How Enterprise Social Computing Has Changed My Workday For The Better

It should come as no surprise that I use social computing technologies at work and at play – a lot.    I was delighted to realize recently that I work very differently than I did as little as three years ago as a result of using Enterprise 2.0 tools from NewsGator (of course) and other vendors.  Here are some of the activities that have changed for me, certainly for the better.

My email volume has decreased significantly…seriously.  I know that this benefit is often touted in regards to enterprise RSS and social networking, but I can attest to the validity of the supposition.  From regular use of my Activity Stream in NewsGator Social Sites, I am aware of events carried out by my colleagues throughout the day.    Those events include:

·         Posting status reports – I no longer  get attachments on multiple emails from multiple recipients

·         Creating a new community of practice – so that I can gleefully exclaim “Wow, we landed THAT customer??”

·         Announcing a company event with instructions to RSVP

·         Updating a project management task – Oops, I guess I better finish my task now!

·         Bookmarking an interesting article - Ah, something fun to read later

The last bullet point brings me to another very cool benefit and change for my work life.  Catching up on industry news used to be something that a) I didn’t make adequate time for or b) I found mind-numbing as I tediously slogged through volumes of content.  The fact that my colleagues collect and share RSS feeds and articles means I have a access to a superb filtering mechanism.  The collective wisdom of my co-workers serves as one of the best content filtering tools I have ever used.  Because of this, I am inspired to reciprocate making the overall system work even better.

I have gotten to know my colleagues better than ever as a result of their social profiles, activity in Social Sites, and micro-blogging (internal and external).   I have a better understanding of where they are, what they are working on and why any of that matters to me as a result of Twitter and Yammer.  I have also gained knowledge into skills, experience and personal insights that make for richer connections at work.

Finally, a little fun is thrown in for good measure.  Losing a round of darts can lead to an interesting avatar on one’s profile, as I discovered this afternoon.    You may or may not wish to try this in your own company – we are, after all, professionals.