As discussed in previous posts, my digital presence can be described more like an observer (Linds, 2018), however this does not mean I haven’t made my fair share of connections. As I looked upon the jumbled mess of my LinkedIn network thanks to (Socilab, 2013), a website developed to analyze Linkedin networks and develop visual representations of those networks, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy as to the seemingly disorganized graphic that was created, (figure 1). The image depicts over 500 professionals strewn about with connecting lines going in every which direction and a large crescent moon shape of disconnected individuals who have varying job titles orbiting outside.
Figure 1
Allow me to explain the possible reason for the lack of shape or harmony. In my short time on this planet, I have studied in Calgary at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and Mount Royal University, as well as Japan at Hirosaki Univeristy in communications and web development. I have worked in print production with Staples, technical online course development at the Calgary Board of Education, marketing and advertisement for Yellow Media Inc., education for United Way, the Calgary Immigrant Educational Society and Mount Royal University, and finally healthcare for Alberta Health Services. Through each transition LinkedIn, at least in some part, has followed me.
While studying in Japan I had met with various students from all over the world. All of us being international exchange students (ryugakusei) we naturally gravitated together all with varying majors, interests, cultures, etc. We made efforts to connect online and to use online platforms such as LinkedIn and Facebook to keep in touch. The benefits of studying abroad and creating an international network is stated by (Mellors-Bourn, Humf, Kemp, Woodfield, 2013) “Very many reported increased sensitivity towards other cultural perspectives and an improved ability to understand and communicate with people from a wide range of national and social backgrounds” (p. xii).
One of the largest influence’s of this would be my work for the United Way and the Calgary Immigrant Educational Society. “Canada is frequently described as a country with[…] a long tradition of immigrants from a wide variety of countries, languages, and cultures” (Courchene, 1996, p. 2). Here I taught new Canadians how to format and write their resumes, how to perform in an interview, basic to advanced computer skills, and finally, to find guest speakers to come and talk to the students about their rights, how to look for jobs, the importance of LinkedIn, etc. Through these activities I have made several connections to Human Resource professionals, motivational speakers, body language experts, Toastmasters representatives, and many others, all of whom I added to my LinkedIn network. My students, who are also part of my network did eventually leave the course and found positions of their own either in their trained industry or they retrained and found new businesses, thereby adding to my online network.
My fellow undergraduates from college have all found themselves in various industries as well. Communications is a wild and general field of study (Penning, 2018, p. 1), many mid to large sized businesses have some form of communications department (p.1). Some of my classmates went on to become 3D developers for animation studios, others went into website design and development for advertisement companies, some went into technical writing, public relations, marketing, for oil and gas, and so on.
Because of the vast array of individuals in my network, this can explain the crescent moon shape due to the varying industries my network finds employment. This also is the reason as to the number of HR professionals in the middle of my visual.
Finally there are three offshoots in my network that actually seem to show some sort of order. One is comprised of connections I have made with my colleagues in marketing and advertisement. The other offshoot is made of my colleagues at Alberta Health Services. From the visual it can be surmised that these connections are very close knit as the majority of these nodes are connected to each other as well. Ending the offshoots are the colleagues that I have made in the Calgary Board of Education while working for CBe-Learn as an Technical Online Course Developer. This is another industry in Calgary that does not see a lot of variation as most people who work in education only have a small number of educational institutions or organizations (Government of Canada, 2013).
So what does this mean? Over the years I have developed a network spanning a varied sample of industries. Without any kind of true central focus the network seems jumbled and disorganized, but this is a representation of the nature of who I have connected with. In the end these are all valued colleagues, professionals, students, and friends.
Only a small portion of this network can help me in my current position. This includes my work colleagues in the health industry, my previous colleagues in education, of course my RRU cohort.
References
Courchene, R. (1996). Teaching Canadian Culture: Teacher Preparation. TESL CANADA JOURNAU LA REVUE TESL DU CANADA, 13(2). doi:10.1016/b978-012732350-3/50003-x
Government of Canada. (2013). List of Designated Educational Institutions. Retrieved June 15, 2018, from http://tools.canlearn.ca/cslgs-scpse/cln-cln/reea-mdl/reea-mdl-1-eng.do?nom-name=AB
Linds, A. (2018, April 29). Unit 2: Map your use of technologies as it pertains to the resident-visitor typology [Web log post]. Retrieved June 15, 2018, from https://malat-webspace.royalroads.ca/rru0058/visitororresident/
Mellors-Bourn, R., Humf, C., Kemp, N., & Woodfield, S. (2013). The Wider Benefits of International Higher Education in the UK. Careers Research & Advisory Centre, 128. doi:10.1057/9781137320704.0021
Penning, T. (2018). High – Performing Corporate Communications Teams: Views of Top CCOs. Public Relations Journal, 11(3), 1-23. Retrieved June 15, 2018, from https://prjournal.instituteforpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2.-High-Performing-Corporate-Communication-Teams-.pdf
Socilab. (2013). Retrieved June 15, 2018, from https://socilab.com
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