The business world has entered a new realm where consumer social networking dynamics have met enterprise reality. A new survey from International Data Corporation shows that 14 percent of respondents have some sort of social business initiative underway.
Yet, these projects vary greatly – from operational to strategic. In trying to access the best way to help business, IDC developed identified five stages for enterprises in this domain. The IDC’s Social Business Maturity Model stages are:
Experimentation
- Compartmentalization
- Integration
- Operationalization
- Optimization
In the report, there are notable observations as explained by the IDC GVP, Software Business Solutions:
“2011 has seen rapid expansion of business change that is being driven by the social customer, empowered employees, and a convergence of new technical capabilities,” said Michael Fauscette, group vice president, Software Business Solutions. “Businesses are deploying and using new social tools at an ever-increasing pace. This business change cycle is challenging the enterprise, but at the same time offering many new business opportunities. IDC has created the social business maturity model to help companies that are growing in their adoption of social business and want to optimize their use of social tools.”
It is very important for firms to understand the emerging redesign of how companies function. Increasingly, social media interface has become a new horizon in business. Finding a strategy at this onset will become important for organizations to be in tune with the new normal of the business world. Social media is here and learning to serve and curate social customers is a new understanding that business must have.