Chatter’s new tool knocks down ‘knowledge silos’ at work

First, it wants its clients to get to know its customers better—what they’re saying on the Web, what they’ve bought, and what they want. Second, it aims to help companies build customer social networks. And third, it helps create employee social networks so that “knowledge can surface from all parts of the organization.”

That’s the idea behind Chatter’s Influence feature, which launched in the spring. It’s similar to Klout, but with the distinct purpose of knocking down “knowledge silos” within organizations.

“There’s been this big shift to knowledge work. Today, it’s all about great ideas. Yet, companies are set up with a military-style hierarchy,” King says. “With Chatter Influence, we’re really trying to level the playing field.”

Convergence

The old-fashioned hierarchies of business often fail to recognize people working in remote offices or those who are just plain introverts, King says. But when Salesforce’s clients started using Chatter, that began to change.