E 2.0 – Twitter & Facebook inside the Enterprise?
How many minutes does it take for someone to mention Facebook or Twitter in an Enterprise 2.0 presentation? Usually I hear someone explaining Enterprise 2.0 by saying “It’s like facebook inside the firewall. You may also hear references to Twitter when covering enterprise 2.0 communication channel topics. We also hear about twitter and facebook when people are discussing “Activity Streams“. Dion Hinchcliffe covers “Activity Streams”, Microblogging, & more in this article: Ten emerging Enterprise 2.0 technologies to watch Other interesting news about “Activity Streams” is the patent granted to Facebook. These are great tools in the Social Media/Networking space, however, most Successful Enterprise 2.0 Solutions are created around specific business needs & workflows. Enterprise 2.0 is not facebook or twitter, but it is important for us to understand why these Social Media and Networking sites are so popular and apply our knowledge within our Enterprise 2.0 Architecture.
Shinjuku architecture by Stefan (Flickr)
Enterprise 2.0 Architecture
Enterprise 2.0 Architecture is a complete expression of the enterprise. The equation values of collaboration and communication provide solutions for supporting goals, visions, & missions of the enterprise. The equation of business remains fluid, therefore the structure should not be rigid. You can see more of my thoughts and resources on Enterprise Architecture in this article E 2.0: The Strategic Planning of Enterprise Architecture
Ross Dawson explains implementing Enteprise 2.0 in this article 8 Guiding Principles for Pilot Programs: A Key for Enterprise 2.0
Mark Fidelman wrote this interesting article The Machiavellian Guide to Enterprise 2.0 This article is packed with external resources, the most interesting is “Adoption Can’t Be Driven” by Paula Thornton.
Did someone from the Facebook Team visit you?
Did you read your Twitter Manual?
Are these silly questions?
Seems like most people in the Social Media world have adopted these services like a fish to water. Most features are very intuitive, which leads to rapid adoption. This experience feels like a result of Design Thinking.
Design Thinking
Design thinking is a process for practical, creative resolution of problems or issues that looks for an improved future result. It is the essential ability to combine empathy, creativity and rationality to meet user needs and drive business success. Unlike analytical thinking, design thinking is a creative process based around the “building up” of ideas. There are no judgments early on in design thinking. This eliminates the fear of failure and encourages maximum input and participation in the ideation and prototype phases. Outside the box thinking is encouraged in these earlier processes since this can often lead to creative solutions.
In organization and management theory, design thinking forms part of the Architecture/Design/Anthropology (A/D/A) paradigm, which characterizes innovative, human-centered enterprises. This paradigm also focuses on a collaborative and iterative style of work and an abductive mode of thinking, compared to practices associated with the more traditional Mathematics/Economics/Psychology (M/E/P) management paradigm. [Wikipedia]
5 Quick Dev/Design Tips from Twitter & Facebook
How we interact with technology is evolving. Our expectations are higher and our patience is lower. The World Wide Web is a very competitive place, but twitter & facebook are seeing unbelievable growth. Solutions inside the Enterprise have less competition and should experience rapid adoption. Adoption rates may vary, so here are some areas to review, if adoption rates are not meeting expectations.
- Adoption by Design is superior to any well written manual with petty pictures.
- User Experience using Web 2.0/3.0 technologies to improve speed & behavior.
- Use of standard Design Patterns for intuitive interfaces.
- Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) supporting sharing information across multiple devices in multiple formats & views.
- Experimenting with Features along with collecting feedback, helps to keep users interested and shows you care.
You can also review Yahoo’s Design Pattern Library and additional resources at Best Practices & Guidelines for Developers & Designers.
Thanks for reading! Please feel free to leave a comment or two.
Tags: Architecture, Enterprise 2.0, Facebook, Platforms, Twitter
