Understanding Social Business

“Social business” refers to the utilization of online social channels to conduct business. This chapter situates the notion of social business in the relevant macro trends in technology, business, and society and discusses the three critical aspects of social business: social business engagement, social media analytics, and social media management. Social media engagement concerns the organization’s strategic use of social media channels to interact with its internal and external stakeholders for purposes ranging from knowledge management to corporate social responsibility and marketing. Social media analytics refers to the collection, storage, analysis, and reporting of social data emanating from the social media engagement of and social media conversations about the organization. Social media management focusses on the operational issues, managerial challenges, and comparative advantages with respect to the emerging paradigm of social business. This chapter concludes with a proposal for a large-scale collaborative research project on socially connected organizations and articulates a set of research questions, anticipated scientific advancements, and societal benefits.