|
 |
|
Bridging the Gap: Achieving the Promise of Enterprise Social Computing
Document: SSR-571
Date of
Publication:
March 11,
2009
Number of Pages:
24
Lead Author(s):
M. Koenig
Price: $1,295.00 USD
(Single User License)
Report Overview:
The business potential of enterprise social computing (ESC) goes far beyond typical reports promoting it to improve marketing and customer service. Research released today by Saugatuck Technology shows that ESC solutions also deliver quantifiable business value by improving collaboration and business performance within and between user enterprises, from Research & Development to Customer Service & Support – with the result that ESC is increasingly viewed as an business game-changer.
But as noted in Saugatuck’s new report, “Bridging the Gap: Achieving the Promise of Enterprise Social
Computing,” the scenario is not all rosy. Significant obstacles exist for user organizations and providers both – and are not necessarily planned for, or managed, effectively.
“Our research shows that, just as with other emerging technologies before it, there are critical technology, management and - most importantly - cultural hurdles that must be overcome before social computing can deliver on its potential. If these are not addressed, then enterprise social computing will be relegated to ‘niche software’ status, and used only for limited business functions,” according to Saugatuck research vice president Mark Koenig, the study’s lead author. “More importantly, many user and provider organizations will have wasted substantial resources that could have been much more effectively utilized.”
The 24-page Saugatuck report includes insights, analysis, and recommendations from Saugatuck’s 2008 and 2009 social computing research program, including in-depth interviews with user executives regarding their ESC plans and experiences, and strategic briefings with leading and emergent ESC providers.
Press Release / Media, BLOG and Podcast Coverage:
Executive Summary:
Bridging the Gap: Achieving the Promise of Enterprise Social Computing
(Freely available. Registration Required)
Read this report to learn:
 |
What are companies doing with Enterprise Social Computing technologies? Are there common “levers” of business value being pulled? |
|
Which technologies are viewed as most useful, and why? |
|
What are the technological, organizational, and cultural challenges that must be overcome for Enterprise Social Computing to become a mainstay of business computing? |
|
Where is Enterprise Social Computing heading in the next three to five years?
What will users and vendors have to do for this to happen?
|
Research Highlights:
Social
Computing is evolving from origins as a consumer-oriented
communications and networking tool to become an important element of
enterprise software solution portfolios in the next two to three
years.
But
it is at an important inflection point in adoption, where it must
demonstrate its value to businesses and government entities alike,
or it could fail to reach its full business potential. Users and
vendors must address several key issues before social computing can
be considered worthy of enterprise portfolio status and support.
These issues include:
|
Social Network Integration
|
|
Information Relevance
|
|
Integration with Enterprise
Applications
|
|
The Culture Shift
|
|
Data Portability
|
|
Business Model
|
|
Measuring Return on Investment
|
If
Enterprise Social Computing is able to overcome these challenges,
then it will become a vital component of the enterprise information
management fabric. If not, then it risks becoming used only for
niche purposes. More importantly, many companies and public sector
organizations will have wasted substantial resources that could have
been allocated toward other business priorities.
About The Research:
Since 2002, Saugatuck has
performed a series of user executive and vendor executive research
programs, including web-based surveys, telephone interviews, and
briefings, on the most disruptive and influential IT developments in
the marketplace, including: IT Virtualization, cloud computing,
Software-as-a-Service, Open Source software and now Enterprise
Social Computing. In addition, Saugatuck annually surveys more than
3,000 business and IT executives as part of its annual user IT
trends research program.
The research for this report
was conducted from between August 2008 and February 2009. It
includes a series of interviews and briefings with more than 20
vendors of Enterprise Social Computing solutions, and more than 20
users of those solutions from around the world and across
industries. Additional data and frameworks within this report come
from Saugatuck’s ongoing research initiatives throughout 2008 and
2009.
Table Of Contents:
|
Research Highlights |
|
Strategic Planning Positions
(SPPs) |
|
Introduction |
|
What are Enterprises Doing? |
|
Fork in the Road Ahead |
|
Challenges to Overcome |
|
The Next Wave: Inter-Enterprise Social Networks |
|
Sidebar: Verbatim Insights for Margin Comments |
|
Net Impact |
|
Appendix: Vendor Research Participants |
List of Figures and Sidebars:
|
Figure 1: Social Computing Business Objectives |
|
Figure 2: Internal v External Focus of Social Computing |
|
Figure 3: Business Value of Social Computing Technologies |
|
Figure 4: Gap Ahead for Enterprise Social Computing |
|
Figure 5: Enterprise Social Computing Issues and Challenges |
|
Figure 6:
Enterprise Social Computing: The Next Wave |
Related Research:
|
01-23-09
Evaluating Cloud Impact on the Desktop “Office” Paradigm
(M.West, 5 pages, MKT-553, $$$) |
|
12-29-08
Four Key Challenges for Social Computing in 2009
(M. Koenig, 4 pages, MKT-546, $$$) |
|
12-19-08 Five Key Issues for CIOs in 2009 (M. Koenig, M. West, B. Guptill, B. McNee, 5 pages,
STR-541, $$$) |
|
12-10-08
Connecting Social Networks – Is Data Portability Really Getting Closer?
(M. Koenig, 3 pages, RA-536)
|
|
11-19-08
How Will the Obama Presidency Influence Social Computing Growth?
(M. Koenig, B. Guptill, 2 pages,
RA-527)
|
|
11-11-08 Defrag Conference 2008: Pulling “A-ha” Out of the Stream
(M. Koenig, 5 pages, MKT-524, $$$)
|
|
11-05-08 A Big Week for Enterprise Social Computing
(M. Koenig, M. West, B. McNee, 3 pages, RA-523) |
|
09-30-08 Mobility: Defining the Future of Enterprise Computing
(M. Koenig, C. Burns, 4 pages, MKT-509, $$$) |
|
09-23-08
Harnessing the Cloud: A Model for the Emerging Cloud Computing Ecosystem
(M. West, 8 pages, MKT-508, $$$) |
|
09-24-08 IBM Center for Social Software: Signpost of Social Computing’s Enterprise Value?
(M. Koenig, 2 pages, RA-507)
|
|
09-12-08 Research Reports Suggest Enterprise Social Computing Growing Pains – So What Else is New? (M. Koenig, 6
pages, MKT-503, $$$) |
|
08-29-08 Cloud Computing: Five Key Issues Framing the Research Agenda
(C. Burns, M. West, B. Guptill, 4 pages, KI-499, $$$) |
|
12-31-07 Web 2.0 in 2008: First the Blueprint, then the Foundation
(M. Koenig, 6 pages, MKT-421, $$$) |
|
11-30-06
Consumerization of IT, Part 2: Vendor Sales Strategies Based on User
Adoption (M. Koenig, B. Guptill, 6
pages, MKT-296 $$$) |
|
09-25-06
Consumerization of IT Raises User Expectations, Creating Vendor
Opportunities (Koenig, 5 pages,
MKT-273 $$$) |
|
|
To Purchase an Electronic Copy
via Web Download:
 
Members who have purchased this
report can access it by clicking here within 7 days of purchase.
If you are having trouble with our
e-commerce engine, for whatever reason, just pick up the phone and
call us at 1-203-454-3900 and we will be happy to take your order
over the telephone and email you a copy of the report.
|
