WeblOrg is a research project conducted at the subdepartment of Organization Science and Marketing (OSM) at the Technical University of Eindhoven. (TU/e).

The research aims at analysing the impact of the introduction, adoption and diffusion of weblog communication on the evolution and change of organisations' structure and processes. It will explain how the adoption of weblog communication provides new ways to communicate and co-operate that overcome geographical/cultural/organizational constraints.

In general terms, the project will provide information about the use of weblogs by individuals and groups within organisations that will enable organisations to innovate and be more efficient in their work and businesses organisation. The project focuses particularly on:

The impact on the organisations' structure and processes is investigated with respect to the following seven aspects: 1) degree of e-mail diffusion; 2) degree of substitution FtF/Email; 3) formation of trust and identity; 4) formation of groups of coalition; 5) formation of a genre repertoire; 6) degree of organisational participation; 7) type of Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS). This study will focus on different types of organisations: International networks, Political organizations, Commercial Companies. The field research consists of narrative interviews with organisation's members, focused on perceived structures and differences between Face-to-Face (FtF) and Computer Mediated Communication (CMC). Furthermore survey, mailing list analysis and text analysis (documents, memos, meetings agendas and reports) will be also applied to evidence Group Decision Support Systems (GDSS) and relational patterns. A special attention is paid to the longitudinal dimension, which refers to 2-3 years of organisational life, in order to understand how FtF and CMC evolved over time, and particularly what changed since the beginning of the introduction of weblogs. The overall goal is to develop and validate context-sensitive and anticipatory knowledge of the consequences of weblog adoption and diffusion by organisations and provides knowledge and recommendations relevant to new methods of working using weblogs in the form of practical solutions. It will highlight the impact of new tools to support decision-making, to improve work conditions (teleworking, groupware), to sustain international co-operation through networking technologies and to reinforce cultural integration by adopting distance learning technologies in training and education.