social network analysis: uncovering the secrets of information flow for our information architecture
DESCRIPTION
Social network analysis: uncovering the secrets of information flow for our information architecture. ozia09 Mia presents a case study in which she explores the use of Social Network Analysis (SNA) to model her users’ network and map the relationships between people, groups, organisations and information. She will explore how understanding the degrees of centrality and closeness in the network can uncover the flows of knowledge between users to create a deeper understanding reflected in Personas. Agile Personas are "skinny" and are fleshed out as you uncover more information during the project.TRANSCRIPT
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Social Networking Analysis: uncovering the secrets of information flow for our information architecture
Maria Horrigan Principal Consultant #OZIA09 #SNA
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Gro
wth
Time
Information and knowledge
Human absorptive capacity
Cohen & Levinthal 1989
A world of rapidly growing knowledge ….
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
....that is increasingly connected
new friends
familylocal
colleaguesold
friends
old colleagues
colleaguesat other offices
virtualcommunities
localnetworks
old classmates
..and just a click away
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Understanding Modern Users
Modern wants, needs, online behaviours, attitudes, expectations, and motivations:
• Increasingly complex and faceted
Information needs:• More and more complex• Increasingly difficult to document
Context of use:• Complex dynamics, influencers and
influences
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Context of the Case:
• Large scale project in government• No idea what the end solution would be like• Lots of information, but in people’s heads• Multiple stakeholders across multiple silos• Information flows between individuals and
groups not well known• External industry pressure for project to occur
How could we leverage the network for the benefit of the project?
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
The Six Degrees of Separation
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Social Networking Analysis (SNA)
Helped us explore questions such as:• How does information flow into the network?• Where does the information flow?• Who is involved and why?• What are they saying?• What do they know?• How do they interact?• Strength of relationships & interactions ?• Are there emergent sub-groups?
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
What we did
• Adopted an agile approach• Broke down huge project puzzle into smaller
business issues to solve• Had multiple streams of activities (IA had
visualisation of all the different parts of the puzzle)
• Used SNA in each stream to uncover the information needs of the users
• Used “skinny” documentation to convey to stakeholders the key features of the system, its processes and the flow of information
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Uncovered organisational networks
Formal Organisation Informal organisation
Teigland et al. 2005
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Centrality : revealing network structure • Very centralized network - one or a few
very central ‘nodes’. If removed, network quickly fragments and fails
• Less centralized network - resilient. Many nodes can fail yet allow remaining nodes to still reach each other
• Boundary Spanners - connect their group to others. Innovators as have access to ideas and information in other clusters
• Periphery of a network - may connect to networks not currently mapped. Important sources of fresh information
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
SNA – Revealing Network Centrality
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_network_analysis_software
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
What we found: Degree of Centrality
Hub has most connections – authority gained
It not the “more connections the better”, but where they lead to…
..and how they connect the otherwise unconnected
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
What we found: Betweeness Centrality
Great influence over what flows (and does not)
Broker role between Industry and Organisation
“location location location”
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
What we found: Closeness Centrality
Shortest path to all others – gives quick
access
Excellent position to monitor info flows
Best visibility of what is happening in the
network
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Formal vs Informal Info Flow
General Mgr
Business Mgr
Pricing Mgr
Pricing SME
Project officer
Listing Mgr
Listing SME
Project Officer
Business Mgr
Research Mgr
Research SME
Executive Mgr
Listing SME
Mgr Director
Business Mgr
Sales & Marketing Finance
Research Mgr
ProductDevelopmen
t
Business Mgr
Industry
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Formal vs Informal Info Flow
General Mgr
Business Mgr
Pricing Mgr
Pricing SME
Project officer
Listing Mgr
Listing SME
Project Officer
Business Mgr
Research Mgr
Research SME
Executive Mgr
Listing SME
Mgr Director
Business Mgr
Sales & Marketing Finance
Research Mgr
ProductDevelopmen
t
Business Mgr
Industry
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
User Profiles within the Organisation
Project Champion
Boundary Spanner
Periphery
Potential blocker
Gatekeeper
Key decision maker
Influencer
Key User
Trusted advisor
Key sourceKey User
Key User
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Access to more Knowledge and Info
Map shows 1st & 2nd degree relationships
… but of course this is just a subsection of the networked organisation
Actors on the periphery of the network had access to many other networks within the organisation
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Leveraged Centrality
• Understood who might be “blockers” or “gatekeepers” of information and content
• Found people to go to in order to elicit information
• Minimised re-work & unnecessary consultation – meeting fatigue
• Quickly identified who might know the answer, communicate with them, understand their lessons learned, improve likely success
• Knew who and how to communicate key messages through use of targeted IA tools
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Captured SNA in personas
• Started off with ‘skinny’ view of users gained thru workshops
• Added to personas as info uncovered thru SNA
• Built up personas as we went in our agile project iterations, rather than all-at-once
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
From skinny to zen personas
As our project knowledge evolved, we added to our understanding of users:
• Their information preferences• Their expectations• Their capabilities• Their information needs• Their social network profiles (Forrester’s
Technographics)
Documented as ‘ZenAgile’ personas
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
DDrivers
SSupporters
TTalkers
CControllers
task
peop
le
• Goal oriented• Assertive• Task &
information focused
• People oriented
• Animated• Creative• Outgoing
• Logical • Information &
task focus• Detail orientated• Cautious & risk
averse
• People oriented
• Team players
• Dependable• Stable
Added style preferences to personas
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
People learn different ways
V= Visual (Something ‘seen’ or visual stimulation)• Need a graphic representation
A= Auditory (A ‘sound’ memory or related to a sound• Need to hear the explanation of how
things work
K= Kinaesthetic (Has a ‘doing’ memory, feeling the emotion or activity of the memory• Need to use the system to understand
Added communication channel preferences
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Write 5 words or phrases that relate to the words: Beach and Ocean
Place a V, an A, or a K against each:• V=visual (Something ‘seen’ or had visual
stimulation) e.g. See the blue sky, see children playing in the water• A=Auditory (A ‘sound’ memory or related to a
sound e.g. Hear the waves against the shore• K=Kinaesthetic (Has a ‘doing’ memory & you
thought of yourself feeling the emotion) e.g. Feel the sun and the sand, the taste of salt
Activity
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
How we supported user learning
Visual Auditory KinaestheticLearn by seeing
• Have strong spelling & writing skills
• Find spelling mistakes distracting
• Not talk much & dislike listening for too long
• Will be distracted by untidiness and movement
Learn by listening
• Love to talk• Appear to daydream
whilst ‘talking’ inside their heads
• Read in a talking style• Love the telephone and
music
Learn by doing
Move around a lot, tap pens and shift in their seat
Want lots of breaks
Enjoy games Don’t like
reading, but doodle and take notes
Best IA Tools:• Personas• Presentations
(animation & diagrams)
• Prototypes• Storyboards
Best IA Tools:• Discuss User
scenarios (their story)
• Presentations• Podcasts
Best IA Tools:• Prototypes• Workshops• UAT (User
Acceptance Testing)
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Added social network behavioural preferences
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
The result: ZenAgile Personas![NAME][TITLE]
“I don’t have time to chat, can we start now”Age 47
Commitment to motivation⋆Creator: Publish a blog/web page, upload music and video ⋆Critic: Post ratings or a product, comment on a blog, contribute to a forum, edit a wiki⋆⋆Collector: Use RSS, vote for websites, add tags⋆Joiner: Maintain a profile on a social media website, visit networking sites⋆⋆Spectator: Read blogs, listen to podcasts, watch video, read forums and ratings, research-based information seeking⋆⋆Inactive: None of the above
Occupation Listing SMEAbout [NAME] Bryan is a director in the listing area and has worked at the
organisation for over 20 years. He is single but loves his nieces and nephews. He enjoys cooking, eating, and socialising with friends.He is a details man, but only about information that directly benefits him, and his work family.Family is important to Ryan; his Irish background is a big reason for this, but he also lost his father when he was young, which always reminds him of the value of family.
Information discovery
Bryan doesn’t like using the web, and is used to finding out most information from either watching television, or asking his network of friends for information and advice. Prefers face-to-face contact where possible. He is reasonably comfortable with gaining information from government websites through work-related browsing although he finds much of it useless and unreadable. Ryan has been around the organisation for a long time and knows “how it works”.
Motivations Bryan is sceptical about bib business’s motives to do good for the community. Believes the government that really need to do something.
SNA profile High Degree Centrality Moderate Closeness and Betweeness Hub of Info flow and Gatekeeper
Pain Points Government bureaucracy Red tape Lack of responsive communication
Communications Preferences
Auditory: ⋆Kinesthetic: ⋆⋆⋆⋆Visual: ⋆⋆⋆ontroller
Centrality
Social Technographics
Communication preferences
Listing SME
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
What did I learn?
• Found out who knows what and how the info flowed through the organisation
• Personas good way to help convey and shape understanding of user’s info needs
• Agile approach - build on “skinny” profile & flesh out personas as the project proceeds
• Involving the right people with the right info can mean the difference between success & failure
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Conclusions
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
IA & Six Degrees of Separation
You may only be one or two degrees away from some who know the info you need
Information networks can be connected and lessons learnt and reuse made possible
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
Project Elements
Storyboarding
Prototype
Business
Users
Personas
Iterative Design
Applying SNA and Communications
Makes sure you understand the user dynamics with the organisation
Choose the right channel based on users style and preferences
Makes sure your IA artefacts match these preferences
Build personas as you uncover more about the users
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
”No one knows everything,
everyone knows something,
all knowledge resides in humanity ”Networks
Lévy 1997
Results Driven. When Business & IT Matters
FinMaria Horrigan
www.slideshare.com/murph
www.barocks.com
Zenagile.wordpress.com
@miahorri
#OZIA09 , #SNA
Email : [email protected]