Yes, social business seems to be the new buzz word, but one can’t argue about the challenges that face many organizations today. It’s never too late to start thinking strategically about how to change your business. Whether you are new to social business or have been in the trenches for some years, here are two really good whitepapers from two leading companies that have led the way of social business transformation. Both whitepapers are from 2011, but there is valuable data, insights, case studies and strategic approaches that can help you start thinking about how you can begin to change your organization.
IBM
IBM has certainly been evangelizing social business for years now and they are one company that also walks the walk. This whitepaper (written by IDC) explores 3 example case studies of IBM’s internal evolution to a social business based on several interviews with IBM employees who were instrumental in facilitating this change. While the core focus of this whitepaper is technology, there are certainly some key nuggets around change management and culture that are valuable.
Oracle
Oracle is also a leader in embracing social technologies internally. This whitepaper reads more like an article but has some really good data points about the adoption of social technology an enterprise collaboration. For example, one study showed that 72% of the respondents felt that a significant investment in enterprise 2.0 platforms would result in improved customer satisfaction; while 69% believed that it would improve employee productivity and 67% believed that it would enhance employee collaboration.
