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Collaboration 2.0: Technology and Best Practices for Successful Collaboration in a Web 2.0 World
Collaborative Strategies, Jan 2008, Pages: 320
This book examines collaboration from a holistic point of view, which we think is necessary and a best practice for being successful with collaboration technologies in today’s Web 2.0 world. We look first at technology, since that is the most tangible aspect of collaboration (which is a behaviour). Most of the examples and case studies in the book are taken from our experiences with enterprises, often global and very geographically distributed organizations. The goal of the book is to help people in these large organizations which processes might provide the greatest “collaborative leverage” what technologies to apply to get the greatest benefit, and which interpersonal communication tools are needed to support “sustainable collaboration.”
This book is a first collaboration between Stewart and David, with David writing the first 8 chapters on collaboration technology and process, and Stewart doing Part 2 of the book, chapters 9- 15 on process and people. In this way we cover all three factors we believe are critical for successful collaboration: people, process and technology. To give you a rough guide to the book, we have summarized each of the chapters in a paragraph to give you an idea of what is covered and also to help you understand the flow of the book.
Chapter 1 examines what collaboration means, its definition, some benefits from collaboration, and how this book explores the subject. We also define “sustainable collaboration” and start to explain Stewart’s Law of Agreement, which is critical for distributed teams to function effectively. David then starts to set the context for an in-depth examination of collaboration technologies through a section called “The Technologies of Trust.” We then move into an introduction to one class of collaboration tools called VTS (Virtual Team Systems), which can also include collaborative portals and DPM (distributed project management) tools.
In chapter 2 we look at 10 different trends in collaboration, some of which are driving the move to collaboration 2.0. These 10 trends give the reader a more in-depth context for both the technologies and the market for them. We look at some of the market forces driving consolidation of not only collaborative functionality, but the mergers and acquisitions of many companies in this space. We also look at the changing nature of the channel for collaboration technologies and how buyers for these technologies have changed radically from the buyer in the ’90’s. On the way we explore Unified Messaging or Unified Communications, and what some of the major vendors are offering in this area. We also look at the importance of presence, and how standardization of collaboration technologies is starting to take hold in the enterprise. We also first identify specific processes and industries that have collaborative leverage. We also examine the self-service sub-trend and how this is affecting a number of vendors of collaboration technologies.
In chapter 3 we examine the overall evolution of electronic collaboration starting with the social or genetic imperative for humans to be part of the “virtual herd.” We then look at the evolution of both interaction and communication technologies, and then step back and take a 100,000 foot view of the first, second and third order effects of collaboration technologies and how they impact not only your team, group, department and enterprise but also how they affect society today and in the future.
Chapter 4 looks at Collaboration 1.0, or working face-to-face with a focus on content rather than the interaction between people. Some of the characteristics of Web 2.0 and Web 3.0 (Semantic Web) are also explored. We then look at collaboration and security and discuss why they don’t have to be antithetical, and give some examples and case studies.
In chapter 5 on Collaboration 2.0 we look at how the collaboration environment has changed today, and examine some of the characteristics of Web 2.0. We also look at the 9X paradox, or why it is so difficult for people to adopt a new technology over something they are already using like e-mail. Finally we look at the wicked problem of time coordination, especially scheduling people to be in meetings (both physical and virtual), and some of the new technologies that are being applied to solve this problem.
Chapter 6 called Collaboration 2.5 looks at avatars, virtual worlds and 3D collaborative environments. Including how to build an Avatar, and how to use a virtual coach in a 3D collaborative environment (HICO- built by Sophia’s Garden Foundation). The rest of this chapter is a survey of a wide variety of virtual worlds (like Second Life) and then looks at some 3D collaborative environments like Qwaq and Wonderland and moving into virtual augmented environments. The chapter ends by looking at collaboration in social networks and how they interact with virtual worlds.
Chapter 7 is a bit less on the technology and more focus on people and process and examines some of the challenges virtual teams have to deal with. We look at the 7 types of virtual teams, some of the background and history of distributed teams, and then examine why these teams fail. The chapter ends by looking at the methodologies of SNA (social network analysis) and VNA (value network analysis) as some ways organizations can start to look at communication and collaboration patterns with an eye towards optimization and applying the appropriate technologies. The chapter ends with a section about online communities and some best practices based on experiences working with these type of communities. In our experience the technology is only as good as the people communicating within it. In part II of the book we shift from examining the aspects of process and technology into the critical
components of interpersonal communication.
In Chapter 8 we look at an overview of some of the fundamental components of interpersonal communication and some of the challenges they bring up.
In Chapter 9 we move onto the critical tools and level of awareness essential to building an effective communication toolbox that can be used within any technology pathway.
Chapter 10
Introduces “Resolutionary Thinking” as a critical mindset that contributes to effective and sustainable collaboration, coordination and cooperation.
Chapter 11 is a reminder of the essential steps for forming teams and the stages they go through, weather co-located or virtual. It also shares a story of the value of a great team.
Chapter 12 covers some fundamental truths about collaboration framed as the “Laws and Principles of Agreement.”
Chapter 13 is about creating shared vision and a pathway to desired results embodied in “Agreements for Results.” It introduces the 10 Essential Elements of these agreements, and explains how critical it is to spend the time at the beginning of projects getting clear about desired results, pathway to them, promises of who will do what, metrics and concerns or fears about moving forward.
Chapter 14 introduces the steps of “The Cycle of Resolution” which provides an efficient, effective conversational model that will get you back on track when conflicts develop.
Chapter 15
provides the key ingredients and steps for implementing collaborative technology as part of your organizational operating system which serves as an example of how to apply the technologies and interpersonal techniques that were discussed earlier in the book.
Chapter 16, the final chapter in the book, is an effective summary, our conclusions and a peek into the future.
Authors Bio:
David Coleman, Founder and Managing Director of Collaborative Strategies (CS) has been involved with groupware, collaborative technologies, knowledge management (KM), online communities and social networks since 1989. He is a thought leader, frequent public speaker, industry analyst, and author of books and magazine articles on these topics. His comments and analysis are most frequently found in the 'Collaboration Blog.' He has worked with a wide range of collaboration vendors including IBM/Lotus, Microsoft, Macromedia, Adobe, Intuit, EMC and Oracle, and helped them with strategy, positioning, or demand generation projects. He also works with end-user organizations to help them select collaboration technologies, and most recently working with them on 'collaborative consolidation' within the enterprise, building online communities and creating a variety of social networks. David also works with distributed teams (across organizational boundaries) to make them high-performance teams.
Stewart Levine is a 'Resolutionary.' His innovative work with 'Agreements for Results' and his 'Cycle of Resolution' are unique. 'Getting to Resolution: Turning Conflict into Collaboration' was an Executive Book Club Selection; Featured by Executive Book Summaries; named one of the 30 Best Business Books of1998; and called 'a marvelous book' by Dr. Stephen Covey. It has been translated into Russian, Hebrew and Portuguese. 'The Book of Agreement' has been endorsed by many thought leaders; called 'more practical' than the classic 'Getting to Yes;' and named one of the best books of 2003 by CEO Refresher. He consults to many government agencies, fortune 500 company's, professional associations and organizations of all sizes. He teaches communication and collaboration skills for the American Management Association.
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