Cyberconnecting Webinar - Q&A - Part 2

By Priya E. Abraham and Natalie Aris Jones

The psychological aspects of identity management

Many thanks for participating in the Cyberconnecting webinar on The Role of Identity in Excellence and Innovation in Digital Transformation. We specifically appreciate your considered comments and engagement. We had too many questions to cover them all during the session hosted by Rob Llewellyn of CXO Transform, so are now sharing the answers to all of the questions. We organised the Q&A in two parts:
Part 1 covers the application of behaviour-centric identity management for the benefit of successful digital transformation. See recent blog post: Practical tips on how to build a culture of excellence and innovation.
Part 2 covers the psychological aspects of behaviour-centric identity management.
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Question: Is there a significant difference between "disengaged" and "demotivated"?

Disengaged and demotivated have become interdependent concepts. Employees become disengaged in relation to specific circumstances such as incompetent leaders, the lack of opportunities, not being listened to, too much work, not having the tools or training to do their job well. Hence the growth in staff surveys to seek out areas that lead to disengaged employees and a preponderance to address these specific areas.  Demotivation is a state that results when no change happens.  The good news is that both are reversible.  If unaddressed both disengagement and demotivation have a negative effect on organisational culture.
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Without a focus on organisational culture it is difficult to address individual areas of disengagement.  That is why the cyberIDT™ offers such an advantage in defining the identities of individuals, teams and even the organisation so that the particular strengths can be brought into the consciousness and appreciated.

Question: What is the impact of individual or organisational fear on identity management? 

An initial fear is introducing such a new concept into the organisation by the decision-makers. We have found that if new concepts are not known well enough, digital leaders, innovation strategists or L&D folk feel unable to support its use internally.  For this purpose we have created the Decision-Maker Pack which takes the person selling into the organisation through the process and also offers an implementation strategy through coaching.

From a user point of view, the use of identity management as a practice gives the user a deep understanding of their own identity and what they activate in particular contexts. This awareness raising helps individuals to consider whether they should activate alternative elements to build collaboration.
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Facilitating whole-person growth and helping build effective work-based relationships are key to high engagement and positive outcomes. In that respect, behaviour-centric identity management is a game changer from a culture of fear to a culture of trust, wellbeing, and prosperity.

​Question: According to you, what is the biggest challenge in building community/collaboration teams when having to deal with multigenerational groups, ie. millenials and baby boomers? 

There is a plethora of research into the challenges of managing an intergenerational workforce. Professor Lynda Gratton from LBS provides a comprehensive view in her book The Shift, The Future of Work is Already Here, (Gratton, 2011).  

Generation is one of the elements covered in the cyberIDT™.  What we consider is the generational stereotypes and how they show up whether that be in a visible element of appearance through to an intangible adaptability to digital literacy.  For further information see Cyberconnecting. The Three Lenses of Diversity (Abraham 2015:124-126).

Some key insights Gen Baby boomers:

• born between 1944 and 1964
• often characterised as workaholics with a number of career paths pursued mostly in one company
• their socialisation happens in face-to-face space and their presence on social media platforms is minor; the preferred digital communication is still email

Some key insights Gen X:

• 74% of Gen Xers agree with “hard work is the key to getting ahead”
• Gen X respondents ranked workplace flexibility as the most important perk
• 74% use the internet banking, 72% use the internet to research products or companies, and 81% have made purchases online
• Gen X has highest % of multi-platform users (82%), so optimisation is key
• some of the most influential products of Gen X - YouTube, Amazon, Google, MySpace

Some key insights Gen Y:

• also known as the ‘millennials’, who wish to work for organisations that foster innovative thinking, develop their skills and make a positive contribution to society
• tech-savvy, greatly ambitious, in love with change; armed with smartphones, laptops, and other gadgets; many are globally connected 24/7
• much more racially and ethnically diverse due to their online approach to life

Some key insights Gen Z:

• Also known as the digital  natives’. Born after 1990, they are just about to attend university or enter the world of work; by 2020, they’ll make up a staggering 40% of all consumers
• ready to transform the ways we socialise, shop, work and bring out their inner selves
• Gen Z is all about collaboration and loves digital video on platforms like YouTube and Facebook more than TV and cinema

In response to your question, we see two big challenges:

1. The diversity in preferred digital interaction requires a multi-channel approach to reach the different target audiences, which in turn, needs a carefully planned digital and social media strategy.
2. In the workplace, we recommend to address potential stereotypes, and as a result, self-fulfilling prophecies that one generation holds about the other. This is essential to establish a sense of belonging to ensure true collaboration across generations.

Question: We make assumptions about colleagues need for inclusion maybe? What can we do to find our colleagues need for inclusion ... is it as simple as extraversion vs introversion but both types may have a need to be included?

Inclusion is a multidimensional concept.  As a psychological concept we understand introversion and extraversion as a preference of where an individual gains energy to carry out a particular task.  For an introvert this may be more often seeking quiet thinking time and for extroverts this is likely to be seeking an audience to brainstorm. It is important to highlight that this is a preference. Individuals approach tasks using a range of introvert/extrovert thinking.  On the other hand, inclusion and exclusion are concepts that concern well-being.  

To address inclusion in the workplace we need to consider the purpose, the method as well as the psychological impact.  A good reference on all types of inclusion in the workplace, including digital inclusion and flow of information can be found in Cyberconnecting. The Three Lenses of Diversity  (Abraham 2015:14-155)