Here comes everybody

Recent reading has included "Here comes everybody" by Clay Shirky. I can thoroughly recommend it to anyone seeking a thought provoking read on the effect of the web and of social tools more particularly on how we get things done.

There is plenty in there to link to KM. How do we exploit the low transaction cost and barriers to shared working that web tools can offer? In a world of folksonomies and full text searching via google books does our formal cataloguing offer enough added value to justify the costly professional time (at least in a library like mine)? How do we position ourselves in terms of the filtering role?

I was really interested in some of the theory around communities and how they work as they grow. What sort of semi formal and formal structures might we participate in to ensure both a closer understanding of user needs and a two way flow of information with the widest number of people?



I recently experimented with inviting reader reviews of items in our collection to appear on our library catalogue but this drew a very limited response. In this instance I think it was a combination of insufficient audience, insufficient incentive to participate and too high a barrier with online submission linked to the item not available.

Shirky identifies three requirements for a successful online collaboration



Promise - a plausible goal
Tool - easy / free / appropriate
Bargain - what you expect what they can expect



I'll be bearing these in mind next time I set out to try and generate some participation in my service.

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Learning to Fly Chapter 11 - Networking and communities of practice

Back to the book after some much needed recovery time.

The chapter considers how people network and the establishment of communities of practice. I like the definition of different types of communities:

• C of Interest - linked through hobbies, sports etc
• C of Practice - working together around an area of knowledge and competence (enabling)
• C of Commitment - networks accountable for acheiving a clear goal (delivering)

The importance of the coordinator role is interesting when again we consider the proposed Team Knowledge Officer role for NHS organisations. Might these people be the ones charged with coordinatoring CoP/C?

The importance of face to face meeting very much chimes with my experience. You just need to meet people from time to time.

I have been involved a few times of late with attempts to create documents collectively. Thus far my conclusion is that (at least in my networks) people are not comfortable with Wikis - people will read but very few will edit.

Generally I think the chapter has some good tips on working in networks and in particular how to keep these running.

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