Social Construction of Appropriate Use of Enterprise Social Media

Increasingly companies and governments are turning to enterprise versions of social software to accomplish organizational goals. Unlike public social media, access to Enterprise Social Media (ESM) is normally restricted to the organization or key strategic partners. We know from research on Information Technology (IT) value, that not only is system use necessary to achieve value, but also that this use must be appropriate. System use and specifically appropriate use has received very little attention in the literature. The nature of ESM tools and the absence of specific and detailed use guidelines creates an environment where employees are encouraged to explore means to achieve value. Thus, employees invoke a dynamic and interactive process to socially construct appropriate use. This paper draws on previous research on IT value, and legitimacy to propose a conceptual model to guide future research on how appropriate use of enterprise social media is socially constructed