Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Digital Native

I attended a Third Tuesday event in Ottawa tonight titled - Integrating social media in your Organization? by Niall Cook, Author Enterprise 2.0. It was an interesting evening with a mix of people and backgrounds - some clients some friends. One thread that caught my attention was the concept of Digital Native. In 2009 the Digital Native enters the workforce. What is a digital native you ask - so did I - someone who has never known life without the internet. Imagine no google, no blogs, no facebook... did life exist?

Now, the concept that grabbed my attention was their impact on the workforce. The presenter implied that the digital native would be a disruptive force. Their knowledge of the digital world would impact how they worked and how others interacted with them. Interesting thought. Does their native knowledge of the online realm make them a force to be reckoned with?

At this point I am a skeptic. Yes, some will be. No doubt. But for many the switch to corporate life will not pull their digital world into the corporate one. Is it going to be that different than when previous generations entered the workforce? I guess only time will really tell the tale but at this point, my gut says that bright stars will shine regardless of the generation or technology gap.

I think experience mixed with the knowledge of technology will have in impact in five years. Once the new grads are integrated into the workforce and understand the new dynamics of the office culture then we will start to see some real shift in how things are done.

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