I watched in awe from early this morning as the world got ready for the inauguration of Barack Obama as President. I felt joy and hope as I read my dad’s email this morning saying that he was so excited to see the moment that he had dreamed of, but thought might never come in his country. And I was inspired by Obama’s speech–a mixture of the stark reality of our time and determination for a bright future. This was truly an historical moment and it was amazing to see the first African-American president take office in the US.

Obama is an historical president in other aspects, too. Obama ran the first campaign in history that fully embraced technology in order to reach constituents and his transition is being touted as one of the most transparent (see this NY Times article for an interesting look at campaigning with Web 2.0). That’s in part because many of the technologies that gave Obama’s campaign momentum and transition visibility, such as YouTube or Facebook, were not available or well-known in previous elections. Obama seems to not only have surrounded himself with people who know how to leverage current technology to reach supporters and constituents, but he also has a good understanding of the potential benefits and drawbacks of that technology. Obama’s use of technology offers some insights and lessons to leading virtually, both in teams and organizations. Although most virtual leaders are not undertaking a task as huge as running for President or running the country, some of Obama’s use of technology can be adapted to the needs of other leaders.

1. Reach Out
Obama’s campaign was masterful in reaching out to millions of Americans to garner support and funding. He was able to raise record amounts of funding through millions of small donations through reaching out over web sites and email and encouraging people to leverage their personal networks to support his campaign. After the election, Obama continued to use the Internet to reach out to Americans on the change.gov website to gather opinions and concerns of citizens. The new whitehouse.gov site, launched almost at the instant Obama was sworn in, has already posted a blog relating the administrations intentions to use the site to stay connected to Americans. The insight here is that people outside of the team or organization can be reached, and in many cases are willing to help. Tools such as blogs, wikis, or Web sites can help teams and organizations reach out to others and gather ideas for creative solutions or problem solving. Blogs can be a place to start conversations with people interested in the same topic which can stimulate team member thinking.

2. Mix it Up
Obama’s campaign used a mix of media and technologies effectively to reach as many people as possible. He raised a majority of his money online and used it to buy airtime on network television for his final infomercial. The insight for virtual leaders is that the appropriate technology to reach and work with people may differ depending on the individuals involved and the context. Betsy’s post, Freeing Yourself from E-mail and Surinder’s post on emergent collaboration offer some good advice on when certain technologies might be useful and in what context.

3. Personalize the Message
During his campaign, Obama sent out a text message to supporters when he decided who his running mate would be. Many receivers of the message, who learned the news before most of the rest of the country, took the text as a personalized message, strengthening a sense of connection with the candidate. The Obama team plans to use the email addresses it collected during the days of the campaign to stay in touch with citizens and rally them to support Obama’s initiatives. Virtual leaders could take a cue from this and the importance of personalizing messages, even when addressing a group of people. Adding personal touches or proactively contacting team members to clarify information or send encouragement can help strengthen interpersonal relationships necessary for working effectively together.

4. Keep Boundaries
Obama is refusing to give up his Blackberry despite security and legal concerns. He is determined to find a way to keep it during his tenure at the White House. He sees the Blackberry as a way to escape from the Presidential bubble and to maintain some contact with the ‘outside world’, helping him keep perspective and get information from people other than those directly related to the White House. Keeping boundaries and separate spaces for work and personal communication may be harder to do in the days of instant access to everyone, but Obama’s point is well-taken. It’s not a bad idea to have separate business and personal email accounts and pay attention to those privacy settings on social networking sites.

5. Expect the Unexpected
Obama is aware that with the freedom of new media, comes some unexpected results. Rather than shy away from the technology, he seems to understand the results and takes them into consideration. For instance he has mentioned that he is aware that anything that he writes in a text message could end up on the Internet so he is careful to check before he presses send. This is a key point for anyone working and communicating with technology. With almost equal access to technology and adding information on outlets like the Web, virtual leaders and team members should remember that, along with the benefit of a record of events and project progress, comes the possibility of that record becoming public. On the other hand, the unexpected can lead to delightful results as the trend of re-mixing, re-using, mashups and viral video grows. For example, the spontaneous community that sprang up around an Obama campaign sign or the Super Obama World online video game are things that could not have happened without the connectivity and reach of the Internet.

Conclusion
Obama’s use of technology, however, would not have been as successful had his message and vision not resonated with people. After all, John McCain had a web site and a video game, too, but the impact was little compared to Obama’s. Effective use of technology is not enough. A leader’s desire and ability to connect to people and welcome new possibilities is important. When these qualities are present, along with integrity and sincerity, then technology will be useful.