Enterprise 2.0

theEnterprise 2.0

One of the worlds largest pharmaceutical companies, the Swiss drug maker Novartis released all of its data live on the Internet, as they attempted to unlock the genetic basis of type 2 diabetes. This meant that anyone could access their raw data. This was simply unheard of in the high stakes, highly competitive world of big-time pharma.
By placing data in the public domain they were hoping to leverage talents. While this most certainly hasn’t impacted their finances in a detrimental way, there is very little evidence that this has had a profound affect on their  income statement. The variables are consistent. The performance during the financial crisis of 2007 - 2010 is very encouraging indeed. Insiders are advocating this is due to becoming ‘open source’ in February 2007. Opening up at this stage has enabled the company an insight of a global research community. Not only that, human resources have been given a lift. The company’s Scientists have significantly heightened morale, eager and relishing the idea of establishing tighter relationships with colleagues in academia on a global scale.

It’s worth noting that Novartis didn’t reveal it’s own observations in the three years leading up to becoming open source. Three years of deep research, they went ‘open’ to add to their data and achieve a breakthrough.

Open sourcing, fostered close ties and goodwill with research communities globally. It’s provided them with a competitive advantage over their rivals, who’ve remained closed. Other companies now lack a competitive edge, lacking the relationships harboured by opening their raw data on the Internet, and collaborating on mass, in February 2007.
The Novartis initiative nicely encapsulates the principles of wikinomics.
Novartis is open. It no longer just considers the 98,000 people they employ full-time, but since Feb 2007 a broad array of individuals and partner organisations they’ve formed relationships with. In industry, government, the nonprofit sector, and academia that can enrich its value proposition. They peer produce value by collaborating closely with other institutions in society to achieve their business goals.
The Norvartis 'open source' success initiative.  They don't keep secrets. They think and act globally.  Novartis also considers its responsibilities as a global citizen; in addition to research on malaria, tuberculosis, and dengue fever they donate 2% to disadvantaged patients around the world. They embrace four principles-openness, peering, sharing, and acting globally-

Novartis is transforming itself into an increasingly collaborative enterprise model. The model "ENTERPRISE 2.0"-a new kind of business enterprise. Enterprise 2.0 is a new kind of business entity, one that opens it's doors to the world; co-innovates with everyone, especially customers. Enterprise 2.0 shares resources that were previously closely guarded; harnesses the power of mass collaboration. Enterprise 2.0 behaves not as a multi-national but as something new: a truly global firm.

This model can be scaled down to a smaller business. A micro/small business can open its doors to a co-creative, collaborative community. Where its growth plans receive contributions from other successful examples. I can cite many more examples and evidence to support my thesis that firms embrace the Enterprise 2.0 model can harness external resources and talent and achieve unparalleled growth and success as a result. Its hard for people to switch off, to bi-wire their brains and turn off the old business reflexes so that you can capitalize on what the new world of wikinomics can offer. To aid efforts to internalize the new business paradigm. I will give some examples of how smart firms are putting the principles of wikinomics into practice. A growing number of smart companies are learning that openness is a force for growth and competitiveness. As long as you're smart about how and when, you can blow open the windows and unlock the doors to build vast business ecosystems on top of what we call platforms for participation.

Amazon, eBay, Google, and  flickr open up their applications and business infrastructures to increase the speed, scope, and success of innovation. Their platforms for participation create a global stage. hundreds of thousands of customers & partners added value & establish synergistic businesses. Amazon is an open platform prodigy, harnesses the power of at least two hundred thousand active developers. Amazon gains nearly 30% it's revenue from third party sellers that leverage its e-commerce engine.

Novartis are not alone in unearthing the colossal benefits of open source networking. Proctor and Gamble as mentioned in my previous blog How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything
Open sourcing key to Procter & Gamble turning their business around. Leader among thousands  of companies that participate in the global ideagora. Their business model is something akin to to an eBay for innovation. Companies that move now can leverage a global pool of talent, ideas, and innovations that vastly exceeds what they could ever hope to marshal internally. P & G figures that for every top-notch scientist inside it labs, there are another two hundred outside who are just as good.

How can a company get with the program? The starting point for any manager is personal al use  of the new collaborative technologies, preferably in conjunction with a Net-Generation youngster. Ask a novice to open a twitter, facebook account for the first time. Join myspace or produce a YouTube video clip. Get a taste for how these open communities work.

The next step is planning your innovation ecosystem (a network model), with a comprehensive map. Position your value creation and assess interdependencies will determine the flow of benefits and your ability to capture a share of them.

Note, this is not a traditional competitive landscape  or value-chain analysis but an analysis of the participants creating knowledge pertinent to your existing and future business plans. While this includes business partners and competitors, it extends to academia, public research institutes, think tanks, creative communities or communities of practice and contract organizations. The map needs to be global and cover all relevant disciplines that intersect with your strategy.