Get Ready for the TikTok-ification of Work
Looking back on the history of consumer technology, younger workers have succeeded in eventually bringing almost every evolution with them into the workplace.
Think about your own work life. If you’ve ever sent a colleague a text message that contains an emoji, then you already know that I’m right. And whether business leaders in my demographic want to hear it or not, that means we’re likely to see short-form, disposable video content make waves in the workplace in the very near future.
In other words: TikTok is coming for the office.
7 things business leaders can learn from TikTok and repurpose for Gen Z workers
1. Asynchronous Communication
Here’s a potential quick win. Instead of forcing employees to sit through 30-minute one-on-one meetings with their managers each week, companies might consider having their workers film 30-second weekly recaps as they walk out to their cars on Friday afternoons.
“TikTok-ification” (for lack of a better word) doesn’t need to mean simply catering to employees’ preferences. Instead, organizations should seek out ways to improve existing processes using new technologies. In this case, the new workflow may be more convenient for both the boss and the employee, freeing up time during the workday for more productive tasks.
“TikTok-ification” doesn’t need to mean simply catering to employees’ preferences. Instead, organizations should seek out ways to improve existing processes using new technologies.
— Sean Winter, VP of Strategy at LumApps
2. Collaborative Learning
Hiding in plain sight amid all of the dangerous “TikTok trends” that the news loves to report on (remember the Tide Pod challenge?), there are thousands and thousands of videos that teach bite-sized lessons on everything from personal fitness to personal finance.
Imagine putting that same power into the hands of employees. Instead of spending $500,000 building out a training program, companies might provide bonuses or other incentives to highly skilled employees who can communicate their methods via short-form video, resulting in more effective learning.
3. Sharing of Institutional Knowledge
Similarly, quick videos might be helpful for employees who need to create a narrative record of what they do on a day-to-day basis, but who struggle to communicate effectively in writing. This sort of use case might come in handy, for instance, when people are promoted and need to leave instructions for their replacement.
4. Promotion of ESG Activities
At many organizations, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) goals and activities have become extremely important over the past decade or so.
There’s quite a bit of evidence that these programs are a big draw for Gen Z workers, and companies typically try to promote them both internally and externally. Historically, this has happened through newsletter write-ups or posts on company intranet pages, but that has sometimes resulted in an imperfect marriage of form and content.
A better approach might be to let the people who are participating in events like neighborhood clean-ups submit brief video clips of their work and comaraderie. The content is likely to be much more authentic and vulnerable than a press release – and, therefore, more likely to have an impact on its audience.
5. Culture Creation
Historically, when a CEO talks to his or her workforce, it’s done under studio conditions: soft lighting, sharp suit, and pitch-perfect script. As a result, rank-and-file employees sometimes think of their leaders as almost inhuman. The more we learn about the importance of empathy and authenticity in the workplace, the more companies might want to consider letting executives communicate in a casual style that helps to create a more open corporate culture.
This doesn’t mean that CEOs will skip shareholder meetings in favor of filming TikTok reels. But it might mean that they spend their Monday morning elevator ride telling their troops what they’re excited for in the week ahead.
6. The Role of AI
Okay, so I just talked about the importance of authenticity, and now I’m telling you to let robots create your content? Well, yes and no. We’re seeing through the emergence of tools like ChatGPT how exciting (and also scary) artificial intelligence can be, as some people brainstorm how to use the technology to create new business value and others fear that it will replace them in the workplace.
In truth, most companies are in the early stages of figuring out how AI will fit into their content programs, but at this point it’s probably safe to say that the technology will eventually make its way into most organizations. This might mean using an AI program to analyze the transcripts of keynote speeches or brainstorming sessions to pick out potential snippets to turn into short-form videos.
7. Adaptability
It’s possible that the end result of TikTok-ification won’t actually look all that much like TikTok at all. Think about the emergence of social media platforms nearly two decades ago, and how companies tried to create their own versions of Myspace and Facebook. For the most part, these internal social networks have given way to off-the-shelf unified communication and collaboration tools where people can constantly stay in touch about their work (but where they aren’t, say, posting vacation photos). Similarly, businesses may discover new and exciting ways to use short-form video over time.
As always, we’re unsure about exactly what the future is going to look like. But we know this much: Once consumer technology finds its way inside of enterprises, it’s impossible to stop.
How can video improve employee experience?
One study found 69% of internal communicators have already adopted the video medium. Is your team keeping up? Download this free white paper to see how video can drive employee experience success.
