Microblogging as a Tool for Networked Learning in Production Networks

Web 2.0 has remarkably changed the internet in recent years. By its focus on technical simplicity and usability, it turned the mere recipients of the early internet into content contributors. Web 2.0 now becomes more and more relevant for the division of labour in modern industrial context and within the service economy. One of the newest communication methods with respect to Web 2.0 is Microblogging. Small snippets of information, mostly with informal content, serve as status information about people and topics. Based on these snippets and some new connection methods, a network evolves, which enables closer social ties and information sharing. This paper addresses the potential of Microblogging technology to improve learning, knowledge sharing and competence tracking in production networks. By exemplifying how modern production networks work and what they are good for, the authors show that a Community of Practice (CoP) is the native mode for efficient collaboration and learning. Furthermore, they state that Microblogging might be the appropriate instrument for enhancing this kind of inter-organisational CoPs.