Secure Enterprise 2.0 Blog

eWEEK just came out with an interesting survey on how and why businesses are “diving into Web 2.0 Waters“.

Over half of survey respondents said their companies are allowing access to social networks at work. Granted, with a pool of some 282 IT professionals, we can’t claim victory just yet. But this is still an important indicator of how enterprises are gravitating towards social consumer technology.

There is good news and bad news that arise out of this survey:

Want the good news first? - When asked what are the drivers for implementing Web 2.0 tools at work, over 70 percent said they are looking for improved communications and collaboration internally and 49 percent said they are looking to reach consumers. In other words, Enterprise 2.0 tools (social networks, RSS, social bookmarking, blogs, etc) are becoming valid business tools.

The bad news? Wherever access is blocked, workers are using these tools unsanctioned by IT or management, putting enterprise data at risk. Nearly half of respondents revealed at least one rogue Web 2.0 app at their company. The security risks are considerable if companies do not provide a secure environment for their employees.

And how are companies dealing with the groundswell? Not very effectively. When asked whether their companies had implemented policies regulating the use of Web 2.0 technologies by employees, only 28 percent said yes.

So there is still much more work to be done, though the benefits of using Web 2.0 to get things done at work are already stepping into the limelight.

6:00AM – Bzzzzz. My cell phone alarm clock throws me off the bed, subtly reminding me that I need to get myself in gear. I tune in online to the 101FM website for local news, and learn that today is going to be a nice, bright, sunny day. Yay, that means I can snap on my iPod and peddle to the office on my 10-speed.

6:35AM – Just got out of the shower, and couldn’t resist - going through my Facebook profile. Apparently a friend from the London office just changed his status to “Engaged”. I send him a quick Congrat’s… and throw a sheep at him. He is online, not happy about the sheep, and reminds me that today our group needs to send him the Momo Project presentation. I log into my company’s enterprise social network, WorkBook, and send him the latest draft just to calm him down.

7:30AM – After a nice ride through downtown, I lockup my bike near the sandwich place. Got to get some coffee. As I wait for the morning’s caffeine intake, I twitter a quick “anyone for coffee?” using my cell to see if anyone following me at the office is also craving some Java. Surprisingly enough, two people from the Java team respond with a resounding yes. I should have seen that one coming.

9:45AM - Just got out of the weekly meeting. There’s some good stuff happening and more to come in the pipeline. I get on my laptop, and see on SharePoint that someone from the New Delhi office had formed a new group on the secure WorkBook social network focused on Marketing Initiatives. That’s interesting, I don’t know him personally, but apparently he is looking into similar things. I join up and we brainstorm some new ideas on the upcoming product release. I need to show my boss some of this stuff.

10:30AM – My boss is excited my the del.icio.us bookmarks I shared with her, following my discussion with the New Delhi contact (aka @asiamarketman on twitter. From now on I follow him). She’s going to bring it up in the next management meeting. Cool.

12:10PM – I go down to the sandwich place for a quick bite. Nothing fancy, but worth a Facebook status update – “..is eating. This time no MSG.”

2:07PM – I log into LinkedIn and see that one of our competitors has posted a Q&A about SEO. I need to read up on it, so I open up my RSS reader and skim the techy blogs. ReadWriteWeb has some nice info that I share with some people at R&D, and quickly set up a specialized RSS feed on the topic. Immediately three people from R&D ask to get access to the feed, so I give them permission.

4:26PM – Just got off the phone with some potential partners. There is good chemistry there and I like their attitude. There is something to be said about setting up strategic partnerships at this stage of our company’s growth, and I plan to post a quick entry about it on my blog later tonight.

6:15PM – Kept busy writing up the new proposals on the wiki and finally posted them to our network. Sweet, I see that my buddy at the L.A. office just downloaded it through the secure Facebook overlay.

7:23PM – Before packing up, I remember I need to get approval for my business trip expenses, so I post a request on my iGoogle gadget. I see that my manager has already approved my upcoming vacation request. That was fast. I go downstairs, get on my bike and head home. Another good day at the office.

10:25PM – Changed Facebook status to “…Zzzzzzz :-)”

When commanding the ship, you’ve got to find the right balance between giving out orders and directing the crew on the one hand, and trusting every person on the ship to do their job and then some on the other hand. The first part comes naturally, since the responsibility for the ship’s performance lies eventually with you. It is the second part that is hard - you’ve got to let go of the controls and provide your team with leeway for creativity and yes, even make mistakes.

At the office, the balancing act is much of the same – you’ve got to lead your organization forward, while conceding responsibilities to your subordinates. So when you first hear of a technology like Web 2.0 that is spreading like wildfire across business units and corporate hierarchy, I imagine it’s hard to embrace it without running rigorous evaluation process.

Rightfully so, since Web 2.0 and consumer tools in general do require appropriate guidelines and corporate safeguards, as Burton Group’s Mike Gotta points out. Yet, especially if you are at the helm of a major corporation with tens of thousands of employees that are trying to get things done across multiple locations and departments, you cannot afford to ignore the Web 2.0 groundswell.

Web 2.0 solutions enable grassroots employee collaboration, expertise sharing, professional social networking, secure and customized information feeds, personalized access to enterprise application data, and additional added-value for the organization.

Moreover, by opening up your organization to secure consumer services and social tools, you will experience improved worker productivity, sharper competitive edge, smoother communications channel with partners and customers, streamlined work processes, and generally attract tech-savvy, top talent as part of the team.

So, before you sail past it, I suggest you explore Web 2.0 and let it help you navigate the unknown seas that still lie ahead.

…just a few thoughts from one CEO to another,
Shahar

Dear Friends,

With the start of the new year, and with many good things upon us here at WorkLight, I am excited to announce our new blog - “Secure Enterprise 2.0″

We will focus on issues related to the consumerization of the workplace, security issues surrounding Web 2.0 solutions, market trends, industry buzz and any other useful tidbit of information that my colleagues and I feel like ranting about.

Let me start off by explaining what I see in the shift towards “consumerization of IT”:

Gartner calls this an irreversible mega-trend, and warns that any company that wants to stay in the game should accept the technology and culture. But what does it mean for your company?

It means that your employees are interfacing both internally and externally using tools and technologies that are by now commonplace at home - social networks like Facebook; collaborative platforms such as wikis; soapbox tools like blogs to voice opinions; social bookmarking to share news and expertise with others; and many more.

It means that when you are talking about corporate procedures and top-down guidelines, your team has already customized the top clients profiles, launched a new work group to brainstorm on the next product upgrade, facilitated access to your best-selling products via a snazzy customer-facing web 2.0 application, and pretty much left you in the dark.

Bottom line, it means that in order for you to lead your company and thrive on their expertise, you must accept employee-driven innovation and nurture it to meet your business goals, in a safe and secure environment.

And to top it off - here is a fun share-slide on Charlotte’s Enterprise 2.0 experience.

Enjoy!

Shahar

P.S. Feel free to link, digg, share a comment or email us. We are always ready to hear what you have to say!