1Editor and Director of the Research Team, President Global Communication Research Association Researcher, Writer, Journalist, Consultant, Lecturer, Director of the
2Anisia Brahim; Berenice Correia Costa Pimentel; Edicelia Maria dos Santos de Souza; Elane do Socorro do Carmo Oliveira (Text and design reviewer); Elis Sandra Vieira; Elisabete G. Descrovi; Gizelia Moura Barbosa; Helisandra Reis; Joao Santana de Melo; Josefa Maria Paixão; Joseval Borges; Judith Santa Lima; Luis Alberto Fleitas; Maria Ferreira Melo de Azevedo; Maria Jose da Silva; Nivaldo Pedro de Oliveira; Regina da Conceição Vilhena Ferreira; Silvana Mesquita Cristino; Fatima Silvana Soares Pinho da Silva; Walcilene Gomes Barroso
*Corresponding author email id: lensoid@gmail.com
The COVID-19 pandemic has come into society so speedily that no one was ready to face it. Around the world, people of all walks of life have been so affected that the WHO and national governments had to step in and put strategies into action. Using social media has been part of such strategies in the workplace. The unseen enemy broke into the noisy routine of family, work, school, and the professional milieu, changing our open way of life, when only our face was uncovered. Now, it is our face that has to be protected because the enemy was attacking our breath. At this crossroads, we all began to quarantine, isolate, and fear, shrinking our social and working relationships. Yet, life had to move on; people had to care for their livelihood, and companies and institutions had to update and innovate, both internally and externally. Workers had to learn new skills, and the workplace had to take on ingenuity, creativity, and resiliency. The pandemic brought about a three-fold challenge: personal health, family care, and secure work in order to have access to basic needs, medicine, education, and social mobility. Within this background, social media played a crucial role in informing, setting agendas, uniting people, calling for meetings, forging agreements, putting forward working plans, and creating multiple-purpose scenarios. This study aimed to find out what role social media played during the pandemic in Brazil. Social media like WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter have been widely used by a vast audience to meet all kinds of purposes. They helped companies be in touch with clients, provide services, and generate fluent communication with them. Innovation was a key factor in meeting such purposes. The results showed that social media were and are instrumental in keeping people in touch with reality and serve as a means to motivate, create a sense of belonging, and encourage people to keep on despite the adversities. In conclusion, the study found that workers and companies had to update, innovate, and adopt new ideas and initiatives to meet the needs and expectations of their various audiences.
Social media, Workplace, Pandemic, Communication, Innovation, Updating
