Double the Value Of Your Social Software

Double the Value of Your Social Software November 20, 2008

Connectbeam’s Social Profile for Microsoft Outlook

Here’s what we’ll cover hc What’s happening in the enterprise right now? less than 5 seconds ago hc Three ways to double the value of social software less than 5 seconds ago hc A bit about Connectbeam less than 5 seconds ago hc Let’s see how this works less than 5 seconds ago hc @you Q&A less than 5 seconds ago

wikis blogs forums microblogging social bookmarking video photos Enterprise social software is growing… podcasts

… but we’re creating a new set of silos. Wikis Blogs Video Micro blogs Forums Book- marks Photos Pod casts

What happens when we integrate these tools? Each social software application provides value by itself . Tie them together, and a new layer of value takes hold.

Expand information’s reach

Create a dynamic skills database

Diversify and strengthen workers’ information sources

Expand Information’s Reach photo: flickr.com/photos/melodycampbell/2656648032/

Why expanded information reach matters Today, more than 85% of a typical S&P 500 company's market value is the result of intangible assets. For many companies, the bulk of these intangible assets is its people, its human capital . It is no longer what you own that counts but what you know. . . Craig Symons, Forrester Research

To improve reach, put information in the flow A large online publisher was experiencing a low rate of online subscription. Out of 10,245 visitors they got 27 subscribers … Then they reduced the number of pages in their online subscription process — a long sequence of 9 pages — down to just 3 pages. After the change — another 10,314 visitors passed through the site, resulting in 107 subscriptions … a 300% improvement . Ed Rivis, Web Marketing with Ed Rivis Lesson: Remove extra steps to get information, and improve reach

Three types of information reach Search you seek information Serendipity you happen upon information Notifications information finds you photo: flickr.com/photos/craigmdennis/3027968531/

Where are employees most likely to run searches? “ Only 44% of business users can find what they want on their corporate In tra net .” - Forrester Research “ Yet, 87% of people say they can find what they are looking for on the In ter net most of the time.” - Pew Internet & American Life Project

Then make sure your employee generated content shows up there! Connectbeam’s integration with Google search

How Connectbeam search integration saved $50,000 Departmental employee writes about software contract discount on wiki Other departments interested in same software, but unaware of existing discounted contract So other departments ran web searches , saw the wiki entry , inquired internally Result? Other departments participate in existing dept contract, save $50,000

Serendipity is useful information when you aren’t seeking it Pixar's campus was designed to maximise serendipity - lots of places you bump into people Kevin Marks, Google Engineer & Twitterer

Consider serendipity in a portfolio context innovation productivity responsiveness The odds are low that any specific item of content created in social software will be useful to you. But multiply information exposure over thousands of interactions , and strategic advantages emerge.

But serendipity better not require a lot of time! Connectbeam’s real-time enterprise tag cloud Connectbeam’s real-time activity stream

How do you foster awareness of new, relevant information? Notifications. Search is only done when you have a specific need . Serendipity does not provide systematic coverage of areas you care about. Notifications are the third component of information reach.

Notifications help you find relevant content in a sea of information It’s not information overload . It’s filter failure . Clay Shirky, Web 2.0 Expo

Enterprises provide a natural filtering basis Hiring process results in colleagues with judgment you can trust photo 1: flickr.com/photos/dedrawolff/2361072444/ Colleagues’ daily work provides relevant context photo 2: flickr.com/photos/timpatterson/476108035/

Let workers personalize their filters People are not monolithic information consumers – give them control and options to personalize their content filtering. Groups Individuals Keywords

So let’s recap this… hc It is no longer what you own that counts but what you know less than 5 seconds ago hc Establish an information reach program built on 3 components less than 5 seconds ago hc (1) Put employee-generated content right where people search less than 5 seconds ago hc (2) Increase chances of serendipity with a minimum attention commitment less than 5 seconds ago hc (3) Give employees personalized filters to track information relevant to them less than 5 seconds ago

Create a Dynamic Skills Database photo: flickr.com/photos/27620885@N02/2655218248/

It’s not about your resume, it’s about your contributions…

If you don't have a resume , what do you have?

How about three extraordinary letters of recommendation from people the employer knows or respects?

Or a sophisticated project they can see or touch?

Or a reputation that precedes you?

Or a blog that is so compelling and insightful that they have no choice but to follow up?

Seth Godin, Why bother having a resume?

… But this philosophy is still not implemented in most organizations. “ 67% of employees believe that colleagues can help them do their job better. 39% say they have difficulty locating the right people.” - Harris Interactive & Tacit Knowledge Systems typical corporate directory Hutch Carpenter Dept 4592 - Product Group 605 Ellis St, Suite 100 Mountain View, CA 94043 650-980-5080 x124 [email_address]

Isn’t this a lot better?

Social software is more than an execution tool Rich Hoeg @Defrag08 Honeywell & All-Around Smart Guy With Connectbeam, I was looking for a social bookmarking application. I ended up with a skills database .

Key is to surface those who can help Connectbeam’s people recommendations Connectbeam’s list of users related to a content search

Diversify and Strengthen Employees’ Social Networks photo: flickr.com/photos/walkering/973836763/

Employees have varying internal connections Andrew McAfee, How to Hit the Enterprise 2.0 Bullseye Strong close collaborators Weak infrequent interactions Potential unknown, but would be good to know None wouldn’t make sense as connection

Company performance is determined by working the Weak and Potential ties Employees already leverage their Strong ties. Moving outside that band is where the differentiation occurs. Workers tend to rely on close contacts

Let the statistical analysis do the talking “ A one standard deviation increase in employees’… Betweenness centrality results in $76,000 greater revenue per year. Network diversity results in $83,000 greater revenue per year.” NYU, MIT, BU researchers Study of the email-based social network for an exec recruiting firm “ Betweenness centrality” measures the breadth and depth of one’s social connections. “ Network diversity” measures the degree to your contacts are connected .

Leaders will increase the overall average of network strength and diversity

How to move the Weak and Potential ties closer to Strong ties? hc Make employee contributions as findable as possible less than 5 seconds ago hc Associate activity and tags to individuals less than 5 seconds ago hc Enable easy following of the activities of others less than 5 seconds ago hc Fish where the fish are – put employee generated content where people do their work less than 5 seconds ago

OK, let’s review… hc Breaking through “enterprise silos” 2.0 reveals a new layer of value less than 5 seconds ago hc Outcome #1: improve information’s reach, increasingly important for today’s human capital driven organizations less than 5 seconds ago hc Outcome #2: enable a dynamic, automatically updated skills database for employees to find colleagues that can help less than 5 seconds ago hc Outcome #3: work the Weak and Potential bands of employees’ social networks to strengthen and diversify information sources less than 5 seconds ago

About Connectbeam

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