Social Media Culture among Automobile Training Industry Associates and Trainees and Their Performance in the Workplace

Abstract

202 Saudi national trainees and 32 multinational associates at an automobile training industry were participants to examine the association between their social media culture (SMC) and performance. Cochran’s formula with a 95% confidence level and 5 confidence interval was utilized. Generally, all variables were analyzed with chi square and phi coefficient for the frequency distribution and cross tabulation used. Data were gathered through a one-shot survey research design; wherein qualitative methods were employed for triangulation. In a multicultural organization, it could be inferred that SMC was typically propagated by a combination of factors. It emerged organically among members while organizational policies, leadership support, and communication channels could have shaped and influenced it. The study found out that their participation in SMC translated into tangible actions. In addition, it not only disclosed that the emerging SMC was often created to foster stakeholders’ connectivity, knowledge exchange, and engagement, but it also confirmed its added value to organizational communication. Ultimately anchored with computer-mediated communication (CMC) (Walther, 2011), it revealed a slightly moderate direct positive association between SMC shareholders and their workplace performance. This implies that engagement with SMC can have some beneficial effects in a professional setting.