Groundswell: Innovation through Social Network
Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff coined the term “groundswell” to describe the social trend where people use social technologies (blogs, wikis, podcasts, twitter, facebook, youtube, …) to get what they need from each other, such as information, ideas, support and even products, instead of being dependent on getting what they need from companies.
In their book “Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies” they explain how companies deal with the challenge of integrating social technologies into business performance. This is not a research about web 2.0 trends, the meaningful part for its co-authour Charlene is the community these things create: “Relationships are everything. Social networks combine people who have similar interests. Is not that different than if you are at a baseball game talking to the person beside you. You are not truly strangers because you both love baseball…” and how companies should take into account this emerging phenomena when building up and implementing business strategies.
That is our challenge in MIK for the coming future, creating an open space, a community to discuss, connect and share common interests.
But the question is: Are corporations already surfing in the “groundswell” or are they still swimming upstream?
4 Comments to “Groundswell: Innovation through Social Network”
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It is a really interesting concept corporations in the Basque Country should start applying. There are some already started surfing a bit, but we are still at the tail of the group. However, it is almost a virgin field we are exploring in a deep way in MIK.
We’ll read it!!
Although many companies over here feel themselves rather strange about ’social technologies’, I think there are great opportunities because of the sense of community we have developed. But now it seems to be different. It’s not a community from a local point of view but from a ‘glocal’ one. And it’s not only words I’m afraid.
Regards.
I think that the typical industrial SME is far from embeding social technologies to their day to day life, obviuosly, manual workers have rarely this possibility, white collar workers are entering, anyway, I feel is still symbolic. Considering the Knowledge worker (refering Drucker´s definition), the challenge is to create real value from this techs.
Their capacity to increase the social capital is clear, and although somentimes indirectly,you realize that contacts and relationships are fundamental in these days, so i think we should not underestimate this new era…
I am glad that i found your site, there are a couple of interesting posts