Tags: Learning, eLearning, Learning 2.0, eLearning 2.0, Knowledge Management, KM, KM 2.0, Slideshare, Social Computing, Social Software, Social Media, Web 2.0, Social Networking, Weblogs, Steven Warburton

I am sure that by now most of you are somewhat familiar with such a fine offering as Slideshare.net. An online place where different folks get to upload slide decks on whatever the topic and then be able to share them pretty much a la YouTube fashion. It pretty much works the same in the sense that you can tag your slides, add a brief description, leave comments, save as favourites and share them with others through URLs or embedding the slide deck. Pretty slick if you ask me and something that is perhaps helping PowerPoint slides and PDF files get some more renewed popularity.

Well, one of the things that I have been doing lately, at least, once a week is to actually check out some of the different slide decks available out there and which would be dealing with the same set of topics that I get to discuss over here, i.e. KM, Collaboration, Communities, Learning and Social Computing. And I must say that there are lots of good stuff out there available to everyone. Like the slide deck that I have found earlier on today around the subject of social software within the learning environment. Check out Deploying Social Software in Learning and Teaching Environments.

The deck was actually put together by Dr. Steven Warburton, whose weblog I can certainly recommend as well to others who may be interested in learning and emerging technologies related to social computing. In it you would be able to see how Steve actually gets to build up a strong case as to why social software tools like weblogs could actually be a worth while option to consider within the learning environment for a good number of different reasons, but mainly for their versatility (See slide 7):

"a. Providing a rich set of writing techniques: writing as a process of self discovery
b Supporting conversational learning
c. Creating or augmenting social presence
d. Encouraging reflective practice (Through an inherent reflective, informal tone)
e. Developing a "critical voice"
f. Providing a record or portfolio of learning
g. Developing a community of inquiry
h. Creating learning networks, social networks
i. Developing and understand one’s identity as a learner (autonomy and ownership)
j. Tension between self and reader necessitates learning to trust and understand one’s own perspectives."

From there onwards Steven gets to share some further insights through a case study as to why weblogs would be useful tools for learners as opposed to just think that the may pose different challenges that students may not be able to overcome. Yes, there may be some challenges out there while working with weblogs within the learning environment, but there is no denying that the pros would actually outweigh the cons and Steven actually does a great job putting a very good and comprehensive account as to where the challenges are and also what would be the potential solutions.

This is certainly one of those presentations that I can certainly recommend to anyone out there within the learning environment (Although it would also apply to the business world, no doubt!) who is not sure yet as to what role social computing is going to play in all this. So for those folks interested further on the slide deck here you have got the embedded slide deck so that you can flip through the charts yourself while reading through further:

Oh, and now that you are done with that slide deck I can certainly recommend you check out the other three presentations that Steven has shared as well over at Slideshare because I am sure you would find them equally interesting because they all touch on how the world of social computing is actually changing the world of Learning.

Thus I guess that Knowledge Management is not the only discipline that is being affected by social computing. So is Learning and I must say that having a strong education background myself I am really glad to see that little by little Learning 2.0 is becoming a reality that we get to see more and more all over the place. So I guess that from now on, I shall be sharing some further insights about that fascinating topic as well: Learning and its social computing adoption.

Tags: Collaboration Loop, Larry Cannell, Enterprise 2.0, CTC, Collaborative Technologies Conference, Andrew McAfee, Cultural Change, Enterprise Computing, Social Computing, Social Software, Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0, KM 2.0, Collaboration 2.0, Tacit Knowledge, Explicit Knowledge, Knowledge Management, KM, Collaboration

A few days ago, over at Collaboration Loop, Larry Cannell shared a very good weblog post around the subject of Enterprise 2.0: More Than Blogs and Wikis that I thought you folks would be interested in, specially if you would be into reading further about the impact of social software within the Enterprise. Larry gets to talk about how the Collaborative Technologies Conference will be changing its name to Enterprise 2.0 Conference in 2007 and how Enterprise 2.0 is not all about popular social software tools like weblogs or wikis alone. On the contrary, he actually proposes how Web 2.0 should be brought into the corporate world in such a way that it would need to go well and beyond what has happened within the consumer market. And he is right.

He mentions briefly some of the work that Andrew McAfee has already done in this space, and which I have weblogged about in the past already, and he actually proposes three new different areas to take into account for the Enterprise 2.0 Conference to shape up to the potential expectations raised:

"a. Social Computing cultural changes.
b. User-centric building blocks.
c. The future face of enterprise computing"

I must say that although I am still pondering whether I would be able to make it or not to the Enterprise 2.0 Conference event in 2007 (I would love to, but there are a number of items that I need to take care of first) there would be one particular aspect that I would be looking forward to and which Larry hasn’t mentioned in his article. And that is the fact that I would be looking forward to materials put together where the focus is not just on Enterprise 2.0 per se within the corporate environment, but more a combination of the two. What do I mean with that?

Well, after reading Larry’s weblog entry, I actually felt like he is thinking social software within the Enterprise, i.e. Enterprise 2.0, would actually be the main predominant area within corporations starting in a very short time, if it hasn’t already started, to spark some collaboration and I must say that I tend not to agree with that statement completely. It will not be the only focus area. I doubt the plenty of large businesses, and smaller ones as well, for that matter, would actually be giving up all those years of hard work and funding in building the mode traditional Knowledge Management and Collaboration systems to then dump them all as soon as social software arrives.

I think that it gets a bit more complicated than that. Knowledge workers will take some time before they would be adopting all those new tools. They do require a cultural change like Larry mentioned, but also knowledge workers would still want to make use of what they are using today because they already know how the workflow works. They are comfortable with it and they are happy with how things are going at the moment. Well, perhaps not all of them, but a good chunk of them would be.

So I am thinking that for the Enterprise 2.0 Conference to be truly successful it would have to bring forward something that hardly any other Enterprise 2.0 related conference has done thus far, which is provide a balanced approach towards dealing with the potential integration of the traditional KM and Collaboration systems and this next gen. of social software tools that are gaining more and more traction.

To me the biggest success from Enterprise 2.0 would not be how much, or how well, corporations get to adopt and deploy social software tools. It is actually a bit more complex than that. To me the biggest success of Enterprise 2.0 would be when corporations are able to find a balanced approach of putting together the best of both worlds: what works in the traditional KM and Collaboration space along with the next wave of collaboration and knowledge sharing: social computing. Yes, indeed, that balance that I have already talked about a few times and that is well known as the tacit and explicit knowledge exchange.

That, to me, is where the main challenge is and why I would certainly be looking forward to the Enterprise 2.0 Conference as I would expect that it would provide such balanced agenda that would try to cover both areas and lead the path on how they could work together in the corporate world. Social computing does not necessarily need to substitute what we already have. It can very well complement it. Augmenting it to such levels that it would provoke a new wave of knowledge sharing and collaboration amongst knowledge workers by empowering them to go well beyond the call of duty. We shall see what happens when the agenda gets published, but I do hope they would address some of that. Time will tell.

Tags: Socialtext, Wikis, TiddlyWiki, Enterprise 2.0, Collaboration, Remote Collaboration, Ross Mayfield, Knowledge Management, KM, Social Computing, Social Networking, Social Software, Web 2.0, IBM, Lotus Notes, Groove

WOW! This is a fantastic piece of news! And something that hasn’t gone unnoticed because there have been quite a few folks who have been commenting on it already thus far. Ross Mayfield himself already announced it over at his own weblog here. Socialtext now works offline! Wooohooo ! Socialtext just announced itself as *the* killer app. in the Enterprise wiki space. If you have been working in a distributed or virtual environment, if you are one of those mobile workers constantly travelling from customer site to customer site, back home, back to the customer and so on you would certainly appreciate Socialtext’s announcement. Read on.

I am sure that if you are one of those mobile workers, you may have experienced how frustrating it can become to find a good regular broadband line in order to share your content into the team or community space while you are away from the office so that you can then move on to the next thing. So what Socialtext has done, integrating with the ever so popular TiddlyWiki, is just perhaps closing the gap and starting a new era in this almost semi-connected Internet world, because one of the major concerns from a rather large population of knowledge workers, i.e. that mobile workforce, has just been addressed and fixed!

Everyone now would be able to update content on the fly as they go along, no matter if they are working from the office or while on the road. Everyone now has got the chance to contribute and feel they are part of the team or the community because they have got the same capability to add content as their own colleagues working in an office environment. But, of course, it is not perfect. At least, not yet. Synchronising back to the online wiki space does not seem to be fixing the well know replication conflicts we are all too familiar with, i.e. when two or more people try to update the same page at the same time and replicate that new content back into the same page, that other rather popular collaborative tools like Groove or IBM’s Lotus Notes seem to master very well at the moment. But still, it is a move in the right direction. Why?, you may be wondering.

Well, for one particular reason. Socialtext, by entering the world of remote collaboration while in disconnected mode, is just perhaps the first of the so-called social software technologies available out there that tries to meet up, and probably succeeds, the needs from the ever growing mobile workforce within the Enterprise. Take, for instance, the case of IBM, where 40% of the total population is mobile!

I am sure that in its due time there would be many other technologies and tools that would be adding similar functionality, but right now it looks like Socialtext is actually leading the pack of Enterprise wiki software for the entire workforce, whether you work from the office or while on the road (i.e. Disconnected). Exciting times ahead for knowledge workers as we are now able to collaborate offline in an effective way without having to figure out if at the end of the day we would be able to find a live Internet connection or not in order to share your knowledge with others. Now we would be able to update that content, wait till we get our hands in a reliable connection and sync back! As easy as that! … Let’s see how long before others join …

(Still trying to figure out what a wiki is. Here are some additional links for you to dive into)

Tags: Informal Learning, Jay Cross, Knowledge Management, KM, Collaboration, Learning, Social Computing, Traditional KM, Traditional Learning, Social Software, Social Networking, Informl

  Yesterday Jay Cross created a brief but straight to the point follow up weblog post to one that I have recently shared myself over here around the subject of Knowledge Management and Informal Learning in which he was mentioning the interesting commentary on why KM and Learning belong to one another. Basically, on why there shouldn’t have been any separation between them at all from the very beginning like my initial weblog post seemed to have suggested:

"When the job environment changed but slowly, corporate learning involved acquiring the skills and know-how to do the job. Now corporate learning means keeping up with the new things you need to know to do the job. Maybe daily. The traditional barriers separating training, development, knowledge management, performance support, informal learning, mentoring, and knowing the latest news have become obstacles to performance. They are all one thing, for one purpose, and that’s performance."

He then wonders whether the "old distinctions serve a purpose in today’s world" or not and I just thought I would go ahead and create a weblog post on the subject, trying to add some more into the conversation.

I must say that while reading through his weblog entry I have felt very much identified with it and believe that he is just spot on! However, I believe that what he is talking about is just the way things are running at the moment in the space of KM and (Informal) Learning in the current workplace, because in the past things were just not like that.

As a starter, Knowledge Management was much more static and prone to not so many changes, even in the workplace. That command-and-control attitude was very much en vogue. It was all very much based on tools and processes that knowledge workers needed to follow and rarely was the focus on the people, which, if you ask me, is one of the basic key components from any good and worth while adopting Learning system.

That is right. At the time KM was having an extra emphasis on everything but the knowledge workers themselves; something that very few Learning systems would have in common. But Learning itself was not doing much better either.

Most of the Learning that took place up to not long ago was actually away from the workplace and in different classroom courses, without a context, with a learning programme that in most cases did not reflect the needs from the business, nor from the learners themselves and so forth. Mind you, I am not saying that classroom learning is that bad, on the contrary, it has got many many benefits that I will perhaps detail at some point in time. What I am saying that is pretty much like KM has been all along focused on one side of the spectrum (Explicit Knowledge exchange) so has learning just focusing on the formal learning aspects of the classroom as opposed to informal learning. Yes, indeed, pretty much like there is supposed to be a balance between tacit and explicit knowledge exchanges, for KM, the same would apply to learning: putting together the more traditional way of learning, through the classroom, with the informal learning happening while at the workplace.

So where have we gone from there nowadays? If all along we have seen how KM and Learning were not walking along hand in hand as we thought they were for whatever the reasons, their own reasons, what made them come together and convert into a single space nowadays where both Learning and Knowledge are two strong components that every knowledge worker has got a chance to get exposed to while getting the job done?

Well, if you ask me, I think that you probably know what I would be saying by now. Yes, indeed, Social Computing is what has made KM and Learning come together, move forward and become one. Main reason being the fact that with social computing we are witnessing what we may not have seen for quite some time now. And that is the fact that for the first time in a long while the focus is back at the people, both for KM and for Learning, which means that knowledge workers are much more in control of what they themselves know and want to share with others and also, at the same time, what they learn in the process and share with others, while performing and getting the job done.

Thus if you were thinking that KM is not very much related Learning, specially nowadays, I guess that you would have to think about it twice, because with the emergence of social software both of them are finally walking hand in hand and, much more importantly, at the same level. A level where the main group of beneficiaries are actually the ones who should have been all along: the knowledge workers themselves.

Tags: GreaterIBM, IBM, ibm.com, Social Networking, Social Computing, Social Software, Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0, Web 3.0, Enterprise 3.0, Second Life, Virtual Worlds, Metaverse, Virtual Bloc Party

There is no denying that as of late plenty of things have actually been happening in IBM around the subject of Social Computing and Social Software. Check out, for instance, the superb Executive Interaction Channel - Innovating under the radar: the benefits of asymmetry and play around with it for a bit. (I will probably talk about it at a later time as well). Yes, you could say I am really glad I recently started a category over here around IBM happenings because it looks like they keep piling up further. Good stuff !

Here is the latest one though. And it is coming up again from GreaterIBM, the IBM social networking application for current IBMers and IBM’s alumni, and which I talked about yesterday as well. This one though actually shows as well how much IBM is actually opening itself towards that on-going social software adoption within the Enterprise, because if you head over the GreaterIBM weblog you would be able to see an entry shared today where it is announcing the availability of the GreaterIBM Web site as part of the ibm.com homepage.

Yes, that is right ! You would be able to find it over here: The Greater IBM Connection. It looks very good and over there, IBMers and alumni, would be able to find all of the necessary details to join this social network and become one of us (I always wanted to say that! heh).

"The page offers links to join the network’s main portal, the new complement to that base, a Group we’ve just launched on LinkedIn, as well as the opportunity to get a bi-monthly greaterIBM Update e-newsletter.

Of course, we’re also pointing out the exciting new virtual component of greaterIBM, as well as the Machinimania Challenge, which has gotten a tremendous response."

Most of that I already talked about but the interesting thing is the actual virtual component of greaterIBM, where you would be able to read some more about how this particular social networking initiative will also be making extensive use of Second Life (We are already, by the way, in case you are wondering…):

"The Connection Center will be the home for all kinds of events and exhibitions, as well as a destination for where greaterIBMers can do real collaborative work in this strange new environment. Or just hang out with each other."

That is certainly going to be really cool and fascinating; to be able to hang out with people I used to work with (Or still do) in an environment where, they say, the next wave of Web interactions have already started to take place and continue to share and collaborate with them but in a brave new world: Second Life.

In case, you are wondering, yes, I have entered the Second Life world a few weeks back (Using the same nickname as this weblog’s name) and during this time I have been exploring things, getting comfortable with my avatar, smashing against every possible thing you can crash to and have an incredible amount of good fun. Yes, virtual worlds for the Enterprise (Enterprise 3.0) are already here and GreaterIBM will actually be playing its part over there, too!

But for the time being go and check out The Greater IBM Connection if you would want to find out what we are up to. Oh, and if you want to taste a little bit what GreaterIBM is doing in SecondLife check out the following YouTube embedded video from the recent GreaterIBM Virtual Bloc Party held not long ago:

Yes, I know, way cool ! Have a good one !

Tags: IBM, GreaterIBM, Social Networking, Social Computing, Social Software, Social Networking Tools, LinkedIn, openBC, XING, Second Life, Jerry Bowles, Enterprise Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0

You would remember how some time ago, a few months back, actually, I created a weblog post where I shared some details on an upcoming initiative from IBM related to Social Networking called GreaterIBM where IBM was going to try to get together in a social network current IBM employees and IBM alumni, people who were once IBM employees but who now may have moved elsewhere into other jobs. Well, I am not sure if you have been following such initiative already but, just in case, you may not have I would like to share with you folks that things have been buzzing big time for the last couple of months.

From its continued usage of the openBC (Now XING) social networking tool where we are still going very strong with it, to actually hosting a number of different face to face events in multiple countries and geographies (Here is a highlight from one of the most recent ones), to actually host a virtual bloc party in the ever exciting virtual world of Second Life (More on that at a later time, for sure!). Well, it looks like things are going to get even more interesting, because over at the GreaterIBM weblog (Where you can get all sorts of information about how such initiative is moving along) you would be able to read the following weblog entry: The Greater IBM Connection on LinkedIn.

In that particular entry you would be able to read how if you are a heavy user of LinkedIn, one of the most powerful business oriented social networks available out there at the moment, you can still enjoy all of the major key benefits from the GreaterIBM initiative because there is now a GreaterIBM LinkedIn Group for it. If you are a current IBMer or, much more importantly, if you are an IBM alumni, you can actually join us by going into this link. So if you were not sure if you would be going there and create just another profile over at XING, the main social network that GreaterIBM is using then you can still get the most out of it from signing up with that GreaterIBM LinkedIn group. Nifty !

While I was actually busy writing this particular weblog post mentioning that particular new capability from such IBM initiative in the social computing area, I just couldn’t help thinking about the recent weblog post that Jerry Bowles shared over at Enterprise Web 2.0 where he is actually starting it up with the title: LinkedIn: So Popular Nobody Goes There Anymore? In that particular article he is actually sharing some experiences from different folks as to how they feel about their social networking interactions within LinkedIn, perhaps one of the most popular social networks for professionals available out there. And I must say that the article itself makes for an interesting reading.

Main reason being that there are lots of different examples where it is detailed how social networking tools like LinkedIn may be just a bit too much noise going around lately, but in some other cases it can provide some incredible business value, like the fantastic success story from Ismael Ghalimi which Jerry also highlights in his weblog post.

Either way, while I went through the weblog article it clearly reminded me of another couple of posts that I have shared not long ago where I stated that the clear business value of any such tools as social networking tools would depend not much on the raw number of the connections you probably make, no matter how many you actually have, or how many different social networks you belong to, but actually pick up the odd couple of them and stick with them. Yes, indeed, the key success towards social networking tools adoption is actually focus and balance.

So that is why I am really happy to see that the two choices that I have picked up some time ago, LinkedIn and XING, are now the two social networking tools that GreaterIBM is making use of. Excellent stuff ! Time now to continue with that focus and balance and carry on building further up with those relationships and connections. Oh, and in case you are wondering here is my LinkedIn profile and my XING profile. Just in case you may want to drop by and say "Hi! Let’s connect!"