Part of the Business terms glossary:

Enterprise 2.0 is the strategic integration of Web 2.0 technologies into an enterprise's intranet, extranet and business processes. Enterprise 2.0 implementations generally use a combination of social software and collaborative technologies like blogs, RSS, social bookmarking, social networking and wikis. Most enterprise 2.0 technologies, whether homegrown, free or purchased, emphasize employee, partner and consumer collaboration. Such technologies may be in-house or Web-based. Companies using YouTube for vlogging or a private Facebook group as a modified intranet, for instance, are implementing a form of Enterprise 2.0.

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The term "Enterprise 2.0" was first coined in March of 2006 by Harvard Business School Associate Professor Andrew McAfee in an MIT Sloan Management Review article entitled "Enterprise 2.0: The Dawn of Emergent Collaboration." McAfee offered his first definition on May 20 of that year, only to revise it seven days later after comments and suggestions from the blogosphere extended its meaning. McAfee specifically excluded Wikipedia, YouTube, Flickr, MySpace and similar programs, arguing that those services were intended for individuals, not companies.

Adoption of enterprise 2.0 technologies can spur efficiency, productivity and innovation by encouraging employees and other stakeholders to share information and discuss business problems in an open, collaborative setting.
~ Contributor: Zach Church


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SearchCIO.com offers relevant news and expert advice in its Enterprise 2.0 topic pages.

Professor Andrew McAfee first wrote about Enterprise 2.0 in this MIT Sloan Management Review article, "Enterprise 2.0: The Dawn of Emergent Collaboration."

Professor McAfee's revised definition for Enterprise 2.0 is posted on his blog.

Phil Simon gives his definition of Enterprise 2.0.

This was last updated in October 2009
Posted by: Margaret Rouse

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