Examining communication visibility and social technology platform use in organizations

Abstract

Organizations are increasingly adopting social technology platforms in an effort to support increased knowledge sharing among workers. Although scholarship has indicated that the use of social technologies can increase multiple forms of communication visibility within organizations, little is known about the nature of these relationships and how the benefits of that visibility may differ based on the use of different functionalities of platforms. This study examines how various uses of a social technology platform in a global organization relate to communication visibility and increased metaknowledge among workers. In addition, our analysis investigates how communication visibility relates to workers’ knowledge-sharing intentions and engagement. Findings extend theory by indicating that metaknowledge from communication visibility does indeed differ based on whether employees use functionalities that connect communication partners, or interact with communal communication available to third parties.