Groupware: if you build it, they may not come

Groupware software promises to increase productivity by providing users with a common interface from which they may access a variety of software programs that they may then work with in a variety of ways. While groupware technology can perform the many tasks it is designed to do, it is more difficult for people to become comfortable and productive with new technological tools. This is especially true for groupware because it is more than a just new tool: groupware fundamentally changes the way an organization works and communicates. The corporate culture must either be ready for groupware or adapt itself to address the cultural premises of groupware (shared effort, cooperation, collaboration) that the software is designed to enhance. The commentary describes the experience of one organization as it struggled to re-engineer itself using groupware.