IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/tefoso/v124y2017icp26-40.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Serialisation and the use of Twitter: Keeping the conversation alive in public policy scenario projects

Author

Listed:
  • O'Brien, Frances A.
  • Meadows, Maureen
  • Griffiths, Sam

Abstract

Scenario planning projects have been used in a variety of organisational settings to explore future uncertainty. The scenario process is often a participative one involving heterogeneous stakeholder groups from multiple organisations, particularly when exploring issues of wider public concern. Facilitated workshops are a common setting for scenario projects, typically requiring people to be physically present in order to participate and engage with others for the duration of the project. During workshops, participants progress through the stages of the process, generating content relevant to each stage and ultimately the scenarios themselves. However, the periods between workshops and other episodes of activity (e.g. interviewing stakeholders) are rarely mentioned in such accounts. Thus we know very little about what activities take place between such activities, when they occur and who is involved. This is a particular issue for larger scale scenario projects that run over a period of weeks or months and involve multiple workshops; in such cases organisers and facilitators have to consider how to maintain the interest and levels of engagement of participants throughout the duration of the project. A variety of social media exist which allow people to interact with each other virtually, both in real time and asynchronously. We reflect on the use of social media within a project to develop scenarios for the future of the food system around Birmingham, UK, in the year 2050. We explore how a particular social media, namely Twitter, can be used effectively as part of a scenario planning project, for example to engage participants and encourage contributions to the project. We suggest that Twitter can support the serialisation of strategic conversations between the face-to-face workshops. The paper considers the implications of these reflections for both the scenario process and scenario projects more generally.

Suggested Citation

  • O'Brien, Frances A. & Meadows, Maureen & Griffiths, Sam, 2017. "Serialisation and the use of Twitter: Keeping the conversation alive in public policy scenario projects," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 26-40.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:124:y:2017:i:c:p:26-40
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techfore.2017.05.015
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0040162517306558
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.techfore.2017.05.015?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Franco, L. Alberto & Meadows, Maureen & Armstrong, Steven J., 2013. "Exploring individual differences in scenario planning workshops: A cognitive style framework," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 80(4), pages 723-734.
    2. John Hendry & David Seidl, 2003. "The Structure and Significance of Strategic Episodes: Social Systems Theory and the Routine Practices of Strategic Change," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(1), pages 175-196, January.
    3. Stéphanie Dameron & Jane K. Lê & Curtis Lebaron, 2015. "Materializing Strategy and Strategizing Materials: Why Matter Matters," Post-Print hal-01637715, HAL.
    4. C. Marlene Fiol, 1994. "Consensus, Diversity, and Learning in Organizations," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 5(3), pages 403-420, August.
    5. Wanda J. Orlikowski & JoAnne Yates, 2002. "It's About Time: Temporal Structuring in Organizations," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(6), pages 684-700, December.
    6. repec:dau:papers:123456789/14564 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Weinberg, Bruce D. & Pehlivan, Ekin, 2011. "Social spending: Managing the social media mix," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 54(3), pages 275-282, May.
    8. R. Whittington & Ludovic Cailluet & B. Yakis-Douglas, 2011. "Opening Strategy: Evolution of a Precarious Profession," Post-Print halshs-00738389, HAL.
    9. Mangold, W. Glynn & Faulds, David J., 2009. "Social media: The new hybrid element of the promotion mix," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 52(4), pages 357-365, July.
    10. Kaplan, Andreas M. & Haenlein, Michael, 2010. "Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 59-68, January.
    11. Cairns, George & Ahmed, Iftekhar & Mullett, Jane & Wright, George, 2013. "Scenario method and stakeholder engagement: Critical reflections on a climate change scenarios case study," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 80(1), pages 1-10.
    12. O'Brien, Frances A. & Meadows, Maureen, 2013. "Scenario orientation and use to support strategy development," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 80(4), pages 643-656.
    13. Xiang, Zheng & Gretzel, Ulrike, 2010. "Role of social media in online travel information search," Tourism Management, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 179-188.
    14. Hanna, Richard & Rohm, Andrew & Crittenden, Victoria L., 2011. "We're all connected: The power of the social media ecosystem," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 54(3), pages 265-273, May.
    15. Haas Lyons, Susanna & Walsh, Mike & Aleman, Erin & Robinson, John, 2014. "Exploring regional futures: Lessons from Metropolitan Chicago's online MetroQuest," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 23-33.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kayser, Victoria & Shala, Erduana, 2020. "Scenario development using web mining for outlining technology futures," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    2. Ha, Sohee & Geum, Youngjung, 2022. "Identifying new innovative services using M&A data: An integrated approach of data-driven morphological analysis," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    3. Bowman, Gary & Parks, Ryan W., 2024. "Between episodes of strategy: Sociomateriality, sensemaking, and dysfunction in a scenario planning process," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Paniagua, Jordi & Sapena, Juan, 2014. "Business performance and social media: Love or hate?," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 57(6), pages 719-728.
    2. Chen, Peng-Ting & Kuo, Shu-Chen, 2017. "Innovation resistance and strategic implications of enterprise social media websites in Taiwan through knowledge sharing perspective," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 55-69.
    3. Gary Bowman & R. Bradley MacKay, 2020. "Scenario planning as strategic activity: A practice‐orientated approach," Futures & Foresight Science, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 2(3-4), September.
    4. Reema Aswani & Arpan Kumar Kar & P. Vigneswara Ilavarasan, 2018. "Detection of Spammers in Twitter marketing: A Hybrid Approach Using Social Media Analytics and Bio Inspired Computing," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 20(3), pages 515-530, June.
    5. Mahan, Joseph E. & Seo, Won Jae & Jordan, Jeremy S. & Funk, Daniel, 2015. "Exploring the impact of social networking sites on running involvement, running behavior, and social life satisfaction," Sport Management Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(2), pages 182-192.
    6. Benjamin Appiah Osei & Ama Nyenkua Abenyin, 2016. "Applying the Engell–Kollat–Blackwell model in understanding international tourists’ use of social media for travel decision to Ghana," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 16(3), pages 265-284, September.
    7. Lashgari, Maryam, 2014. "Social Media Technology Deployment in B2B: A Case Study," INDEK Working Paper Series 2014/9, Royal Institute of Technology, Department of Industrial Economics and Management.
    8. Wu He & Feng-Kwei Wang & Yong Chen & Shenghua Zha, 0. "An exploratory investigation of social media adoption by small businesses," Information Technology and Management, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-12.
    9. Moro, Sérgio & Rita, Paulo & Vala, Bernardo, 2016. "Predicting social media performance metrics and evaluation of the impact on brand building: A data mining approach," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(9), pages 3341-3351.
    10. Wu He & Feng-Kwei Wang & Yong Chen & Shenghua Zha, 2017. "An exploratory investigation of social media adoption by small businesses," Information Technology and Management, Springer, vol. 18(2), pages 149-160, June.
    11. Thomas Wozniak & Brigitte Stangl & Roland Schegg & Andreas Liebrich, 2017. "The return on tourism organizations’ social media investments: preliminary evidence from Belgium, France, and Switzerland," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 17(1), pages 75-100, March.
    12. Mylona Ifigeneia & Amanatidis Dimitrios & Stavrianea Aikaterini & Kamenidou Irene (Eirini) & Mamalis Spyridon, 2021. "Promoting Tourists’ Destinations in Greece with Social Media: The Case of Kimolos Island," International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), International Journal of Economics & Business Administration (IJEBA), vol. 0(1), pages 347-361.
    13. Bosio, Birgit & Haselwanter, Stefanie & Ceipek, Michael, 2018. "The Utilization of Social Media Marketing in Destination Management Organizations," 6th International OFEL Conference on Governance, Management and Entrepreneurship. New Business Models and Institutional Entrepreneurs: Leading Disruptive Change (Dubrovnik, 2018), in: 6th International OFEL Conference on Governance, Management and Entrepreneurship. New Business Models and Institutional Entrepreneurs: Leading Disrupt, pages 249-268, Governance Research and Development Centre (CIRU), Zagreb.
    14. Wright, George & Cairns, George & O'Brien, Frances A. & Goodwin, Paul, 2019. "Scenario analysis to support decision making in addressing wicked problems: Pitfalls and potential," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 278(1), pages 3-19.
    15. Mohammad Tipu Sultan & Farzana Sharmin & Alina Badulescu & Darie Gavrilut & Ke Xue, 2021. "Social Media-Based Content towards Image Formation: A New Approach to the Selection of Sustainable Destinations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-22, April.
    16. Nicole Allison, 2013. "Going beyond on-pitch success: Fan engagement as a catalyst for growth," Birkbeck Sports Business Centre Working Papers 7, Birkbeck College, Department of Management.
    17. Drago Ruzic & Antun Bilos & Filip Radulovic, 2018. "Preliminary Study Of Personal Marketing In The Digital Environment: Attributes And Perception Of Internet Users In Croatia," Economic Thought and Practice, Department of Economics and Business, University of Dubrovnik, vol. 27(1), pages 209-229, june.
    18. Hussain, M. & Tapinos, E. & Knight, L., 2017. "Scenario-driven roadmapping for technology foresight," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 124(C), pages 160-177.
    19. Sergey P. Kazakov & Marina D. Predvoditeleva, 2015. "How Travelers Use Online and Social Media Channels to Make Hotel Choice Decisions. A Comparative Study of Russian Federation and American Tourists’ Online Consumer Behavior," HSE Working papers WP BRP 44/MAN/2015, National Research University Higher School of Economics.
    20. Olowofeso, Edamisan & Ale, Olatide Aarinola, 2021. "Effect of Social Media Tools on Service Delivery of Hospitality Businesses in Akure, Nigeria," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 5(10), pages 25-31, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:124:y:2017:i:c:p:26-40. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00401625 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.