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Blogs, wikis, instant messaging and the likes of Myspace are popular among consumers. Companies want to adopt them but face challenges like security. Over the last four weeks IBM and Digital Life have addressed this issue by calling for ideas on how corporate social computing can take place. The judges have picked four people for their suggestions in two categories - inter-organisation and intra-organisation. They win Apple MacBooks and Nokia smartphones.
Inter-organisation
Judges' remarks: He highlights the need for effective search for various purposes which are aimed at different users. He looks closely and addressed the key ingredients for social networking tools / Web 2.0 tools ? such as blogs to share info, internal blogs for project, forums, feeds, IMs, tagging, etc
Blog excerpts:
"It's a given fact that people are spending more time on the Internet searching for information they need ... about the product that they need ... the organizational culture of a company that they intend to work for...
"...Business blogs are certainly a great way for companies to share information about the organisation?s portfolio, list of products and pricings.
"...(Companies) can upload images or videos into the blog for concept testing.
"By creating such content rich blogs for such purposes, companies can quickly create for themselves a community which they can test ideas on, get feedback and criticisms from and discuss between their customers.
"...forums are popular amongst internet users because it allows them to interact and provide feedback and comments about a product, topic or area of interest.
"...Readers can get first hand notification of blog updates when they log in to their RSS readers and will know all about your company activities, ideas, launches etc.
"...real time communication tools such as live chat and video conferencing tools (can be used) to provide personal assistance online...
"It can shorten customer service queues and make (it) convenient for consumers who have trivial matters to settle such as queries.
"...(they) allow companies to connect with customers and members and communicate to people beyond their organisation."
- SECOND PRIZE: beyondblogs
Judges' remarks: This user highlighted the urgency to blog, and the gist of blogging.
Demonstrates original style, projects honesty, and un-PR like.
The content inspires deeper insights and thought by the reader.
Blog excerpts:
"1. Singaporean companies are still slow to take up blogging. Finding an interesting, meaningful corporate blog maintained in Raffles Place or Jurong or anywhere else is still like finding a needle in a haystack....
"4. Ultimately look at the blog as a handshake with the customer or supplier and an opportunity to know them better and gain further their trust and respect....
"5. It?s also about grappling with the ying and yang. On one hand is the ability to build stronger relationships with customers and on the other hand, the fear of ?losing face? if the challenges of blogging are not skillfully managed from the beginning....
"8. And the articulation has to be honest.
"9. The lahs and the ahs and the informality can make your blog endearing to your customers. Not carefully crafted PR material...
"12. The CEO and top management must lead the effort...."
Some innovative ideas of corporate blogging
Intra-Organisation
Judges' remarks: This user has made several entries each of which provides views which are well thought out. This user addressed the issues that are real in businesses, especially security.
Blog excerpts:
"...now that we are talking about a collaborative system, where ideas are shared across the server, winning ideas can be stolen by rival companies, developed and patented before you can do anything to stop them.
"Hence a successful business system must start with having stringent security measures such as data encryption, firewalls, IP white-listing and constant updating of the server system to protect against any attacks by external users. This is simply not provided by Wikis or blogs, which does not even offer basic text encryption.
"... (corporate log-in system) will be hard to integrate into any Wikis or blogs, and the companies definitely have to pay more to create a custom application to provide the bridge between the IT system in the company network and the Wiki or blog ... I would strongly advise against deploying Wikis, blogs or any third party application as an intra-business collaboration tool.
"... before corporations jump onto the social computing tools band wagon, perhaps it is best that they examine how well these tools will serve their needs in the next 5 years, otherwise they would just merely end up wasting energy and resources on something that does not work."
- SECOND PRIZE: PatriciaLin
Judges' remarks: She has demonstrated good understanding of the various social tools, and how they can be used to drive creativity and innovation.
Blog excerpts:
"...Superiors can make use of the blogs to keep track of subordinates? track record of projects and performance.
"... search tools ... shorten the time taken to find information within the company. Wikis are one example and are the way to go with information sharing because Wikis shorten information searching and sharing processes, making updates of new information quick and easy.
"... Also, communicative tools such as instant messaging, email, Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) encourage the facilitation of communication, decision making as well as sharing of ideas and information.
?... the CEO (can) post scenario based questions or discussion topics in these forums and chat rooms and ask employees to react.... The CEO can then be able to see in real time how fast his/her employees get together to discuss and come up with new ideas and how ideas are immediately shared in the form of posting threads. It can be an informal judgment of the level of leadership, team work, analytical and problem solving skills displayed each individual within the organization."
To read more of these blogs, go to blog4biz.sg. Winners will be informed via email and they will collect prizes at a Lotus Collaboration Summit this Friday.
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