Enterprise Social Network: Capabilities, Key Enablers and Obstacles - Call for changes within the digital age.

Today’s work environment is currently undergoing radical changes and although the aware-ness of social collaboration is growing within organizations, they still struggle with the digital transformation and thereby with the integration of Enterprise Social Network (ESN). Our study aims to investigate the role of ESN within the todays’ organizations. Specifically, it intends to build on previous research about social network technologies in a business’ context, and to provide an understanding about the required capabilities in terms of organizational, cultural and structural readiness as well as the key enablers and possible challenges faced dur-ing the adoption of ESN and hindering a more efficient use. Our study shows, that ESN could foster information and knowledge sharing, organizational learning and social capital. It reveals, that implementing an ESN offers great advantages, reaching from transparent infor-mation and knowledge exchange, over a faster join generation of new ideas to the possible containment of an ever-increasing e-mail flood. However, our study also outlines, that organi-zations still have to overcome barriers such as management and leadership support, cultural barriers, driving individuals engagement or integrating the ESN within existing business pro-cesses and infrastructure in order to reach the full potential and succeed with the adoption of the ESN. Nevertheless, we emphasise when an organization has recognised the significant benefits to be gained by incorporating an ESN within the business’ context, the value and improvements in activities induced by the ESN will become visible and then, one would rec-ognise that it has been worth the investment

The potential of implementing Enterprise Social Networks in Portuguese companies

The objective of this study is to understand what is the potential of successfully implementing enterprise social networks in the workplace of Portuguese companies. This dissertation aims to understand if employees and managers of Portuguese companies see the advantages of having access to enterprise social software, if they believe this technology fits their job requirements, and if they are likely to use and implement it in their companies. In order to answer the main questions of this dissertation, an online survey is conducted within companies from different sectors. This survey is built based on the literature review around enterprise social technology and enterprise 2.0, as well as the theoretical model of Dishaw and Strong (1999). To provide insights, a statistical analysis was made to the survey results, including descriptive statistics, mean comparisons and multivariate linear regressions. According to the results of this study, the majority of employees are not using enterprise social networks in the workplace. Also, although most of employees require management promotion to adopt the technology, the majority states that these tools are adequate to their job needs and acknowledge its advantages. Besides, the majority of managers state an intention to use the tool and implement it in the future, since they acknowledge advantages and fit to tasks. This dissertation thus shows that enterprise social networks have an opportunity to be present in the infrastructure of Portuguese organizations, especially in companies with significant co-­‐worker and partner volume of contact and with employees and managers who understand the value of accessing this technology

The impact of enterprise social networking on knowledge sharing between academic staff in higher education

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonHigher education institutions have always considered knowledge sharing critical for research excellence and finding proper methods for sharing knowledge across academic staff has therefore been a major issue for universities and knowledge management research. Recent evidence shows that many universities have embraced enterprise social networking tools to improve communication, relationships, partnerships, and knowledge sharing. To date, there is little understanding of the critical factors for online knowledge sharing behaviour between academic staff, and the impact of these factors on work benefits for academic staff which differ between consumptive users and contributive users in higher education. This study employed the extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) to examine factors affecting knowledge sharing about the consumptive use and contributive use of enterprise social network (ESN) behaviour. The study adopts a critical realism philosophical approach and employed a grounded theory mixed methods. The conceptual model was validated through structural equation modelling based on an online survey of 254 academic staff using enterprise social networking as a part of their work in the United Kingdom. The findings have significant theoretical and practical implications for researchers and policy makers. The research has developed a cohesive ESN use model by extending and modifying the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology. The findings indicate significant differences around factors affecting consumptive and contributive usage patterns within ESNs. Due to advances in communication technologies, this research argues that a previous model suggested by Venkatesh et al. (2003) is no longer fit for purpose and the new communication tools can lead to improved knowledge in higher education. This research also makes valuable contributions to universities from a managerial viewpoint, suggesting that universities could help their scholars find a more comprehensive range of funding sources matching scholars' ideas

Measurement and management of competences by enterprise social networking

Purpose Literature describes the transformation process of employees' individual competences into firm-specific competences as a great challenge in the performance management and management field. Recently, to favor the transformation of competences, some companies have adopted enterprise social networking (ESN). However, not enough studies support the understanding of its role in performance management and measurement and scant attention is given to the inclusion of competences in a holistic performance measurement and management system (PMMS). To help close this gap, the purpose of this paper is to develop knowledge on the role of ESN in measurement and management of competences to favor the development of a holistic PMMS. Design/methodology/approach The research adopts a multiple case study methodology using a qualitative meta-analysis. It investigates 32 multinational companies by case studies available in the scientific literature. Findings The results highlight the use of ESN as a relevant support for the development of a holistic PMMS based on a high maturity in performance measurement and a democratic and participative approach in performance management. ESN provides real-time data collection, analysis and reports that encourage a democratic and participative performance management. It facilitates relationships, knowledge sharing and favors a high maturity performance measurement. Originality/value The paper provides implications for theory, practice and society. First, the paper rationalizes the impact of ESN usage on performance measurement and management. Second, it offers new knowledge supporting practitioners in the development of holistic PMMS. Third, it highlights that ESN favors people in self-expression of own capacity, sharing artwork and knowledge on specific topics

Multiple social media in the workplace: Contradictions and congruencies

In this paper, we report an investigation on the use of multiple social media in knowledge work and explore the contribution of activity theory for such a study. As social media are increasingly adopted at work, there is a demand to understand how they are being incorporated. This study focuses on how social media may improve or reduce coherence in work activities, and for this purpose, we use activity theory as an analytical lens to conceptualise social media usage in a Scandinavian software development company. The qualitative data, consisting of interviews and observations, were analysed to capture the mediating role of social media for information sharing within and across work activities. We found social media in general helpful to maintain coherence in terms of sharing work-related information, improving ambient awareness, as well as for socialising, but they also caused inconsistencies in use and adoption. In addition, we found that social media served different purposes in different activity systems, causing both contradictions and congruencies; what was seen as a benefit for some work activities appeared as a limitation for others (eg, concerning pace and aims of information sharing). In our findings through the lens of activity theory, we observed how objects, although they were shared, were fractionalised in networked activities. Our conclusion is that despite the still unoptimised functionality, social media do bring coherence in work activities in a decentralised work environment

Knowledge management tool selection

Dawson (2009) suggested a twelve step methodology for implementing knowledge management solutions following research which showed that implementing knowledge management solutions was not as successful as expected. This thesis investigates the third of this twelve step methodology which requires finding a knowledge management solution in the context of the problem. The aim of the research is to determine a methodology that will provide a systematic way for managers to select an appropriate knowledge management tool given a particular working environment. Two organisations are investigated to confirm that there is a need for a systematic methodology for selecting knowledge management tools and how a methodology may help in achieving selecting an appropriate tool. This investigation is carried out using case studies, action research and interviews and results in discovering that organisations do not have a systematic method for selecting tools which leads to tools being selected haphazardly and not always successfully. Two tools are developed to aid a manager in selecting a knowledge management tool: the House of Knowledge Management Tool Selection and the Knowledge Management Tool Classification Grid. The House tool helps to identify the knowledge problem being solved and evaluates all potential knowledge management tools against the problem. The barriers to the potential success of the tools are also examined. The grid identifies potential tools by classifying them against knowledge problems. The two tools are further refined and developed using the two organisations as case studies to demonstrate how and when the tools can be used. This leads to development of the Barrier House and the Evaluation Grid. A framework and associated methodology are then developed that can be used as a guide to using the tools, offering a systematic approach to selecting knowledge management tools given any environment and thus accomplishing the aim of the thesis

The use of a company social media networking site in organisations creates a climate for employee engagement which increases the organisation's reaction to the competitor marketplace

Communication methods in the corporate environment must change. Organisations can no longer expect effective communication when using intranet sites or sending employees countless emails. This type of communication does not create the learning environment and most employees either do not read the intranet sites, or there is just too much email which could be seen as spam by the employee. These types of technologies also create a culture where organisations are lead from the top and there is not a culture or platform to create feedback loops. Most large corporate organisations have a tendency where many silos are created and cliques are formed, which is not in line with the culture of a learning organisation. Although there are a number of studies which look at how Internet based micro-blogging affect social connectedness, there is however limited information as to the effect that micro-blogging, if used internal to the organisation, would have on employee engagement, or how it can affect the competitive nature to the organisation. The research is exploratory in nature and set out to review what impact internal micro-blogging has on the organisation. The research uses Vodacom, one of the leading Information and communications technology (ICT) and telecommunications companies in South Africa, as the case study, as micro-blogging was recently introduced into this organisation.Graduate School of Business LeadershipM.B.A

A framework for social media use in project management

There has been rapid adoption of social media (SM) in business functions such as marketing and advertising. This being primarily due to its capability to communicate information. There has been less widespread adoption of SM for other business functions and the potential of SM is not comprehensively understood. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the potential of SM for project management and to understand some of the difficulties that arise from SM use. The research specifically investigated how SM is being used for project activities and the maturity of the management processes that govern SM use. Implications for underlying theories such as virtual team, social capital and process maturity have also been analysed. An expert panel of project management practitioners from various geographic regions were invited to participate in this research. To facilitate the investigation, the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) from Project Management Institute (PMI) was used as the term of reference comprising forty seven project management activities. The research utilised two methods, firstly a Delphi Study of three rounds was used to identify the fundamentals of the phenomenon and attempt to align the expert views, and secondly, Structured Case Study interviews took place to explore the rationale and motivation of responses given by selected panellists. It further investigates the impact on project team performance and the robustness of processes that supports SM use by assessing the contribution to relationship building, trusts, coordination, cohesion and team virtuality. Key findings from the Delphi Study indicate that not all SM categories offer benefit for project activities. A list of SM categories that are most and least useful for all forty seven PMBOK process activities (across the project lifecycle) was identified. The two knowledge areas that are significantly benefitted are communication and stakeholder management while procurement management had limited use for SM. The findings also led to factors that could enable and inhibit the use of SM. Structured Case study confirmed that project team performance is enhanced through the use of SM as it improves social capital factors of relationship building, coordination and cohesion, however, trust development is not easily achieved. SM tools support mobility, facilitate effective and efficient information sharing, provide a single information repository and offer wider stakeholder reach surpassing geographic limitations constrained only by internet connectivity which in composite results in cost savings for project team communication. These factors increase team virtuality but the perception that SM use is free or of minimal costs, may encourage circumvention of control mechanisms such as senior management reviews and approvals. Findings indicate that lack of formulated business processes to manage SM use will lead to poor governance. Therefore, a Social Media Maturity Model (SM Cube hereafter) was propagated. SM Cube will help project professionals evaluate the robustness of SM enabling processes. This research proffers a mechanism to determine maturity of support processes for SM use thereby adding originality to the body of knowledge. Project professional can use this research as a guideline or framework to introduce SM for their project management. It extends the process maturity, virtual team and social capital theories