Deciphering Social Networks - Thesis

The first coherent draft of a thesis for my next document:

Thesis

An onrush of market interest in Facebook and similar consumer social network sites has incorrectly persuaded many strategists that such solutions are the presumptive model organizations should adopt. Over-reliance on any single social networking model will inhibit organizations from completely leveraging such systems.

Supporting Points

One of the greatest challenges facing an organization is knowing under what circumstances a social network site is insufficient. Social dynamics are very complex and not always addressed by technology-centric tactics. While a dedicated site can help an enterprise benefit from social networks, there are other credible approaches to facilitate social networking.

• One example would be a collection of social networking services that are contextually integrated within a variety of applications (reducing or eliminating the need to rely on any single destination)
• Another example would be a social network service that analyzes and correlates situational information (e.g., activity, location) to make participants aware of each other or aware of other relevant circumstances (reducing or eliminating the need to rely on pre-defined relationship connections).   

To effectively leverage social networks, organizations should understand how structural relations and interaction patterns affect the perceptions, beliefs and actions of their participants.

Organizations literate in social network analysis will demonstrate better governance practices concerning the role and application of technology. Such analytical methods can also influence management strategies by providing business decision-makers with valuable insight.

This is subject to change... just posting my first stable line-of-thought.