Enterprise 2.0 Building Social Networks

OIM3525 Enterprise 2.0: Building Social Networks to Improve Business Performance
(Formerly MIS3525)
4 Advanced Management Credits

Students who took this as MIS3525 cannot take this course

Enterprise 2.0 is the term to describe organizations that use social media technologies (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, YouTube), strategies, and business practices that enable emergent collaboration. Many organizations are now interested in capturing, distributing and applying the knowledge of their employees for business benefit. Also, companies need to keep track of knowledge outside of their corporate walls, for example, understanding market trends and being aware of what customers are saying about their products. Ultimately, the goal of Enterprise 2.0 is to break down traditional information silos and allow employees and managers to tap into the right people and expertise when they need it.

In this course we will discuss the current state of the Enterprise 2.0 movement. We will also explore how social collaboration tools (often referred to as social media and Web 2.0) are being used by organizations to leverage the "wisdom of the crowds." Organizations are increasingly using tools such as blogs, wikis, social tagging, and social networking tools to achieve emergent collaboration and to break down information silos. Knowledge workers are also using social technologies to build their personal brand and personal network.

Student projects will emphasize a "hands-on" approach to understanding the latest social technologies. We will use social network analysis (SNA) software, a methodology to analyze the structure of social networks, or the people-to-people connections in organizations. SNA is an increasingly popular application used by both management consultants and internal organizational practices (e.g., knowledge management, IS, HR, R&D) to understand information flows and "influencers" inside and outside a company. Another project will have students create a social media campaign for an organization, including providing metrics on how to evaluate the success of the campaign. We will also experiment with mobile applications, such as location-based services (e.g., Foursquare, SCVNGR) on smartphones.

Prerequisites: FME1000 & FME1001