This dinner discussion was the second in a series of dialogues we held as part of the Tomorrow’s Company Futures Project, a business led inquiry that developed a positive and practical vision for how companies can be a force for good.

The speed and agility of communication poses great challenges for leaders. How can leaders ensure that their organisations are using the power of social media to its best? How can they keep up with the changing technology? And are leaders aware of the risks they might be faced with and how they can lead in a crisis situation?

This dinner dialogue was hosted by Adnams, Barclays, the University of East Anglia and Tomorrow’s Company to discuss the impact of social media. Through this dialogue we brought to light examples of best practice and explore how social media can be embraced by tomorrow’s leaders and be embedded throughout their organisations.

Our keynote speaker was Tom Edmonds who was Director of the Conservative Party’s Digital and Creative operation at the 2015 General Election, spending two years building a team that sat right at the heart of the Party’s successful election campaign. The Conservatives’ focused and fully-integrated digital campaign – encompassing ground breaking use of social media, online videos, email and interactive websites – is widely recognised as playing a vital role in helping secure the Party’s first majority since 1992.  Tom is now Co-Founder of Edmonds Elder, a consultancy focused on helping businesses and organisations put digital at the heart of their own operations.

You can download the summary notes of the discussion here.