Enterprise 2.0 – Building Consensus
Yesterday I wrote about the limits of vision and its role in the enterprise.
Now there are some that say that vision is exactly what is needed to transform corporate cultures resistant to web 2.0. But framing new media around visionary buzz words such as transparency and decentralization can sometimes distract and alienate those in management more accustomed to control.
At the Web 2.0 Expo last month, I had a chance to hear David Carter address his vision of Web 2.0 and its impact on the future direction of the enterprise. David Carter is CEO of Awareness, which helps companies build and operate branded Web 2.0 communities.
As he wrote to me in a follow up email,
“Enterprise 2.0 is about using Web 2.0 tools and practices, but in a way that decreases the tension between the users and the corporate IT Department.”
And right now there is plenty of tension out there across the enterprise.
With concerns about security and Sarbanes-Oxley compliance, IT is understandably resistant to loss of control and decentralization. Its role is to protect the kingdom by keeping intruders out and data in. IT is all about accountability, ROI, department buy-in and structure.
At the same time, as David Carter points out, other departments have issues as well. HR has concerns about compromising privacy and creating the potential for a hostile work environment. Legal is concerned with limiting liability and avoiding lawsuits that may result from a misuse of data.
On the other hand, business units are under extreme pressure to conquer new markets by any means and anywhere possible –- whether it’s inside the firewall or data sources and applications outside of it. They are about frictionless participation and customer engagement. Similarly, employees want easy to use tools to share information and manage connections with their colleagues.
With all this tension and competing interests, where do vision, values and the big picture fit in?
Well clearly they can’t be ignored, but in challenging times, companies may need to be “more tactical” when it comes to social media as Stan Anderson, managing partner at TechDiscovery said to me.
TechDiscovery develops custom applications for software and technology-based services companies. In a tactical world, it is not about storming the Bastille or tearing down the company firewall. It’s about finding solutions that address quarter by quarter goals. In this environment, Anderson believes the business units will win out. IT may not be 100 percent happy, but at the end of the day, the compromise may come down to five words: “I can live with that.”
The Take Away for Corporate Communications
So what does this mean for corporate communications professionals?
The adoption of enterprise Web 2.0 tools helps pave the way for the adoption of web based communications tools. It raises the comfort level for decentralization and collaboration — the buidling blocks of social media.
I truly believe that corporate communications can play a pivotal role in managing the benefits of Web 2.0 technology. At the most basic level, we can create and implement the tools needed to communicate externally and internally to the various stakeholders. Equally important we can help the enterprise put Web 2.0 into the context of an overall business strategy and company culture.
But this responsibility requires us to be sensitive to the competing needs across the enterprise. After all, our job is to help reduce tension not heighten it. That is something we can all live with.
Let me get back to you.
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