Rich User Experiences

The next pattern identified by Tim O’Reilly is Rich User Experiences (RUE). This refers to the heightened experience of users when accessing a collaborative and user-friendly platform with abundant functionalities. The interactive and online nature of platforms with rich user experience characteristics engages users, allowing for ‘heavier’ tasks to be performed and the integration of services.

SkyDesk, by Fuji Xerox, is a prime example of Software as a Service (SaaS), which provides an extremely rich user experience. This cloud service provides an arsenal of collaborative tools, facilitating efficient, innovative and seamless teamwork. Some of the countless services offered by SkyDesk users are:

• Improved collaboration via instant group messaging, integrated email management, team member availability access, document sharing and more!;
• Accessible and intuitive calendar schedules, reminders and event listings;
• Effective customer relationship management achieved by inventory management, sales support and customer support;
• Streamlined report and chart generation from imported data files; &
• The ability to impose strong and specific file restrictions, particularly in regards to user permissions, ensuring only those privy to the information can access it.

All of the facilities are optimised for mobile devices, allowing access and contribution while at home or on the move. SkyDesk content is encrypted, transmitting data by SSL communication, ensuring data and network security measures, as well as 24hour physical security.

I have not signed up to SkyDesk, as I would not be able to fully utilise it in my current position, however I can see the vast array of benefits to organisations implementing this SaaS. Huge improvements in accessibility – due to the cloud nature of the system – interaction and collaboration, information dissemination and potentially greater sales, marketing and feedback due to increased compatible facilities. It seriously looks like a godsend to corporations!

One online collaboration program which I am very familiar with is Google Drive (Docs). This is a fantastic tool for facilitating multiple users in simultaneously contributing to a document. This platform has made my life immeasurably simpler, and university results undoubtedly better, as the alternative (sending updated emails between multiple team members) is extremely complicated and stressful, particularly when trying to ensure all changes are integrated into one document (highly unlikely).

From this, you can see that I’m a huge supporter of online platforms which facilitate teamwork, which is why I think it will be very interesting to see what SkyDesk’s next move is. Perhaps they will target the tertiary education realm, with slightly differing tools to benefit study (flash card system or multiple choice quizzes perhaps) and the different types of assessment pieces (such as speeches). However I imagine that only a free version attainable through DreamSpark would be successful, as I think it would be unlikely that students would pay for discretionary software.

As I am unable to fully exploit this service as an outsider, my take on SkyDesk may not be as insightful as that of users who have dealt with it, so bear that in mind if my discussion lacks a few important components here and there! Have you ever used SkyDesk or a similar program? If you have, I’d love to hear of your experiences and recommendations for platforms which are immaculate examples of RUE.

Thanks for reading :) This is my final post for Web 2.0 Applications – I hope you’ve learned something new and enjoyed my ramblings.

Take care :)

Innovation in Assembly

Coined by O’Reilly, innovation in assembly facilitates the integration of numerous web 2.0 services, enabling value to be created without requiring the developer to start from scratch. Platforms which are built through the incorporation of components from other applications (referred to as ‘mashups’) have the potential to become a stronger resource, as data can be pooled into the one platform from various sources, becoming a ‘one stop shop’.

APIs (Application Programming Interface) make innovation in assembly possible, providing tools and components to build on established applications to develop a new platform. Publishing an API is beneficial to all parties involved, as it facilitates the sharing of content, integrating platforms within each other to dynamically distribute information among the online community. Developers implementing the API gain access to large volumes of information, improving efficiency by saving research and time costs. The company providing the API benefits from increased traffic and a raised online profile.

As I am a huge gig junkie and supporter of local music, I’ve decided to evaluate the Last.fm API. Last.fm is a music platform which allows users to listen to radio, purchase songs, receive artist recommendations, view upcoming music events, and much more. This website is a muso’s heaven! Releasing the API to the general public enables programmers to build platforms which incorporate the mass datasets collated by Last.fm. Last.fm provides some guidance for programmers implementing the API, encouraging users to utilize their resources. The REST (Representational State Transfer) architecture employed by the last.fm API allows for modification (not just reading privileges), resulting in virtually no limitation in data manipulation or presentation.

Last.fm has 240 known mashups (likely to have many more) which have combined the last.fm API with other resources to develop a platform which has different goals that are met with the assistance of the last.fm database. The mashups created from last.fm and other external platform datasets are quite interesting as there is virtually no limitations to how the data can be utilised. Upon researching some last.fm mashups, I discovered a number of awesome platforms that I will definitely be checking out again in the near future. The ones of particular interest to me are listed in the poll below – have you tried out any of these yet? What’s your favourite mashup platform of all time?

Thanks for reading :)

Urban Dictionary is a Data Goldmine

This week I’m looking at the second of O’Reilly’s 8 Core Patterns – Data is the next “Intel Inside”. My understanding of this statement is that the ability to gather, store and use data will benefit the website or host of the data immensely. This concept encapsulates that the more data which can be retrieved, the stronger the website will be as a result of the knowledge base, allowing for thorough analysis, on-sale and manipulation of acquired data.

When looking at web applications which promote public input to enrich the knowledge base, I chose to focus on Urban Dictionary. This site is interesting, to say the least. It is a perfect example of how the contributions of the general public add up to create a large database of information. Urban Dictionary features over 7.5 million definitions of slang words, abbreviations, lingo and more, many of which are used in pop culture (e.g. YOLO, twerk and hipster).

Source

The words and definitions are composed by the general public, with submissions monitored by editors. The website does not require a login or sign up, allowing users to quickly and freely interact with the site. Not only can the public submit a term to the database; there are also the facilities to rate the word, directly share the term on social media and subscribe to receiving the ‘word of the day’. Furthermore, the ability to embed YouTube videos and images into the pages demonstrates how this website supports and encourages the use of other popular social media to better the Urban Dictionary experience.

There are many informative websites powered by community involvement (such as Wikipedia, Yahoo Answers, WikiHow), however Urban Dictionary captures a niche area, as the premise for the site is to include trending words which are not featured in a regular dictionary, due to being (but not limited to) made-up words, portmanteau terms or acronyms.

A few ethical issues may arise over the terms uploaded to the database, as the moderators appear to accept terms without much consideration. For example, some full birth names are listed, with an insulting and derogatory description to follow. Personally, I think that oversteps some boundaries, as this can be a form of online bullying, with a worldwide audience to witness the humiliation. Do you think there are any other major ethical issues which might result from slack moderation of the public’s terms?

I think that the Urban Dictionary is a great resource for a bit of fun, and shows how data collaboration can build quickly from the restriction-less input of the public, however there is the opportunity for viewers to take offense if specific information is written. Maybe I’m being a bit precious, but the internet is full of hate and too many people are victims of cyber-bullying.

Exploiting Web 2.0 Capabilities to Harness Collective Intelligence

Well, firstly – what on earth is collective intelligence and why do we want to harness it? Collective intelligence basically refers to the knowledge attained through the means of group collaboration and sharing. This process enables users worldwide (assuming the portal is not a ‘walled garden’) to use their understanding and problem solving skills to create widespread cognitive power, assisting in effective knowledge management. Collective intelligence is a core component of everyday society, as communication is at the centre of information dissemination (Knowledge Management Research & Practice, 2012).

So what applications or websites benefit from collective intelligence? The answer – almost every web 2.0 website. Any page which allows a user to interact with the site is benefited as a result of community sharing. The following image displays a glimpse of just some of the websites and applications which thrive from collective intelligence.

Source: McCratic, 2011

Another critically important concept of harnessing collective intelligence is that the more users accessing an application or website, the better the product becomes. For instance, Facebook would be fairly useless if none of your friends or family were using it. Again, YouTube is the most desirable video website as the more users means the more videos that get uploaded, giving it a greater quantity and broader range of content.

Kick Ass Torrents (KAT) is quite a controversial site which benefits significantly through collective intelligence. This website enables the free download of movies, television shows, music, books, games and more through the use of a BitTorrent client. Torrents are downloaded significantly faster if there are more users who have already downloaded the file (known as seeders). Users can also provide feedback, informing other users of the file information and quality. This community collaboration demonstrates how effective collective intelligence is in the torrent world.

There are numerous other torrent sites online, KAT is one of many. Other popular hosts include The Pirate Bay, Bitsnoop, and btjunkie. These sites are more or less the same, with slight variations in process and layout. So this is where it gets tricky. Is this legal? Well, yes… and no. Torrent hosts and BitTorrent clients are legal practices, however the unlawful acquisition of copyright materials is where major breaches occur (Leiva-Gomez, 2013). The Copyright Act 1968 is an Australia-wide law which determines what can and cannot be distributed without the owner’s permission (Australian Government, 2013). There’s lots of ins and outs within laws; but a good rule of thumb is if it is available for purchase, then acquiring the product for free is not legal.

Torrents make it tricky for law enforcement agencies to trace and reduce the amount of illegally available materials held under the copyright law. The P2P network is a powerful community allowing the general public to continually upload files. Penalties and the number of persons caught breaching the law are increasing, but there’s still a long road ahead to ensure data is acquired in lawful methods. With the online world growing rapidly and opportunities of anonymity increasing, the Government will struggle to catch abusers of the system. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. But that’s just my opinion – do you think the government will find another way to control this and thus reduce copyright theft?

Terms:

BitTorrent – the file transfer protocol (FTP) facilitating the download of torrents
Torrents – collaborative peer-to-peer (P2P) file distribution online
Walled Garden – secluded to a particular group or demographic

References:

1. Australian Government, ComLaw. (2013). Copyright Act 1968 (Act No. 63). Accessed online via http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/C2013C00145/Html/Text#_Toc354567326
2. Knowledge Management Research & Practice. (2012). Harnessing collective intelligence of Web 2.0: Group adoption and use of Internet-based collaboration technologies. 10, 301–311. Accessed online via http://www.palgrave-journals.com/kmrp/journal/v10/n4/full/kmrp201230a.html
3. Leiva-Gomez, M. (2013). Is Downloading Torrent Legal or Illegal, And How Safe Is It? Accessed online via http://www.maketecheasier.com/is-downloading-torrent-legal-or-illegal/
4. McCratic, S. (2011). Define Web 2.0. Accessed online via http://www.evolvedmommy.com/web2-0/

Social Networking in the Workplace

Last week, I looked at wikis and how they can aid processes in the workplace. Continuing on from that, I’m looking at social networks and businesses, this week. Social networks are extremely popular and have seen a boom in usage over the past few years. There are so many types of social networks available, with Facebook being primarily between friends and family; LinkedIn working with persons looking for work and communicating with businesses; LastFM uniting music lovers; DeviantART connecting artists of all kinds, Flickr facilitating photo sharing, Foursquare allowing people to ‘check in’ to locations, Stickam for live video chat, Twitter for microblogging… I could go on and on. I’m a member of many of these, and more, social networks, as they allow me to keep up to date with my interests, communicate with old and new friends, publish my own content and meet people with similar interests and mentality.

But how do these cater for businesses?

Businesses can gain awareness and receive free publicity, simply by having a fan page on Facebook . Businesses who cater for a specific area can use relevant social networking sites to advertise themselves  or can even be a sponsor of the site. Businesses can use Twitter to post regular updates to followers, whether promotional, informative or other content, thus gaining more followers and having followers respond to their content. Businesses can go through LinkedIn to find the most appropriate new employee for their workplace, by gaining a thorough understanding of the person considered to be hired. There are so many opportunities for businesses to gain exposure, communicate with new and old supporters, find suitable staff, keep an eye on what’s being said about them (both good and bad) and mend any problems brought to their attention by customers/clients and thus amend their reputation, through the use of social networking.

The number of social networking sites is continually growing, and by utilising ones which are relevant to businesses allow for customers and clients to develop a better rapport with the corporation, allow for businesses to make better, more informed decisions, monitor what’s being said about them, and can gain free and paid advertisements. The moderation of the social networks is a critical factor in having an online presence, as this must always reflect what the business is after in an image. Having detrimental content on the social network will have a detrimental effect on the corporations reputation. If a business properly uses social networks, the opportunities that will open for the business are astronomical.

Social networks have made a huge impact on the world. Check out some statistics I found while browsing (there are so many, check it out!):

• 91% of online adults regularly use social media;
• 57% of marketers acquired customers via blogging;
• 61% of global internet users research products online;
• 49% of marketing campaigns reported a return on investment (ROI) of more than 5 times, while 70% reported a ROI greater than 3 times;
• 27% of small businesses are using social media; &
• 34% of medium businesses are using social media.

(Pring, 2012)

If you wanna see a cool visual overview of how social networking as impacted everyone’s lives, check out the following video:

– Steph :)

Resources:

Pring, C. (2012). 216 Social Media & Internet Statistics.

Wikis in the Workplace

Hey guys, welcome back!

This week I’m looking at wikis and how they can be used to overcome problems and address objectives in the corporate environment. But first – what is a wiki, anyway? A wiki is a collaborative website – anyone can add, edit and remove content (EPA, 2012). So you may be thinking, “if anyone can change what’s on the page, surely it can’t be reliable”. That’s not the case, however. Although there is opportunity for inaccuracy and intentional misuse, wikis can be very useful resources (Educause, 2005). Through the community nature, content is frequently updated by users to reflect the most correct (and unbiased) data. This allows for a greater final product, as the multiple editors refine the information to be thorough yet easily understandable and accurate. I’m sure you’ve come across wikis in your web searching over the years – some well-known examples include Wikipedia (an online multilingual encyclopaedia), Wikihow (a how-to manual), Wikia (music lyrics) and Judgepedia (information of courts and judges in the USA).

Wikis would be especially useful for large organisations, through the simplicity of information sharing, by contacting all staff in one action. For a business to introduce their own wiki into the workplace, many benefits may arise. Such benefits include, but are not limited to:

• Easy to access – uses a regular internet browser and supports images and links;
• Version control and audit trails ensure information is traceable;
• Reduces excess email correspondence and frees inbox space;
• Can facilitate project progress, by organising meetings and viewing team member movement;
• No staff miss out on an important notice/change in policy/protocol and there is a data trail;
• All information is located in the one place – don’t need to filter through emails to find what you’re looking for;
• All staff are on the same page with information – no staff member is disadvantaged or less educated; &
• Having a record of problems and fixes available for all.

So long as a wiki is continually kept up to date and is frequently monitored by management or a designated moderator, the likelihood of reducing (potential) obstacles and improving business-wide communications is increased significantly. As a result, project delivery time can be reduced, unnecessary paper trails can be eliminated, team communication and relationships are improved and information gathering is simplified.

(Gardner, 2009).

“Thousands of organizations, from Microsoft to the FBI, use wikis to aggregate the knowledge of their far-flung employees, creating a place for them to electronically converge and collaborate on everything from planning meetings and documenting best practices to brainstorming about new products and processes” (Morse, 2008). Every day, more enterprises are embracing this technology to improve their business communications and processes. The steady increase of wiki use (and other Web 2.0 tools – see figure 1, above) demonstrate that it is anticipated that these technologies will continue to be utilised and businesses who have already adopted such technologies haven’t looked back. If your competitors are using wikis and you’re not, ask yourself why. I’ve identified many benefits for implementing wikis in the workplace, and highlighted that if it is used properly, the downfalls are scarce. So what are you waiting for?

– Steph

Resources:

Educause. (2005). 7 Things You Should Know About Wikis. Retrieved 6 October, 2012.

EPA. (2012). Glossary. Retrieved 6 October, 2012.

Gardner, J. (2009). Blogs, Wikis & Official Statistics. Retrieved 8 October, 2012.

Morse, G. (2008). Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales on making the most of company wikis. Retrieved 8 October, 2012.

Blogging Strategies for the Brisbane Airport

Hello all,

Over the next few weeks, my blog posts will be related to my final enterprise 2.0 assignment, which is a proposal for the implementation of web 2.0 technologies to improve user experience when travelling through the Brisbane Airport. This week I’m looking at blogging strategies which may allow for the many benefits of social tools to arise. Many benefits which can arise from the implementation of social media include:

• Gaining awareness;
• Building rapport;
• Improved client liaison methods;
• Developing and strengthening relationships;
• Enhance user experience and satisfaction;
• Greater customer and community engagement; &
• Increased revenue and profit.

So how can the Brisbane Airport effectively distinguish itself from other Australian airports (in particular, the Gold Coast Airport) and other modes of public and private transport? By improving client liaison methods and building rapport with all stakeholders – all airline employees, staff working within the airport in areas such as retail and hospitality, maintenance crew, suppliers, customers and shareholders – it is more than likely that positive word of mouth marketing will occur; thus increasing awareness and potentially increasing profit.

The benefits are endless if the Brisbane Airport is to effectively use web 2.0 tools, as over 20 million people pass through the Brisbane Airport every year (Brisbane Airport Corporation, 2012). The Brisbane Airport has already got a Facebook page, although this could be used far more regularly and gain customer engagement more effectively through the use of text and photo posts. I recommend that the Brisbane Airport creates a blog (linked with Facebook) which appeals to first time users, featuring text posts including day to day information, brain teasers, prizes, flight delays, weather conditions, airline information and information about the Brisbane Airport (historical, current and future plans). Furthermore, the blog should include photos of the airport, opinion polls, links to relevant external websites, travel information for tourists, hot spots in Brisbane, and more.

An example of a great blog, which I actually mentioned a few weeks ago, is Open Skies Airline. Unfortunately, their blog is no longer available, as it was only a teaser for the airline before it had begun transporting passengers. This blog was a fantastic resource for curious travellers to visit and see information regarding what the airline is planning, getting involved in what food should be served on flight, photos of the staff and uniforms, as well as other information. This blog received excess traffic and had a great response from the community, who enjoyed being involved in the development of the airline and was able to see each new decision as it happened. From the moment the airline became active, it had an overwhelming amount of bookings, solely from the marketing strategy – the blog. If the Brisbane Airport were to follow Open Skies and model their blog in a similar style, the amount of traffic through Brisbane Airport may increase dramatically if used effectively.

Does the Brisbane Airport already have a blog? Please let me know if you’ve stumbled upon one which appears to be legitimate.

– Steph

Resources:

Brisbane Airport Corporation. (2012). Passenger Statistics.

Adoption Strategies

In week 7, I’ve decided to look into a variety of possible adoption strategies of social tools, undertaken by enterprises, evaluate the benefits and discuss why many organisations are struggling with the uptake of the new technologies. My research indicates that the adoption of social tools in an enterprise would be far swifter if the tools were enforced by those at the top of the hierarchy. That is; if managers were to stop using current tools and require all employees to use the new social tools, the adoption would be quick and strong, as the old tools have no need for use because no colleagues will be using the outdated technologies anymore, accepting the newest social tools into the office.

Additionally, some technologies require the majority of the public to utilise them before enterprises accept them into their business. For instance; Facebook. Facebook gained a huge amount of attention in its early years, and with such a strong response from individuals, businesses started going online and developing fan pages to gain awareness, correspond with clients and prospective clients, and to remain up to date with the latest and most popular technologies.

It has been demonstrated that social tools can significantly improve productivity, as it engages users in a greater degree of participation and involvement and improves the ability to collaborate. Furthermore, the public nature of social tools allows management, employees and the general public to communicate in an open environment, allowing information to be directly available for those who seek it. This ultimately reduces communication costs, while allowing for greater opportunity for innovation, increase in revenue and profit, faster access to knowledge, larger client base and higher customer satisfaction.

There are many possible reasons why the adoption of social tools are not working effectively:

• Not appealing to personal needs;
• Not identifying work benefits;
• Social tools remaining separate to the office procedures; &
• Risk management protocol is not (appropriately) implemented.

A business who encouraged the implementation of enterprise 2.0 technologies and as a result, experienced a boom in business operations was fashion and luxury goods designer Burberry.  Burberry enabled the general public access to their information at all times, and was compatible with any device. Burberry has worked solidly on achieving a desirable experience for the general public accessing Burberry data, engaging customers to create better results. Upon doing this, Burberry achieved a 21% increase in profits. A point worth noting is that 70% of Burberry’s staff were under the age of 30, allowing for the embrace of digital technologies to be more readily accepted within the business as that generation has a greater technological proficiency.

If you’ve got some spare time, I suggest you give this article by Dion Hinchcliffe a read.  He goes further into the logistics surrounding the implementation of social tools and has a lot of links to additional success stories.

Til next time :)

Steph

Resources:

Fahey, R. (2009). Talkin’ Bout A Revolution.

Hinchcliffe, D. (2012). Realizing Social Business: Enterprise 2.0 Success Stories.

Legal Risks of Social Media

Last week I examined many of the benefits and risks associated with Enterprise 2.0. This week I’m looking further into the legal risks associated with company use of social media. The following diagram retrieved from Dundas Lawyers Pty Ltd (2012) demonstrates some of the risks that a company is susceptible to, by using social media.

• Confidential or inaccurate information disclosed by employees on social media;
• Wrongful dismissal over misuse of social media and a cloudy understanding of the ownership of the content featured;
• Virus and malware invasion as a result of inadequate network security measures;
• Copyright infringement of employees and third parties;
• Misleading and deceptive conduct;
• Inappropriate and derogatory user comments regarding the brand/business and failure to remove such statements;
• Damaged reputation as a result of slander or unfavourable comments and images;
• Disclosure of clients; &
• Destruction of evidence.

In order for a corporation to attempt to avoid the aforementioned risks, a Social Media Policy should be implemented. This policy should include a clear definition of the purpose of social media which is accurate for the business, a definition of the ownership of connections, require staff to respect copyright information and images, and ask staff to add value to the business by what is featured online. By implementing protocol which defines what is and is not appropriate regarding the use of social media – including the amount of time spent on it during work hours, the limitation of use of social media on behalf of the employer outside of work hours, and the content published by employees – the corporation has a greater chance of avoiding any legal concerns.

Additional measures can be put in place to proactively avoid any legal issues. Firstly, the use of Google alerts is a great (and easy) way to notify a business representative on what is being said about the company, enabling a swift response or removal if required. Secondly, the corporation should train users in appropriate conduct, reducing the likelihood of any unfavourable or confidential information being posted on the business’ page. Lastly, restricting access to some areas of social media may prove useful, only allowing authorised users the ability to add content – control usernames and passwords effectively.

I decided to examine some businesses which are in the public eye in social media. One which particularly stuck out to me was B105’s Facebook page. B105 is a Brisbane based FM radio station, which advertises itself as “the number one hit music station”. The Facebook page features links to news articles, opinion seeking statuses, competitions and images created by external resources. The page attracts a lot of traffic, with each post having hundreds to even thousands of comments. With over 63,000 likes and 165,000 people talking about B105, you can tell that it’s a pretty popular radio station. As a result of the popularity, there is a potential concern that there could be an internal or external breach through the participation in social media.

In my opinion, I think that if B105 is not careful, it could be caught up in a legal dilemma. Firstly, with so many users commenting on the page of B105 plus even more users talking about the show on other pages, it is highly likely that something unfavourable, untrue or demeaning is said, portraying the radio station in a bad light, damaging its reputation and not meeting the advertising standards laid out by the Advertising Standards Board (ASB). Secondly, copyright infringement is another area which I think B105 is susceptible to, as they feature a lot of external content, without any approval (as far as I can see – please correct me if you’ve seen evidence). Lastly, defamation is a risk which B105 may be caught up in, with the general public putting forth opinions as fact and further damaging the company’s reputation.

– Steph

 

References

Burrows, M. (2012). INB346 Enterprise 2.0: Lecture 5 [Lecture Notes]. Retrieved from http://blackboard.qut.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_83468_1%26url%3D

Lauby, S. (2009). 10 Must-Haves For Your Social Media Policy. Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2009/06/02/social-media-policy-musts/

Benefits & Risks Associated With Enterprise 2.0

Welcome back :) Continuing on from last week’s post, I listed many Web 2.0 (quick refresher: Watson (2012) describes Web 2.0 as the platforms that facilitate participation, contribution and interaction among large groups) technologies available to make day to day processes easier yet more fruitful. But this is only the beginning of the benefits that such technology has to offer and the list is continually growing. Although, there are numerous potential risks which may be encountered by companies utilising Web 2.0. In order to combat this, the firm will have to set up protocol to ensure protection of the business, its reputation and its assets.

Enterprise 2.0 is defined by Watson (2012) as the use of Web 2.0 by companies to collaborate and connect people together. Enterprise 2.0 is my primary focus, as it is imperative that corporations understand the benefits and risks associated with going online.

Benefits

1. As I’ve already described, increased productivity and efficiency are likely results of implementing Enterprise 2.0. This also incorporates streamlined communication and enhances building of relationships among team members, thus boosting team performance.
2. Improved staff engagement – increased shared learning opportunities, boost of happiness among employees and enhanced information dissemination.
3. Knowledge directly relevant to the company is more readily available, creating easier access and a greater understanding of business processes and operations.
4. Reputation is gained, driving appeal to potential new staff and increasing the profile of the business to the general public.

Risks

1. Security concerns – malware and the leaking of confidential data.
2. Loss of control – management lose the ability to strictly monitor information flow.
3. Reputation – negative comments and experiences.
4. Reliability – Misleading or incorrect information featured.
5. Productivity – Staff productivity declines as a result of devoting too much time to external social networking tools which don’t align with the business goals.
6. Resources – Increased expenditure as a result of additional bandwidth, more software and subscription expenses, etc.

To highlight how Web 2.0 can influence corporations, I’m going to use an effective example of utilising Enterprise 2.0. OpenSkies was a new airline developed by British Airways – in order to gain a desirable reputation, the airline launched a blog attracting the online travel community and using this community and word of mouth to gain attention. Through the direct and professional contact with its future consumers, travellers were embraced by the updates of recruited flight attendants, painting of the first plane and were invited to discuss the meals provided. This excellent use of reputation through Enterprise 2.0 gained OpenSkies great customer anticipation, advantages in search engine optimisation, positive consumer generated content and an increase in bookings.

So you may be wondering: with all of these potential risks, do the benefits actually make it worthwhile for corporations to implement Enterprise 2.0? I say yes – there are also many risks which may be encountered by NOT implementing enterprise 2.0!

• Use of external and unauthorised web tools;
• Reduced accessibility and fragmentation of information;
• Loss of talented staff who appreciate innovation; &
• Reduced competitiveness.

Enterprise 2.0 is still developing and improving, making it a great time for businesses to begin utilising Web 2.0 and reap the benefits of remaining up to date with technology and society. If a corporation outlines strict protocol surrounding the use of Web 2.0 applications and handling of client complaints, the business is likely to witness the benefits of Enterprise 2.0 with minimal negative repercussions.

– Steph

 

References

Cronin, M. (2008). OpenSkies Social Media Case Study. Retrieved from http://www.webliquidgroup.com/blog/client-results/openskies-social-media-case-study/

Watson, J. (2012). INB346 Enterprise 2.0: Lecture 3 [Lecture Notes]. Retrieved from http://blackboard.qut.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_83468_1%26url%3D