Eight Essential Components for Wiki Adoption

Earlier this week, Andrew McAfee and Dan Tapscott presented some of the key elements to adapting a wiki in the enterprise. Thy were summed up on this post at Wiki Patterns.

1. Tools are intuitive and easy to use – these are tools that are easy to use, this should be understood by the employees.
2. Tools are egalitarian and freeform – these tools are free to use and an outlet for work.
3. Borders seem appropriate to users – people will naturally understand the content that needs to be shared on the site, so the wealth of relevant information will be huge.
4. Patient and dedicated evangelists exist -- Experts are out there to help you easily adapt your wiki.
5. Effort has official and unofficial support from the top – Senior management will show their consideration by funding and understanding. Also, when they start contributing to the wiki.
6. Slack exists in the workweek -- Allow this time during the week for your employees to contribute to your wiki.
7. Top management accepts lateralization – Pure public content is being created by everyone, and it’s not edited first. It’s pure, whole valuable information being put out there for all your employees to gain a better understanding of work processes in your company.
8. There are lots of young people – This generation knows how to use the technology provided by the new age of internet and they won’t be afraid to use it. They’ll fully adopt the idea of the corporate wiki.

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Move over SharePoint, Google’s got a challenge

The New York Times posted a blog today about Google’s latest venture. It was announced yesterday that Google has unveiled their own version of Enterprise 2.0 software. With the announcement of Google Sites, Google has unveiled a tool that incorporates email, calendars, excels, documents and presentation software. What should Microsoft be the most worried about? It can be free of charge. And who is the brains behind this project? Joe Kraus, who was behind the website Excite which experienced its peak a few years ago, is the developer of this software.

The problem that Google might face when it comes to the technologies is that the information stored within the program is not on companies personal servers. The software also has limitations and is not as precise as SharePoint, but, since the application is free, many companies can overlook that.

I think Google is targeting little businesses. Huge corporations can afford that millions and millions of dollars it costs to finance Microsoft products. They probably already have SharePoint and are using the product effectively. However, for the millions of start ups and tiny companies that cannot pay the fees associated with keeping the Microsoft Suite up to date, this is a decent alternative. I think these programs will grow slowing into a developing marketplace.

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Enterprise Social Networking Goes Mobile

Tailored applications of Myspace and Facebook has been available on mobile phones like the iPhone, Blackberry, and Treo for months, but LinkedIn was still missing from the picture. The latest article on eWeek announces the launch of LinkedIn Mobile apps that is now available for the iPhone; versions for the Treo and Blackberry will soon follow.

What took LinkedIn so long to tap into mobile networking? Clearly, the majority of business executives live with their smartphones, and yet the social networking site tailored to the enterprise trailed Myspace and Facebook in the race to create mobile versions. The iPhone can no longer be considered a consumer gadget, but an enterprise mobile device. It’s making collaboration that much easier within organizations again…

There are a few things that come to mind when thinking about what is next for the enterprise in regards to mobile devices:

1. How long will it take for other enterprise apps to join the bandwagon and create tailored mobile versions?
2. How will this affect the usage of enterprise apps in the corporate office as more and more enterprise apps go mobile?

Access to information has been made that much simpler while on the go. This is an exciting time for enterprise 2.0…

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Need a new personal assistant?

There’s a new Web 2.0 tool that can now effectively help you get rid of all the clutter you have sitting around your desk. Remindo is a web 2.0 tool that can essentially become your personal assistant. It includes a variety of tools that will help you organize your work day.

The front page, which is called the work page, is customizable. You can change the layout to include whatever you want. Widgets are available; news feeds can be imported as well as other tools to help you organize your day.

The address book is kept up to date automatically, and you can also sort your contacts into groups and further organize it. The third tool the website mentions is messaging service. The mail service alleviates spam while also allowing you to send mail to however many people you choose at one time.

Check out Remindo’s blog here. Is this a tool you will use in the future? And if you’re already using it, let us know that you think about it.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Mobile Web 2.0 for the Enterprise

Nowadays it’s hard to turn off your blackberry for a split second, even while eating dinner with the family. This tells us that blackberries and mobile devices have become a popular commodity amongst business individuals. As enterprise executives spend less and less time in the office, how will Web 2.0 applications adapt to this? The latest post on the Open Gardens blog touches on the process of implementing Web 2.0 features on mobile devices.

According to Ajit Jaokar, Mobile Web 2.0 means “harnessing collective intelligence through restricted devices.” How does Web 2.0 work though? It works sort of like an iPod...You retrieve data from your mobile device through a web backbone, configuring the service through a PC. I think this diagram just about sums it up…

Mobile users are capable of retrieving simple data now, but when will executives be able to view the latest presentation on YouTube or Flickr accounts from their blackberries. We are still a long way from where we want to be in terms of mobile Web 2.0, but we are slowly getting there.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:

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The IMing Revolution

At Jimmahdigital.com, they wrote a recent post on instant messengers and their needed collaboration to stay in the game. Ten years ago, everyone used AIM. Over the years, a few more programs came along such as MSN, Yahoo and Google. The one problem most people have with the networks is that they can’t be combined. They all do the same thing, but no crossing of the networks. The reason for this is that originally each networked used a proprietary network that was closed.

So when Google came along, they started using Jabber, which is now the open protocol of XMPP. So this has motivated the networks to start banding together. Last month, Google Chat opened its doors and now collaborates with AIM. So, Yahoo, which is feeling pressure from many directions, is left standing and needs to join somewhere or it’ll get left behind.

Is all of this important for the enterprise? Communication is the key to making enterprise 2.0 works. So what if a company’s branch in Chicago uses AIM and the branch in Miami is using Yahoo? Well, there is potential that shows communication can soon be coming. It’s important that all of these software programs perform together, because as we’ve seen many times in the digital world, if you don’t keep up, it’s only a matter of months and you’re not in business anymore. Do you use the tools in a corporate setting? What’s your take on this?

The Big Chess Game: Microsoft and Yahoo

Yesterday, word came out that Yahoo went to the Securities and Exchange Commission and negotiated a severance package for all it’s employees who have a paid salary. The deal will be taken to the share holders, and then it will be voted on whether they want to cede to Microsoft. Since Yahoo is incorporated in Delaware, there are some laws that play into this. Yahoo legally cannot interfere with a vote by it’s share holders when they decide if they want to go to Microsoft.

The Deal Book at the New York Times lists several ways Yahoo can opt out of this situation, none of which are very easy.

1. Fight it out in a proxy contest – Yahoo can state that Microsoft is undervaluing it and aren’t willing to pay enough for it to sell. This would be very entertaining because the two companies would end up appealing to consumers by running a national ad war along with mass mailings to the share holders.
2. Severance and other change of control contracts – Just in case someone bought Yahoo!, employees then terminated would covered. However, this does not go into affect if you are fired by Yahoo.
3. 3rd Party Buyout -- Someone else can buy Yahoo! However, if more than one corporation was interested, the highest price is the winner.
4. Alliance or Acquisition -- The New York Times finds this to be the best option. This is when we look to AOL, however, this has been rumored for a while and nothing has panned out.
5. Crown Jewel Sale – Yahoo can sell a part of it’s company to make the buy less appealing.
6. Leveraged Recapitalization – Yahoo buys back stocks from the share holders at a premium price. This will be very expensive. Cost is not a problem for Yahoo, if they want the company, they will buy it. This will also make the whole thing more public than it already is. Share holders will know what is going on.

We don’t know the whole story to this point. Microsoft and Yahoo could be at the negotiating table right now. Whatever way this chess game ends, it’s been fun watching the ups and downs of two companies battling head to head to keep in the technology world.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Strive to make Enterprise 2.0 Fit, and It Can Make the Difference

Enterprise 2.0 presents a company with something new. And, as we know, organizations, just like humans, are not warm to new ways of working. So, that’s why many of today’s organizations are wondering why they need to learn about Enterprise 2.0 if they’re not going to use it. It’s simple, it’s the future. In this blog post by Bertrand Duperrin, he looks at the key factors that are essential to change when adapting enterprise 2.0 into an organization.

As he points out, organizations are built to repeat the same task endlessly. With this new software, we can work together and help each other adapting to tasks that are not usually repetitive.

The company’s intranet is usually one of the first things companies try to start with to adapt Enterprise 2.0. So they ask the experts whether they should adapt 1.0 web software or 2.0. Well, the answer truly is that the company has to find what works for them. This is usually a mix between 1.0 and 2.0.

Current organizations are built on a top down managerial model. The interaction that Enterprise 2.0 encourages makes the defined lines shift. As the next generation of workers enters the workplace, they will have a better idea of how the internet tools work. Collaboration between all can promote a fully successful Enterprise 2.0 atmosphere.

The last main topic Duperrin pulls on is brand and corporate culture. Your company has evolved over the years, and so has the way the business industry has been. It’s all about differentiation now, and that’s where you’re going to get the future talent to work for your company. Adapt to what is right for your company, and your talent will find you.

Look into the future, don’t be afraid to adapt to the coming revolution.

Enterprise Social Networking: It Has Value!

There is a constant battle sage brewing over the concept of including an enterprise social networking application within organizations. Top level executives have been arguing whether it has any real business value and IT departments claim it brings about too many security risks. As the new generation of young executives rise into power, social networking apps like Facebook, Plaxo, and Google will become increasingly popular collaboration tools in the enterprise.

I came across this article on ZdNet, which includes a thought from Harvard Business School professor Andrew McAfee. He explains why certain Enterprise tools are still not being accepted in organizations:

"We need to keep in mind that most E2.0 tools are new, and that their acceptance depends on shifts in perspective on the part of business leaders and decision makers, shifts for which the word ‘seismic’ might not be an overstatement. Enterprise 2.0 tools have no inherent respect for organizational boundaries, hierarchies, or job titles. They facilitate self-organization and emergent rather than imposed structure. They require line managers, compliance officers, and other stewards to trust that users will not deliberately or inadvertently use them inappropriately. They require these stewards to become comfortable with collaboration environments that “practice the philosophy of making it easy to correct mistakes, rather than making it difficult to make them” as Jimmy Wales has said. They require, in short, the re-examination and often the reversal of many longstanding assumptions and practices. It is not in the least disrespectful or contemptuous of today’s managers to say that it will take them some time to get used to this."

Out of all Web 2.0 tools, social networking still receives the most skepticism. In our previous post we discuss how companies like BEA have incorporated a Facebook-like social solution to ease collaboration and sharing of documents, and how Salesforce.com has launched its social networking platform Ideaforce to share ideas on product development. If companies like these can find value in enterprise networking, other businesses are missing out on its benefits. Clearly, organizations are slowly catching on, but not quick enough...

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Is bookmarking behind the Web 2.0 curve?

In a recent article at CNet, Gordon Haff ponders the subject of community book marking. He points out that there have really been no additions to this field since the start of the Enterprise 2.0 revolution. Yes, we have del.icio.us, but even that hasn’t changed format or updated recently. The parent company of del.icio.us is Yahoo!.

There is also no real social connection between people on the site. Yes, you can look at your friends’ bookmarked sites, but who takes much time to go through their websites? Another archaic feature to this is after things are bookmarked, you can’t rearrange them. Unless you bookmark a second time your page will forever be marked with the date you originally bookmarked it on. There is also the fact that one can only describe the webpage in so many words.

So where does that leave this application? It’s old fashioned and has failed to keep up with the Web 2.0 movement. Perhaps Microsoft, if it acquires Yahoo!, will remake del.icio.us into a more sophisticated business tool.
We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/