Case Analysis Smarthinking and the Maintenance of Community.
The faster growth of online tutoring which the company seems to be unprepared for in terms of the growing rate of demand.
The integration of current technologies and Web 2.0. This can be a challenge for the firm as this may require some downtime to test the new version, and it takes some time to test and implement new technologies with respect to an existing one.
The maintenance of the sense of community, communication and the quality of its online team.
Generally, these challenges demonstrate how the company can effectively hang on to its strong communication pull especially as this takes place in the online world. Whether the online community is growing fast that the communication capacity may get overloaded or that a new technology may require new approaches and better venues for communicating, it can be observed that in these challenges, Smarthinking has to ensure that the communication channels are still able to maintain and sustain the strengths of the company as an effective online tutorial provider.
This paper thereby addresses the last challenge maintain community, communication and quality amongst growing online tutoring team. This challenge can be regarded to be constantly present for Smarthinking operations especially as it can challenge how the company operates today. This is especially true as this is also a challenge many online communities face given that new and more exciting communities and networks can steal the attention away from the clients into the new endeavors.
The Maintenance of Community, Communication and Quality in an Online Group
An online learning environment can be regarded as an important innovation in the past few several years. From online schools to online tutorials, many students can opt to learn outside the traditional classroom environment and gain insights based on new materials and new means of interaction. A basic online classroom may be created based on the tools that the school or the institution uses for instance, according to McEwen (2001), classroom management requires paying attention to how it is best to use tools such as the email, the online discussion board and the chat. Interestingly, even though it seems easy to operate in an online platform, especially if the users are well-versed in the Internet, McEwen (2001) mentioned that in an online classroom environment, it takes weeks of training and course development, in addition to training using new technologies.
When it comes to maintaining the sense of community, communication and quality for Smarthinking, what comes to mind is that Smarthinking is basically driven by tools. These tools such as email, messages boards and chats have helped the company to be able to establish and maintain communication and relationships with the members of the online tutoring group. Basically, as these tutors are located remote from each other --- with some tutors located in another state and in another country ---- the challenge is to how improve on the online experience or at least maintain it, given the fact that Smarthinking is growing.
Assessing the Framework through the Structurational Theory
The Problem and the Structurational Theory
Anthony Giddens Structurational Theory is based on how behavior (as the agency) and structure are strongly related to each other basically, the structurational theory can be applied when it comes to space, in which case, the design of space can influence how an individual may behave (University of Twente, n.d.). For instance, when a person walks through a corridor (a space) and suddenly encounters a wall, this person will have to stop however, if the wall curves to the right, the tendency is for this person to take a right (behavior).
Structurational theory is applied across many disciplined but this is a very theory in assessing how a structure, whether physical or not, can affect the behavior of the person or the people. This is thereby among the working theories that are applied in organizational communication, in which case the organization is the structure and how the people behaves and interacts establish the basis of their communications and relationships.
What is important in this theory is that it is not just about the walls or the restrictions that people encounter that can affect their behavior. In fact, people also have roles in contributing to the entire time-space structure (University of Twente, n.d.). The point is, the structure or the system may have some enablers that causes people to behave a certain way, thus, affecting how the structure will eventually come to be.
Communication online is evidently limited although technologies have allowed people to see each other through web cams and even to talk and see each other through VoIP and webcams, there remains to be the missing element in communication tactile cues. According to Soukup (2000), the main challenge in computer-mediated communication is that it does not allow enough intimacy because the communication remains mediated by another medium. However, because communication and relationships have been observed to develop over time in this medium, it can be gathered that the solutions have been mostly based on the creation of unique forms of communication. This is therefore a means to make up for the lack of explicit statements and subtle verbal and nonverbal codes.
Based on Smarthinkings problem, although there are already the tools present that have enabled effective communication within the online group, the prospect of a growth can potentially make the communication and relational channels less personal. This is because there are too many people who are online and many new people who will have to post messages. In addition, given the anticipated rate of growth, this can also give way to new tutors who will be hired into the community. This is another adjustment and aspect of change that will be experienced and that the company needs to manage.
The challenge is evidently in the prospect of change and how to maintain the current condition of the online tutorial team which have so far worked best for the company and its clientele.
Solving the Challenge Through the Structurational Theory
The structurational theory is basically about the relationship of the structure and the agency. The challenge with Smarthinking is that as the structure is about to go through changes due to the increasing number of clients, this may affect the agency and the social systems within the company.
The changes that will occur in order to accommodate growth will definitely affect the users, both tutors and clients alike. For instance, a new technology or platform will be introduced some tutors may need to be trained on how to properly use these new technologies, the same way the clients will have to be educated as well.
Although these are improvement initiatives for the company, some resistance may become present. First, the resistance can be based on how some tutors and client like the way things better in the original platform. Second, some may find the new system to be inconvenient that people --- both tutors and clients --- decide to leave the company where there is a perceived lesser complexity.
In solving it is initially important to know how the rules of structurational can be applicable in this challenge. The two aspects of rules of the theory are normative elements and codes of signification. The former to the procedures and sanctions with respect to social conduct and the reproduction of social life. The normative elements therefore refer to the regulative aspects of the rules. In codes of signification, it refers to the meaning as based on the constituted contexts f the system.
Based on these, what needs to be maintained --- community, communication and quality --- have to affect the new set of procedures that will be implemented but at the same time, these three elements, in the context of the new procedures, should convey the meaning that the implementation of the new system is for the purpose of maintaining the similar degree of dynamics that have been already present in Smarthinking.
This is to say that a solution as to the challenge in Smarthink ingis that in order for the company to maintaint community, communication and quality albeit the fact that the company is going to grow, some changes will have to be implemented in terms of websites structure. This therefore requires that the company implements new technologies and innovations. On one hand, as this implementation is for the purpose of maintenance, these new technologies and innovations should not be alienating it is also important that the online tutorial group is made aware of these changes.
Based on the theory, the agency can also affect the system. Hence, in order to effectively design a system that the agency will appreciate, the input of the agency can be regarded as significant once a new structure is introduced.
Implementation Plan
In order to effectively implement the new structure that the agencies will appreciate, the implementation plan can be summarized in the following stages inputs, analysis and output.
The initial step is to convey the changes that will take place. By means of messaging the clients and the tutors, the communication strategy is to initially make them aware that the company is expanding and there can be new and exciting changes that will take place. At this stage the recipients can be also informed that their cooperation is of great value, and it can be implied that they may participate in a few surveys.
As for the inputs, the following steps will be undertaken
Create teams that will source the inputs in the change of the structure the teams will source from the IT professionals, the company managers, team leaders of the tutors (or any supervisor), and then a survey on the users which include the tutors and the some clients.
The input stage is basically a data and knowledge gathering phase. The conference among the IT professionals, managers and supervisors can be regarded to immediately tackle the problem, which is to ensure that the new system and architecture that will be designed will maintain the sense of community, communication and quality that Smarthinking has had for several years.
The input of the users will be based on a survey. The questionnaires will have to discuss what they like and dont like about the existing system. It is also important to ask their opinions for improvements. Then, the questions will also bring up the expansion and the increase in the number of the users from this, the users will be asked their opinions and feelings about these changes. The design of the questionnaire will be based on the aspects related to community, communication and quality.
Based on the gathered data, the analysis will have to base in reference to the main objective of the design of the new structure the maintenance of community, communication and quality in the group.
The gathered data will also analyze based on the highlighted elements of the respondents as to what constitutes the site having a great sense of community, communication and quality. This is then compared in the discussion of the IT professionals, managers and supervisors.
The final design of the structure is the result of the inputs and the analyses. Basically, it is evident that the design is still technologically driven, but some small aspects can be significant in the overall effectiveness of the site. For instance, the new message board has a better interface, the same way client and tutor account pages are user-friendly and accessible.
In order to ensure that the agencyuser does not feel alienated, the main principle behind the design is to make things simple. In addition, the design can add more features that makes the site more attractive and feasible for better communication channels.
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