All social media networks not equal in their support to procurement

MarketSqr Blog (Jan 30 2012) Online Supply Communities

1. The value of Social Media and Social Networks in Procurement and Supply is fast becoming clear for many leaders in the Procurement profession.  Many a sceptic is starting to consider possible uses of social media networks in their professional relationships.  These relationships include their daily interaction with their teams, their supplier communities and their internal stakeholders (or "end users"). 

   The word "social" in this terminology has scared many a professional away hence here at MarketSqr we have started to use the phrase Online Supply Communities.

   Over on Purchasing Insight Pete Louglin made some good points last year where he cited the stagnation or decline in active Facebook users and debated whether Facebook is dying.  Since then, we have seen that Facebook will remain relevant to hundreds of millions of individuals globally for many years to come, yet Pete made some very relevant points:

   "But facebook is too generic. I’m happy to keep in touch with close family but it doesn’t serve my needs as a purchasing professional. Linkedin special interest group satisfy my professional needs to a certain extent but there is still a vacuum for properly focused professional social networks."

   It is true that Linkedin interest groups have started to prove valuable for procurement professionals at all levels during the past eighteen months.  Linkedin has shown that there is value in online communities when sharing knowledge or looking for quick advice on a supply challenge.  These uses will continue to grow for some time.  We have however only skimmed the surface when it comes to collaboration in the supply chain and we will expand on this vision here over the coming weeks.

   Pete ended his analysis with the words: "The B2B world is ripe for some specialist professional social networks"

   We strongly believe in these words and in MarketSqr we are putting all our efforts into delivering on this promise in a truly professional Online Supply Community.

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