More Enterprise Support for Social Technologies

It's a sure sign that any new enterprise technology is getting traction with the information technology department starts funding the initiatives, rather than letting motivated users, work groups or line and staff departments lead the experimentation.

 

A recent Forrester (News - Alert) Research survey of 260 IT professionals found that 63 percent now are expecting social technologies to affect their enterprises in a positive way. More to the point, IT now is spending its own money to support the introduction of new technologies.

 

Only three percent of IT professionals reported negative views of Web 2.0 applications, reports Forrester analyst G. Oliver Young, reported by Sarah Perez of ReadWriteWeb.

 

Marketing departments, corporate communications, or other lines of business led early enterprise Web 2.0 deployments, with IT departments along for the ride, if they were involved at all, says Young.

 

That dynamic is changing rapidly, Young notes. Budgetary controls, the need for integration and technical skills and the growing importance of Web 2.0 tools are all putting IT departments taking more active roles.

 

For marketers of applications, that means a shift in sales approach: where once it might have been sufficient to pitch actual end users, now IT staffs must be part of the selling process.

 

About 79 percent of IT respondents polled are concerned about the risks of unsanctioned use of these tools by employees, though.