This Week's Herman Trend Alert The Consequences of Virtual Meetings

The Herman Trend Alert October 21, 2009 Using Social Media to Prevent Disease Capitalizing on the growing popularity of social networking among young people, organizations dedicated to the prevention and control of disease have begun using these sites to fulfill their purposes. A brand new Facebook application was launched last week to help educate, motivate, and mobilize young people to prevent the spread of Humanpapilloma Virus (HPV). For a while now, Facebook has had a breast cancer prevention application. Through Facebook, "Fact Check: HPV" (hpvfactcheck.org) encourages visitors to take an interactive, educational quiz about HPV, find additional resources, and commit to take action. But the big news is that for the first time, concerned friends can anonymously share this application with others in a trusted relationship, because they are already Facebook friends. According to Derek Hansen of the University of Maryland (UM)'s College of Information Studies, the new system creates "plausible deniability" and capitalizes on friendships to prevent disease. UM's iSchool collaborated with the Partnership for Prevention to launch this application. The level of HPV infection among the United States sexually active population is shocking---over 80 percent carries at least one strain of this dreaded virus. In fact, a recent study conducted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that one in four adolescent girls between the ages of 14 and 19, or 3.2 million teen girls, is infected with at least one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases---(HPV, Chlamydia, Herpes, etc.). Given that the use of social networking sites has quadrupled over the last four years and over 75 percent of young adults, age 18 to 24, have an online profile page, it is logical that organizations like the Partnership for Prevention would get behind this initiative. At the same time, the CDC has been online technology and social networking for a while. In addition to providing quizzes, eCards and eGames to engage the visitor to its website, the CDC has even its own island in the virtual world of Second Life. Expect to see social networking used to promote all kinds of agendas to this cohort of young people who are very comfortable connecting technologically. © Copyright 1998- by The Herman Group, Inc. -- reproduction for publication is encouraged, with the following attribution: From "The Herman Trend Alert," by Roger Herman and Joyce Gioia, Strategic Business Futurists. (800) 227-3566 or http://www.hermangroup.com. The Herman Trend Alert is a trademark of The Herman Group, Inc." BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND: RETENTION SPECIALIST PROGRAM A growing number of people have expressed an interest in attending our Employee Retention Specialist Certificate Program. We'd like to schedule on that's convenient for those who want to attend, but need your feedback to do so. Please place RETENTION SPECIALIST in the subject line and Joyce will personally call you back to schedule the workshop. Or you can call Joyce directly at 336-210-3548 (PDT this and next week). BUSINESS IS PICKING UP Most employers are unprepared. The recovery will bring a new set of challenges for employers that have been in prolonged contracted mode. They will need more skilled workers or will need now to begin to upskill their current staffs. But organizations can not engage in Strategic Workforce Planning, when they don't know how. That's where The Herman Group can help. We can help you with your "People Review"----large or small---so that you will know who you will need and when you will need them. . . and we can also guide you to the best sources for the people you will need. For more information, call Joyce at 336-210-3548 or e-mail joyce@hermangroup.com. FIND OUT WHAT YOUR EMPLOYEES REALLY THINK AND FEEL Discover what’s really going on in the hearts and minds of your employees. Our InnerViews interviewing service uses SPHRs and PHRs, certified human resource professionals to probe for the information you really need to know. Exit and Stay Interviews, as well as Why-Didn't-You-Take-Our-Offer Interviews. Call Rosalie Catalano at 937-416-7066, or read more at: http://www.hermangroup.com/retentionconnection/exit_interviews.html. Herman Trend Alerts are produced by the Herman Group, strategic business futurists, Certified Management Consultants, authors, and professional speakers. New subscribers are welcome. There is no charge for this public service. The Herman Trend Alert is received by over 30,000 subscribers in 78 countries, in addition to other websites and printed magazines. Do you enjoy receiving this weekly e-mail update? Contact us about our co-branded Trend Alert service. Click here to sign up for the Herman Trend Alert. Subscribe or Unsubscribe to weekly Herman Trend Alert View this week's Herman Trend Alert Archived Weekly Herman Trend Alerts

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