Case Study & Question:

Given the volume and type of data being collected by IBM in My developerWorks, What kind of risks and problems can be created? (Include relevant IS models & theoretical frameworks)

CASE STUDY 4-2 Social Networking: How Does IBM Do It? IBM's award-winning developerWorks site was established in 2000 as a technical resource repository for the company's global development community. Designed to share knowledge and skills related to IBM products and other key technol- ogies, it has been a solid success. The site attracts about 4 million unique visitors a month-including students, profes- sionals, and developers from almost all the world's countries-who search its library of 30,000 articles, demos, podcasts, and tutorials. developer Works is available in eight languages, including Russian, Chinese, and Spanish, and about 70% of its visitors come from outside IBM. My developer Works, a social networking function, was added to the repository platform in 2009 to allow developers to connect, communicate, and collaborate on projects. Soon the network had added more than 600.000 user profiles as well as numerous blogs and forums. In addition to allowing established business, start-ups, and partners to collaborate, it has also helped users find answers to support questions that would otherwise go to IBM's call centers and help desks, thus saving the company an estimated $100 million. Alice Chou, Director of IBM developerWorks, carefully monitored the number of My developer Works profiles and the volume of traffic to the site. She looked at unique visitors, developer demographics, time spent on the site, and patterns of page views. She created a reward and recognition framework so that when users contributed a highly regarded article or blogpost to the site. "they got the kudos they deserve." Discussion Questions 1. How might My developerWorks leverage changes in the way people work? 2. Why do you think Alice Chou carefully monitors the My developer Works site? What would be an example of an insight she would gain from the data she's collecting? 3. Why do you think Alice Chou thinks a rewards program is necessary for My developer Works because so many profiles have already been developed. Do you agree that a reward would be necessary? Sources IBM, wwwibm.com/developerworks (occomed April 17. 2012); Ellon Trout and Richard Voncil, "Becoming a Social Business: The IBM Story," IDC White Paper #226708 (January 2011), 1-14 (quote on p. a, developerWorks of hap://wwwibm.com/developerworkw/]