Role of social tools in the
current awareness process
Penny Edwards, Lars Plougmann, Stuart Barr
www.headshift.com, September 2008
/http://flickr.com/photos/_fabrizio_/786526891/in/photostream/

Challenges for Current awareness
Knowledge and information sharing
• Ubiquity of informal knowledge sharing
• Building the business case around
current awareness

Challenges for Current awareness
Challenges for current awareness
• Timeliness
• Cost effective delivery
• Innovative value-added service
• Original targeted content

Some thoughts: internal CA
• A networked approach:
- Collaborative filtering
- Shared awareness
- Aggregated signals
• New ways of working
- Self-service
- Publish then filter
- Personalisation
(cc) http://www.flickr.com/photos/iconolith/458099966/

Benefits for external CA
• Dynamic content and process
• Less volume -> greater relevance
• Delivery formats to suit preference
• Conversations rather than broadcasts
http://www.flickr.com/photos/victoriapeckham/164175205/

How to kick start change...
• Integrated lightweight solutions
• Building on existing systems
• Involvement of key user groups and IT
• No ‘one size fits all’ solution

Social tools in the CA process: Demo

Recap...
• Flexible lightweight tools
• More intimate personalised
information
• Feeds and flows
• Collective intelligence
(cc) http://www.flickr.com/photos/limowreck666/157909490/in/set-72157594146274206/

Thank you!
Many thanks for the photos made available under a Creative Commons license. Regardless of the CC
license, if any photographer objects to the inclusion of their material then we shall happily remove it.