Social Capital is all about using the power of relationships and social networks to drive business growth or social transformation. Conference keynote speaker Patrick Dixon on social capital - event for Malaysian Institute of Management in partnership with Urban Forum - recruiting and engaging highly talented teams, as well as new customers or followers who become enthusiastic fans. Every decision-maker in business and government needs to understand how to develop their own Social Capital, in an age which is increasingly influenced by social media, viral networks, tribalism and rapid globalisation. Workplace Social Capital Tomorrow’s most successful companies will harness a highly relational model of leadership based on mutual trust, affirmation, collaboration and partnership, rather than fixed organisation hierarchies, rigid command structures and top-down change methods. You can have the best “talent" in the world, but isolated teams and individualist leaders can hamper growth. Social Capital leaders thrive on agility, ambiguity, flexibility, creativity and have a dynamic approach to strategy in an uncertain world. They use networks, friendships, communities, interest groups and informal alliances to solve complex challenges rapidly. Social Capital leaders encourage Open Innovation - collaboration with other organisations. They recruit through channels such as LinkedIn. They inspire strong loyalty, because they understand that friendship at work is one of he most important ways to increase team engagement. Social Capital is also about common values, shared corporate identity. Social Capital often generates life-long links between people and organisations - a feeling of connection that lasts far beyond their time in the workforce. Customers Social Capital The most important asset in any business is your community of highly satisfied customers, each of which becomes a recruiter of others as they recommend your products and services to those they know. Therefore your customer’s social networks become a powerful extension of your own. Next-generation marketing is all about harnessing the Social Capital of such informal networks to amplify corporate messages, reach new people, and gain vital intelligence. Tribalism is the most powerful force in the world today: every brand creates a tribe, every customer group is a tribe, every social network is a tribe. Understanding how to harness Tribalism is the key to extending into new markets, finding new customers, and keeping them loyal. It is easy to see the wide and rapid impact of Social Capital when a personal story about a bad customer experience goes viral. Companies need a comprehensive range of new strategies to harness social capital positively, including the ability to respond to social network activity at the speed of light. Government Social Capital Every politician knows very well that their entire future depends on social capital - it makes no difference if they live within a democratic society or a dictatorship or a blend of both. All leaders have to be populists to survive in the long term without the use of tyranny, and that means understanding how to develop their own Social Capital as part of a political process. All activist groups are expressions of Social Capital, and every society is defined by the Social Capital that is represented across the entire community. That can mean strength of community feeling, shared national values, sense of wellbeing across the country as a whole, degree of trust in state institutions including the rule of law, freedom of expression and association. It is impossible to produce change across a nation without building on the Social Capital that already exists. Social Capital has been part of human history since the beginning of time, but will be increasingly important in a fast-moving, uncertain and increasingly virtual world.

• published: 21 Oct 2014
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