The document discusses IBM's decentralized social media strategy where employees, rather than IBM directly, engage on social media platforms. It notes IBM has over 17,000 internal blogs and 100,000 employees using internal blogs. The strategy led IBM to invest $100 million in a "Smarter Planet" initiative based on employee votes and ideas generated through social media. As a result, IBM saw $12.3 billion in earnings and $100 billion in revenue, showing the benefits of social media despite the lack of direct ROI calculations. The key lessons are to understand social media is about empowering people, accept changes in how people engage online, and act accordingly to survive in the new landscape.

1. Enterprise Social
Media
An IBM Case-Study
David Zaki

2. Agenda
1. Pre-cautions
2. IBM’s Social Media Strategy
3. Insights into IBM’s Social Media
4. The Payoff and Smarter Planet
5. On the ROI of social media

3. Pre-cautions
1. This case-study is a success story.
2. I don’t know how many times they faced
problems before reaching this state.
3. Sorry, but don’t expect an exciting story
behind how IBM became that successful
BUT…
There must be a reason for choosing this
case-study other than the final exam J

4. IBM’s Social Media
Strategy
“We don’t have a corporate blog
or Twitter ID because we want the
‘IBMers’ to be the corporate blog
and Twitter ID” ~ Adam Christensen,
Social Media Communications Manager
at IBM corporation

5. IBM’s Social Media
Strategy
Strategy: Decentralized social
media approach.
Rules: “Employees are responsible
for what they create and prohibit
release of proprietary information”

6. Social Media Status
• No Corporate blog or twitter ID
• 17,000 internal blogs
• 100,000 employees using internal blogs
• 53,000 members on SocialBlue (like
Facebook for employees)
• A few thousand “IBMers” on Twitter

7. Social Media Status
• Thousands of external bloggers,
• Almost 200,000 on LinkedIn
• As many as 500,000 participants in
company crowd-sourcing “jams”
• 50,000 in alum networks on Facebook
and LinkedIn

8. People at IBM understood what social
media is all about…
“Power to the PEOPLE”
But the story did not end…

9. Smarter Planet
• In 2003 IBM conducted it’s first “jam”
• JAM: gathering IBM’s employees, families
and friends for 3 straight days in an
online forum to discuss IBM’s next
investment
• From 50 research projects, people had
to vote for 10.
• Then they voted for “Smarter Planet”

10. Smarter Planet
• IBM invested $ 100 million in the
“Smarter Planet” project.
• All from the votes of “PEOPLE”
• Smarter Planet: is a research project
that looks in problems like smarter
public transportation, smarter health
care systems, how to solve the rush hour
problem.

11. The Payoff
• $ 12.3 Billion in earnings
• $ 100 Billion in revenue
• 44.1 % gross profit margin

12. ROI of Social Media
• Until now there is no direct ROI for Social
Media.
• It’s a change in the world we are living in.
• You either accept the change or lose the
game.
• No hard figures but necessary for surviving
and thriving in a new reality.
• IBM changed it’s core values and
investments based on the new social world.

13. Take Away..
• Understand the change.
• Accept the change.
• Act accordingly.
• Social Media is about PEOPLE.
• Don’t put rules if you want to play Social
Media.
• No direct ROI but necessary for
surviving.

14. Questions…
Thank you…