I don’t think at heart that the CIPD believes in web 2.0 but that they didn’t want to appear too negative (their policy of giving staff one hour over lunch to use Facebook illustrates this half-hearted position).

But we should remember that although they have a role in leading in the profession, they have to be careful not to stray too far from their members’ perspectives.

The findings of their research show that members simply aren’t using web 2.0 – even for HR applications never mind supporting business outcomes.

And at the launch of the report at their recruitment / technology exhibition last week, only six out of 100 attendees were using web 2.0.

Yes, there are some great examples of companies that do use it, and I was impressed by their presentations at Simply Communicate’s conference too.

But these organisations were all from the technology space – a fact that the CIPD are aware of and makes them more cautious in their own approach.

Of course, there are other examples, but they’re still reasonably few and far apart. We need more cross-sector case studies to be published (blogged, tweated etc) to encourage this to become mainstream.

Also:

Can I also please encourage your readers to participate in my own research – which IS much more focused on the business benefits of web 2.0. It is based upon a short survey which is available at http://www.snipurl.com/socialconnecting.

I’m very happy to share the results with participants, and if you’d like, yourself.

Regards, Jon.