We have not been writing too much as of late about Enterprise 2.0. Perhaps that’s in part because it seems like the phrase is getting a bit tired.
Perhaps also it is because it feels like so much of the discussion centers around the technology that Enterprise 2.0 is all about.
In any case, we found this post on Tech IT Easy. It goes through five elevator pitches to make for Enterprise 2.0.
It’s a telling post. While it seems like Enterprise 2.0 is becoming widely adopted, there is still a struggle for how to explain what it means and how to pitch the concept to executive management, middle managers and the people who may find the technology valuable for their work.
Let’s start at the top:
CEO
How Enterprise 2.0 can help: Better productivity and innovation.
Apprehension: Productivity will decrease when employees have access to Enterprise 2.0 tools.
Pitch: “Do you rank amongst the 65% of executives disappointed with the level of innovation in their company?”
Our take: You need a champion in executive management for Enterprise 2.0. Going direct to the CEO may be fruitless – unless of course you are the executive manager making the case.
Head of HR
How Enterprise 2.0 can help: Fosters a healthier culture across the organization and improves employee morale.
Apprehension: Employees may become less engaged.
Pitch: “Hey, I’ve heard that about 40% of the workforce are either disengaged or disenchanted. What are we doing in our company about that?”
Our take: What are we going to do when all of our employees have smartphones, work at home, and are working with a product team, partners and select customers on a time sensitive project?
CIO
How Enterprise 2.0 can help: Better knowledge management within the enterprise, which leads to a better ROI on IT systems.
Apprehension: Security.
Pitch: “Have you heard about this study showing that 46% of the people surveyed find what they’re looking for on the company Intranet? Did you know that twice as often they find what they want on the Internet?”
Our take: Have you heard about the five business groups that are using these SaaS environments? The services are pretty affordable. By the way, have you looked into the ROI on these cloud computing apps?
Middle Manager
How Enterprise 2.0 can help: Technologies, processes and methods are evolving fast. There has to be a better way to manage the information
Apprehension: Loss of control.
Pitch: “How do you feel about the figures that managers spend two hours a day looking for data and that most of it is of no value? “
Our take: How’s your email inbox looking?
Experts
How Enterprise 2.0 can help: You can get your knowledge out to the organization more efficiently.
Apprehension: Top-down directed effort will make it harder to get the work done.
Pitch: “Have you heard that knowledge workers spend 30% of their time looking for expertise such as yours?”
Our take: How do you learn about new issues? Have you ever looked on Twitter to monitor real-time conversations about your particular expertise?
Elevator Pitches: Do they Work?
Elevator pitches are meant to get the conversation started. Entrepreneurs don’t close deals immediately after a 60-second pitch to a VC. The parallel to Enterprise 2.0 is a bit thin but the process of thinking through the value of Enterprise 2.0 is an exercise that has merit and may make the difference when pitching that cool, new enterprise collaboration service you are so sure would be hit in the organization.
