What is Enterprise 2.0 and Why You Should Care

Introduction

There’s a good bit of buzz today about Enterprise 2.0. Since my second book is about the newer technologies that, I figured that I’d blog about it with respect to ERPs. This post discusses the term and attempts to “debuzz” a potentially annoying buzzword.

Background

Author and IT consultant Andrew McAfee coined the phrase in back 2006. He currently defines Enterprise 2.0 as “the use of emergent social software platforms within companies, or between companies and their partners or customers.” McAfee further defines the following:

(excerpt from McAfee)-

Social software enables people to rendezvous, connect or collaborate through computer-mediated communication and to form online communities (Wikipedia).

Platforms are digital environments in which contributions and interactions are globally visible and persistent over time.

Emergent means that the software is freeform, and that it contains mechanisms to let the patterns and structure inherent in people’s interactions become visible over time.

Freeform means that the software is most or all of the following:

• Optional
• Free of up-front workflow
• Egalitarian, or indifferent to formal organizational identities
• Accepting of many types of data

(end of McAfee excerpt)

Many others have taken issue with this definition. Some have questioned the lack of people. In my next book, I define it a bit more broadly than McAfee to encompass emerging technologies, not just social networking the enterprise. I define Enterprise 2.0 to include technologies such as Software as a Service (SaaS), Mobility, Enterprise Search and Retrieval (ESR), Social Networking, Business Intelligence (BI), and the like. Some of these technologies are hardly “new” but, as a percentage, few organizations have attempted to utilize these tools. Those that have ventured into these largely uncharted waters have met with, at best, mixed results. (I could quote a whole bunch of statistics here since I’ve been doing a great deal of research but, for now, trust me.)

What Does This Mean For Organizations?

From an ERP perspective, Enterprise 2.0 is all about extending the capabilities of core applications. A few examples will shed light on what I mean:

• ESR is essentially the googling of enterprise data, reports, spreadsheets, and other documents. Isn’t it silly that we can search 18 billion web pages in 0.2 seconds but not know where to find a key enterprise document?

• Mobile technologies extend the capabilities of ERP applications, particularly in manufacturing and inventory-related environments. Many vendors have introduced Mobile Supply Chain Management (MSCM) applications that allow end-users access their systems via cell phones and other portable devices. One need not be chained to a desktop to access key enterprise information.

• Cloud Computing allows end-users to access key information from wherever they are. Data “in the clouds” is simply more accessible than data stored in a single location. While there are security implications related to “de-perimeterizing” the enterprise, clouds are gaining momentum as organizations look to improve accessibility of information and reduce costs.

• Open Source (OS) alternatives to traditional offerings are gaining ground. Companies such as Compiere are making strides in the market. While I know of personally no organization that has made the switch from a proprietary app to an OS one, mark my words: it’s only a matter of time before more organizations give serious consideration to this option. Cost and an ability to “control” versions of an application are merely two benefits of OS applications.

Now is an exciting time in the technology world. I’d be lying if I wrote that I could predict the future, but I’m hardly going out on a limb by stating that the ERP landscape now will look quite a bit different five years from now.

Stay tuned. Enterprise 2.0 is going to be one hell of a ride.

Biography

With more than a decade of experience, Phil Simon assists organizations in all phases of systems consulting including vendor selection, project management, business needs analysis, gap analysis, system testing and design, end-user training, interface and custom report development, and documentation. The result: providing his clients with superior systems, increased ROI, and a healthier bottom line.

Phil is the author of the acclaimed book “Why New Systems Fail” and a seasoned independent systems consultant. He started his company in 2002 after six years of related corporate experience. With his extensive knowledge of both well-known and homegrown applications, he has cultivated over twenty clients from a wide variety of industries, including healthcare, manufacturing, retail, and the public sector.

Phil is a graduate of the School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University (MILR) and Carnegie Mellon (B.S., Policy and Management). He lives in Northern, NJ, USA.

He is currently working on his second book, “The Next Wave of Technologies: Opportunities from Chaos.” Wiley will be publishing it.

You can read more about him on his web site www.philsimonsystems.com and reach him via email at phil@philsimonsystems.com