Collaborative computing/Spm. 1

Der ønskes en analyse og diskussion af fordele og udfordringer ved enterprise wikis som redskab til kommunikation og samarbejde i organisationer under inddragelse af relevante begreber og teorier fra pensum for faget Kommunikation og IT-­‐støttet samarbejde i organisationer og 200 siders selvvalgt litteratur om wikis i organisationer. Du må gerne anvende en konkret case som udgangspunkt for opgaven.

Enterprise Wikis cases

Stocker, Tochtermann (2011) Enterprise Wikis – Types of Use, Benefits and Obstacles - A Multiple-Case Study]

Abstract. In this paper we present the results of our explorative multiple-case study investigating enterprise wikis in three Austrian cases. Our contribution was highly motivated from the ongoing discussion on Enterprise 2.0 in science and practice, but the lack of well-grounded empirical research on how enterprise wikis are actually designed, implemented and more importantly utilized. We interviewed 7 corporate experts responsible for wiki operation and about 150 employees supposed to facilitate their daily business by using the wikis. The combination of qualitative data from the expert interviews and quantitative data from the user survey allows generating very interesting insights. Our crosscase analysis reveals commonalities and differences on usage motives, editing behaviour, individual and collective benefits, obstacles, and more importantly, derives a set of success factors guiding managers in future wiki projects.

Enterprise Wikis fra OrgKomm synspunkt

Wagner, Schroeder (2010) Capabilities and Roles of Enterprise. Wikis in Organizational Communication] '

Purpose: The article alerts technical communicators to wiki technology, an emerging new medium that allows dispersed groups to create shared content via collaborative editing and different-time communication. Wiki-based collaborative content creation enables new communication practices and thereby challenges several assumptions of existing media choice theories. Method: Analysis of empirical evidence from 32 published case descriptions and reports to evaluate wiki technology in a corporate context based on the defining characteristics of three media choice theories (i.e., media richness theory, theory of media synchronicity, and common ground theory). Results: Wikis meet or exceed capabilities of several other communication and collaboration media, and thus provide a credible alternative to other business communication technologies currently in use. Further, distinct media capabilities of wikis are not fully represented by current media choice theories, suggesting the need to extend media choice theories to recognize these unique capabilities. Conclusion: The unique features of enterprise wikis enable new collaboration practices and challenge some of the core theoretical assumptions of media choice theories. The refactoring capability of wikis is identified as a unique feature that enables new forms of collaboration and communication in organizations. An implementation that wishes to successfully leverage wiki-enabled collaboration opportunities must carefully consider challenges of human interaction such as free-riding, or conflict of values.

Keywords: Wiki; Content refactoring; Collaborative writing; Media capability; Business communication

Implementering af Wikis

Lykourentzou et al. (2011) - Planning for a Successful Corporate Wiki]

Abstract Corporate wikis are increasingly being adopted by enterprises as a solution to various organizational processes. Subsequently a significant number of research works have started focusing on providing results on both successful and unsuccessful corporate wiki implementations. Nevertheless, the scope of these studies is usually limited on a specific organizational case or focuses on a limited set of aspects of the wiki adoption, e.g. either the technological or the cultural one. Our objective in this work is to provide an overview of the key factors affecting the successful implementation of an organizational wiki, by analyzing thirty case studies reported in the research literature. The result of this analysis is the identification of a core set of common best practices to be taken into account by stakeholders when planning the integration of a wiki within a corporate context. In this way, the study aims at contributing to the planning and the realization of more successful corporate wiki implementations with enterprise environments.

Yeo & Arazy (2012) What Makes Corporate Wikis Work? Wiki Affordances and Their Suitability]

Abstract. Wikis were originally intended for knowledge work in the open Internet environment, and there seems to be an inherent tension between wikis’ affordances and the nature knowledge work in organiza- tions. The objective of this paper is to investigate how tailoring wikis to corporate settings would impact users’ wiki activity. We begin by synthesizing prior works on wikis’ design principles; identifying several areas where we anticipate high tension between wikis’ affordances and organizational work practices. We put forward five propositions regard- ing how changes in corporate wikis deployment procedures may impact users’ wiki activity. An empirical study in one multi-national organiza- tion tested users’ perceptions towards these propositions, revealing that in some cases there may be a need for modifying wiki’s design, while in other cases corporations may wish to change their knowledge work practices to align with wikis’ affordances.