Social Software: Agents for Change or Platforms for Social Reproduction? A Case Study on Enterprise Microblogging

The application of social software in enterprises has been discussed in both practice and academia for a few years now. One discussion that recently gained momentum in public media and the blogosphere stresses that these technologies will change the way in which corporations organise communication and decision processes, thereby contributing to structural changes towards flatter organisational hierarchies. Against the backdrop of such claims, we present a case study of a software company that has adopted an Enterprise Microblogging platform to facilitate day-to-day teamwork. We have analysed communication behaviour with regards to organisational roles. Our results suggest that it is more likely for such platforms to be adopted in ways that socially reproduce existing organisational and work structures rather than acting as agents for change. We discuss our findings in light of the nature of open platforms and point out implications for practice.