In the latest McKinsey Quarterly, Eric Matson and Laurence Prusak have a brief article on Boosting the productivity of knowledge workers. They highlight five key barriers that come out of their research on knowledge workers and their interactions. The barriers: Physical. Technical. Social or Cultural. Contextual. Temporal. Vicious cycle ensues. MORE >>

Apologies for not blogging for a few days: I felt a bit ill on the last day of the CKVI conference, and then had a hectic time presenting sessions at Lund University on Monday and Tuesday: I'm back in Sheffield now. have a half finished post about Andrew Whitworth's keynote from CKVI and then will wrap up with a final post. University world news. MORE >>

Don’t trust anyone who says they’ll reveal the “secrets of social media.&# There are no secrets of social media. As someone who has seen the bubble of the early web and new media business burst, I’m feeling a sense of deja vu. There are people who make a good living off hype and the naivete of others. Connection. Community. MORE >>

Struggling to find a consistent voice online, or not sure about how to achieve appropriate language usage? Here’s Chris Barr discussing his Yahoo Style Guide, a book and online resource which helps demystify how to communicate effectively and consistently in this digital age. MORE >>

Tweet I had the recent pleasure of meeting Judith Holton , a colleague at Mount Allison University. Judith passed on a couple of papers which I found most interesting, as she has looked deeply into the theory behind the need for what I would describe as social learning networks. Judith uses the term, “fluctuating support networks&#. MORE >>