of an organization.

Hybrid Meetings

Face-to-face meetings that are augmented by technologies that integrate off-site participants and/or speakers.

There are many different ways to technologically connect off-site participants or speakers. What distinguishes a hybrid meeting from a virtual meeting is that the hybrid meeting always has a face-to-face component.

Integrated Marketing Communication

The integration of the actions of these two functions is necessary for
brand alignment and sustaining an authentic enterprise.

At present, this is an emerging area of study and of interest to organizations that are trying to create a single, authentic voice for an organization.

Meeting Design

The purposeful shaping of the form and content of a meeting to deliver on crucial objectives.

Meeting design incorporates methods and technologies that connect, inform, and engage a broad range of relevant stakeholders before, during and after the meeting. Good design integrates the meeting with other communication activities, maximizes interactivity, and results in a significant return on investment. Many people plan meetings (i.e. focus on logistics), but very few design a meeting (i.e. focus on form and content).

Virtual Meetings

Meetings that are held completely electronically -- either through the internet or other connections.

Some people perceive virtual meetings to pertain only to environments with avatars or simulated environments (e.g. Second Life). I define virtual meetings as including any meeting that is completely mediated by technology. Hybrid meetings can have a “virtual component” which means that there is a virtual audience that never actually interacts with anyone else face to face.