Company leaders are being urged to embrace blogs and other "web 2.0" technologies to improve their businesses, but some executives say it's easier said than done.
Peter Sondergaard, global head of research for Gartner, told chief executives at Cebit that blogs and online communities like MySpace may have started in the consumer realm but they'll have a big impact on businesses in the coming years.
Many executives already use blogs to talk with customers, and companies like Microsoft and IBM are offering tools to let employees work on projects using blogs and wikis. In the virtual world, companies like BMW and Adidas are doing marketing in the online community Second Life.
It's part of a shift in which products and services for consumers are creeping increasingly into the world of business, Sondergaard said.
Registration is free, and gives you full access to our extensive white paper library, case studies & analysis, downloads & speciality areas, and more.
"This is the next major shift in technology. It will last 15 years – but it's the next five years that will decide which enterprises will thrive and take advantage of the new tools," he said at the CEO Vision Forum, an event on the sidelines of the Cebit show.
Some executives at the forum agreed the technologies are important, but saw challenges putting them in action.
"He's a consultant and I'm a CEO. He doesn't have to worry that if you have a community network in your organisation and you disclose financial information, you go to jail," said Ben Verwaayen, chief executive of BT Group.
Sondergaard is right in principle, Verwaayen said, and executives must be open to new things, but a leader's job is to decide when the time is right, and to have "the ability to resist what is fashionable," he said.
Be the first to comment on this article!