A reader asks: Do you have any information on social media and training? Our company is getting Twitter, Facebook and YouTube as of March 2010. I am looking for articles or info on how social media benefits training, i.e. discussion boards, blogs, file sharing.

eZine's response: Someone who does a lot on Twitter regarding SoMe (social media) is Marcia Conner. She's a trainer and has published articles in T&D magazine and is busy completing a manuscript for a publishing house on training. She is copied on this email. She's a great one to send you information regarding SoMe and training.

On Twitter, there are a few people I recommend you follow. To begin with, of course I'd recommend @TheBobPikeGroup, @bobpikectt and @pluthb from our company. I would also recommend searching for #lrnchat which will find any tweets with that hashtag-the people who use that are in training and development.

Marcia's username is @marciamarcia. @JaneBozarth, @gminks are a few to get you started. As you follow them, you'll see other comments from people you may also want to follow (assuming you're not already on Twitter).

Articles that might be helpful are:

http://www.bobpikegroup.com/apps/articles/web/articleid/58827/columnid//default.asp  (on training and facebook)

http://www.bobpikegroup.com/apps/articles/web/articleid/58285/columnid//default.asp  (basics on Twitter)

I know Marcia's article on Twitter was just in T&D as well.

 Marcia's response: I'd suggest starting with a few of these articles I've written over the last year specially focused on this area. There are others writing on this topic and some of them are linked to from these posts. These are all listed and linked to my Twitter landing page in the event the links below don't work in your email system (that page is http://marciamarcia.com)

• Twitter in the Enterprise: Up the Next Hill in ASTD's T+D
• 2Do.Over in Fast Company
• Twitter for Trainers first in ASTD's T+D reprinted on the TouchbaseBlog
• The Latest in Learning Fast: edu-Twittering in Fast Company
• Enterprise Micro-Learning in Fast Company and on the TouchbaseBlog
• Are Employees Twittering Away Productivity? in Fast Company
• Twitterprise: Bringing Whole Selves to Work in Fast Company
• Twitterbursts: It's All About The Tools; It's Not About The Tools in Fast Company
• Face to Facebook Learning in Fast Company (and Facebook)
• Can Twittering Create an Economy of Words? in Fast Company
• Enterprise Microsharing Tools Comparison at Pistachio Consulting

Also, I've just sent out a request on Twitter to my community of educators and learners there who will likely point us to even more great stuff. One that surfaced quickly is this:

http://www.lpn-to-rn.net/blog/2009/101-ways-to-use-twitter-in-your-hospital/

Let me know if you have questions. There is plenty to learn using social media and also a big opportunity to help our organizations learn so much more.

- Marcia

P.S. To get a great list of training-focused folks on twitter, see a list I created here:

http://twitter.com/marciamarcia/lrnchat

Marcia Conner (@marciamarcia), senior enterprise strategist for Pistachio Consulting, focuses on social messaging and corporate culture. She's a 20-year veteran of the enterprise learning market and co-author of an upcoming book on learning through social media.