Wikis in the Enterprise (continued)
are left to rot because people aren't used to them," Edwards observes. "The cultural change is 90 percent; the technology is only 10 percent."
Gross agrees, saying the biggest barrier he has seen is user hesitation to create both structure and concept. "It's a shift for the users and managers because of the degree of openness, and because of the idea that you have a web page and you make changes on it and it's live."
Making Wikis Work
When are wikis a logical solution? Edwards recommends talking to employees about problems they're having with their current collaboration tools and discussing whether wikis might provide the answer. In order to encourage use, he also recommends putting work content on the wiki so that employees are forced to interact on the wiki rather than through e-mail.
Before creating a corporate wiki, Gross advises looking at examples of successful wikis. They tend to be used more by groups that work well together, he says. Including employees in the pilot process will help convince them that working on a wiki will be comfortable and productive. (article continues)
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