The Power of Social Computing

Charlene Li described the power in the idea of social computing. Wow, was she right.

Forrester defines three tenets of social computing:

1) innovation will shift from top-down to bottom-up;
2) value will shift from ownership to experience; and
3) power will shift from institutions to communities.

These can be seen in the enterprise and e-learning in two great articles.

Andrew McAfee described how tools (collectively dubbed Enteprise 2.0) harnessing this power might supplant other communication and knowledge management systems in the enterprise. He offers a paradigm (SLATES), which describes the characteristics of these technologies.

Stephen Downes has a very comprehensive article (E-Learning 2.0) that asks a powerful question: What happens when online learning ceases to be like a medium, and becomes more like a platform?

Social computing doesn't seem to be limited to technology -- it deals with people, which suggests it has great implications for management and leadership.