Blogs as knowledge enablement
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Been having some more thoughts on blogs in companies - I recently setup some trial blogs for a client - and thought I'd punt out the notes I'd made for a briefing session on an implementation strategy - click the checklist icon for the doc. 
So, I also dusted off the MA thesis I wrote a few years ago on blogs as expertise accelerator - kind of dropped off google and technorati's radar when I moved servers, so here it is again - 
Here's my post on blogging from April 2004...
Nice, fluffy Fast Company article that takes a look at corporate blogging. I'd kind of forgotten about the benefits of blogging in companies. I mean, I did develop a project blog for a large client project (multiple client liaisons, distributed development team) last summer and it was a mixed success (client liked it, my colleagues, by and large, disliked it). I sort of just assumed that this was getting done, but the novelty is I suppose, is still there.
In fact, I guess now that there are a number of 'early adopter' success stories (as in big, safe companies), orgs will have that me-too mentality, that they will now feel comfortable when seeing 'peers' doing similar - "...what? you mean Microsoft, IBM and Chrysler blog? Wow, why aren't we blogging?"
This article is a nice reminder of the positive benefits of blogging - fast, very cheap and bloody effective. Actually, the words of the John Parkinson, the Cap Gemini technologist from the webcast I saw a couple of days ago rang in my ears -
"Knowledge workers spend half their time dealing inefficiently with co-workers - basis of inefficiency is not knowing what the other person already knows".
Wow, now there's the perfect example of how a weblog can benefit companies - by letting you build up rapid understanding of other people's expertise, knowledge and interests before you work with them on a project or go into a meeting. I've read many times about how people enter immediately richer conversations on meeting a blogger - "it felt like I already knew them..."
Some quick and dirty metrics:
- So, lets assume the the 50% inefficiency is highly puffed - and so assume only a quarter of that (12.5%) efficiency gained by a knowledge workers working together with a blogging colleague.
- Assume average salary of $60k.
- Assume average blogging activity of 1/2 hour a day (at $28 p.h.). Gives you 'lost' efficiency = $5k a year.
- Individual efficiency by reading a blog before teaming (12.5% of $60k = $7.5k per person.
But wait - that one person blogging 'cost' $5k. Each person who works with that person gains a $7.5k annual increase in efficiency. Suppose that blogger works on projects with 4 new people who read their blog. Bang - $22.5k in annualised efficiency.
And those metrics assume no change in current behaviour (e.g. think of the replacement of productivity sapping email management).
So blogging means faster, more efficient project work between distributed KM workers.
But how do you encourage blogging by knowledge workers and importantly, sustain blogging as a core activity (a huge percentage of new blogs die off)?
There has to be a direct benefit to the person:
* Why not make part of their salary package based on provable knowledge sharing?
* Start letting teams pick themselves - that will encourage people to 'advertise' their skills and interests.
* Feature employee blogs in meetings.
* Give prizes for 'best blogs'.
* Introduce aggregators -make it easy for people to get hold of information.
* Lower the barriers by working within existing tools. Newsgator reads blogs directly within Outlook.
* Why aren't the execs blogging?
* Encourage movement of email discussions and file transfers into blogs.
I remember a co-worker complaining about "having to visit your project blog. It's just another place to find information." To which (I rather arrogantly) replied: "No. it's the only place to find information". Gotta break those eggs sometimes.
