Colleagues/ Within the past week or so I have discovered three (3) major reports/studies on the adoption of Online Social Networks by Businesses; These have been profiled in my Friends blog and are available individually at: [1] AMI Partners Study: Small Businesses Embrace Social Networking In The U.S. <http://onlinesocialnetworks.blogspot.com/2008/11/ami-partners-study-sma ll-businesses.html> New York, New York-November 3, 2008-More than 600,000 small businesses (SBs, or companies with up to 99 employees) in the United States will deploy integrated social networking services in the next 12 months-up from about 300,000 currently, according to the latest study by New York-based Access Markets International (AMI) Partners, Inc. [ http://tinyurl.com/6yo8az ] [2] Harnessing the Power and Potential of Social Networks <http://onlinesocialnetworks.blogspot.com/2008/10/harnessing-power-and-p otential-of.html> This report will help you: - Make use of social networks in your own organization for internal and customer-facing applications - Explore the key characteristics of successful social networking sites - Determine which approach to take when creating your social network - Consider new value-added features and services that will be competitive differentiators for your social network - Gain an understanding of the staggering valuation of sites such as Facebook - Create a trusted social network environment - Identify some of the privacy and security problems encountered by users - Appreciate the draw of social networks for the individual, including the desire to develop ones own social capital for personal and professional goals - Leverage social network analysis and the 'social graph' - Identify how IT can help address the risks and challenges of social networks [ http://tinyurl.com/6ynb7j ] [3] Network Citizens: Power And Responsibility At Work Bringing together in-depth case studies of six organisations, Network Citizens maps the key fault-lines that people and organisations will have to address in the future world of work. Not doing so puts at risk the very qualities we had invested in them: openness, innovation, collaboration and meritocracy. Since networks can act for good or ill, incubating the talents and ideas of the many, or promoting the interests of the few, the need for a new set of responsibilities is growing. If we are network members, we must be network citizens, too. [ http://tinyurl.com/6rks5d ] If (More) Businesses Recognize The Benefits Of Online Social Networks, Why Not (More) Libraries? Enjoy! /Gerry Gerry McKiernan Associate Professor Science and Technology Librarian Iowa State University Library Ames IA 50011 gerrymck@iastate.edu There is Nothing More Powerful Than An Idea Whose Time Has Come / Victor Hugo [ http://www.blogger.com/profile/09093368136660604490 ] Iowa: Where the Tall Corn Flows and the (North)West Wind Blows [ http://alternativeenergyblogs.blogspot.com/ ]