Secure Enterprise 2.0 Blog

Hi, my name is Shahar, and I am a Web 2.0 CEO.

Don’t worry, this is not a “Web 2.0 Anonymous” 12-step declaration… just the best way to describe how I approach my business.

Web 2.0 drills deep into the organization, affecting employees and managers alike. I have heard critics warn that managers relinquish control when employees are allowed to use consumer tools to get things done at work, but I see it as just a better way to drive innovation and creativity.

Remember how difficult it was to get team members to offer real input on your projects, moreover from colleagues across business units and locations? Or how you had to prepare a presentation on a topic you knew nothing about in 15 minutes for the big boys on the top floor? …Of course the next day you realized that a coworker down the hall had done these presentations just about a million times, and could have lent a hand.

As a manager, your team members can share their expertise and work together in new ways, whether sharing information securely on Facebook, or tracking social bookmarks posted by colleagues through del.icio.us. If you give them the tools, or better yet, allow them to pick their own tools – they will surprise you.

So here’s what I recommend –

• Don’t block technology, embrace it if it can bring you closer to your business goals
• Breed an open corporate culture, one that allows you to hear different and sometimes opposing views from your employees

Simple as that, and you will soon see marked improvement in your team’s performance.

Shahar

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