Building Business Value Through Communities of Practice
This article is almost a year old, but I thought it did a great job of framing some of the real benefits and outcomes of internal online communities of practice.
Examples of these communities of practice include:
Ericsson Canada pooling the talent of geographically dispersed employees by using a Web system to ask and get answers. Anders Hemre, the chief knowledge officer, is charged with improving the flow of internal information. He is experimenting with six communities of practice�??four in face-to-face meetings and two online. Schlumberger oilfield services engineers reaching out for answers by using their "InTouch" system to quickly resolve field problems. Peter Day, InTouch program manager, credits the program with "$200 million in cost savings and revenue in 2001, along with a 95 percent reduction in the time required to solve difficult operational problems and a 75 percent decrease in the time necessary to update engineering modifications." Xerox giving 25,000 field-service engineers access to a knowledge-sharing system that contributes savings of nearly 10 percent on parts and labor, translating into $15 to $20 million per year. Dan Holtshouse, director of knowledge initiatives, talks about "the 50,000 solution tips that have been entered into the knowledge base, all on a purely voluntary basis, in exchange for contributors' being recognized. What we have learned is the importance of creating a work environment with a culture and incentives that are conducive to sharing, and to support that environment with improved work processes and strong technology."
These are some of the first movers. You don't have to be a billion dollar multinational company to benefit from internal online communities like these. The technology costs can be very reasonable and there are folks like me out there that can help you make it work for you.
The article has some great tips to get started too:
Start with a clear area of business need. Start small. Don’t just get management buy-in. Recruit their involvement Define clear goals and metrics.
Ensure that the initiative ties in to existing projects.Allocate a budget and support resources. Understand and respect informal employee initiatives already under way. Offer support, but do not kill. Build a team of the right people committed to success. Celebrate contributions. Build on small successes. Be prepared to adjust the plan in response to what you learn.