Wikis are making inroads in the corporate world.  The explosive growth of Wikipedia has proven the usefulness of these collaborative tools and driven demand for their use inside corporations.

Many are jumping on the bandwagon.  Intel’s “Intelpedia” has 5000 articles and received 13.5 million page views.  Sony uses them to keep executives up to date on the newest products.  IBM experts used wikis to collaboratively create their IP management policy.  There are many more examples.

While the use of wikis has many advantages, chief among them the ability to cut down on email, there are many issues that companies will need to resolve.  Reaching a critical mass of users is among the top challenges.  Others include ensuring the quality of contributions, data control and security and overcoming individualistic and competitive corporate cultures.  The companies that create the intricate set of rules, incentives and governance structures necessary to develop a true collaborative community will benefit from increased productivity and innovative capacity.