This MIT Sloan Management Review article discusses the effective implementation of web-based collaboration tools "that companies can buy or build in order to make visible the practices and output of their knowledge workers". It addresses a major concern, especially within large, dynamic organizations: "most knowledge work practices and output are invisible to most people {within the organization}".
The article addresses a common misconception that orderly intranets maintained by professional staff are more efficient and effective than more collaborative platforms in which people at all levels of the organization have a hand in designing and organizing content.
I found this article to be a well-organized and in-depth discussion on the issues that exist to organizations considering a "Enterprise 2.0" implementation. It starts with a fundamental outline of what effective platforms should look like, outlined in the "SLATES" acronym: Search, Links, Authoring, Tags, Extensions, Signals. It goes on to caution on structured roll-outs that would narrow the scope, and therefore perhaps the effectiveness of the platform. The fact is these platforms do not need special skills or training, allowing users to adapt to the environment in a way that most effectively improves their knowledge sharing is very important. With this said, it is also important "to give people a starting point that they can react to and modify". This could be an initial assignment to outline a specific project/issue. This will get people active and hopefully get the majority of the organization on-board.
The article closes with an outline of challenges and opportunities facing organizations rolling out a Enterprise 2.0 platform. The most profound being management controls and unfavorable content based on management views. There will, of course, be anxiety among management when allowing such an uncensored platform to exist with an organization-wide audience. The article concludes that management must encourage proactive thought and contribution while being delicate in its oversight as not to discourage activity.
I have to agree with the bulk of the articles content and feel this is a good "10,000 ft view" of enterprise-wide implementation of collaboration tools such as wiki's and blogs. I think large, diverse organizations would be remised not to implement Enterprise 2.0 platforms if they have not already. Certainly there are a multitude of concerns for some organizations though. Regulated organizations that are required to limit the transfer of certain types of information like: medical (HIPAA), financial, national defense, security, etc. will have a hard time adopting these platforms I believe. The very principals that support this platform run counter to the principals and spirit in which those regulations are founded on. In an increasingly regulated environment it will be interesting to see where a middle-ground can be reached, allowing those with authorization to collaborate freely while effectively protecting the information being disseminated.
9/10
I need to implement a wiki and blog intranet at my organization in this fiscal year, and much of what you said hit home. We'll see how it goes but I have been keeping watch over what people post to email listserves and what they are willing to put out there and that, coupled with a lot of what's been said in this class, is easing my mind. most people want to use these tools to do their job better, if someone has bad judgment it will come out in other ways as well.
ReplyDeleteI agree that companies should start with a more structured plan for how these tools should be used but then allow for organic development. However, I also believe that training is necessary for a wiki. I think that this important for two reasons: securing buy-in and reducing natural reluctance of employees to adopt new tools. I was part of a wiki-rollout at my job this summer and even though the wiki was pretty easy to edit from my perspective, it required a lot of hand-holding to get people comfortable with it.
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