Facebook at Work (F@W)Launch Analysis

Michael NguyễnSeptember 20, 2015

*Facebook.com**Facebook focuses on platforms with 1B+ User potential, or integrative solutions

Context: Past Strategy & Execution

Facebook Poke

Our Mission“People use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, to discover

what’s going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them”*

Addressing Threats**:Platforms that Change HOW People Communicate• Facebook (Friendship Management – Core Product)

• Snapchat (Moments – Attempted Acquisition)

• Instagram (Photos - Acquisition)

• Oculus VR (Alternate Realities - Acquisition)

• WhatsApp (Mobile - Acquisition)

History: Hard to Follow InnovationDifficulty gaining traction with competing products (ex. Poke, Slingshot,

Camera) without natural conversion from Facebook (ex. Messenger)

*IDC projections for enterprise social software, $4.5B projection from 2012, updated $2.3B projection from 2014**Using Slack’s lowest fee tier of $80/yr and IDC Market Size, optimistic outlook

Enterprise Market: Growing Much Slower than Expected

Underperforming US Market: $2.3B by 2018*• $4.5B originally projected by 2016

• Projected Users: 30 million workers**

Product Adoption Barriers• Employee: Productivity Benefits, Usability

• CIO / Management: Data Security

• Sluggish growth suggests disconnect in value for the avg. employee

Established Competitors Affect Market Entry• IBM (Market Leader)

• Slack ($2.8B Valuation, 200K paid users)

• Yammer (Microsoft)

• Collaboration Features in Existing Tools (Microsoft Office, Google Docs)

Official screenshots taken from official app listings on Google Play / iTunes

Disconnect: Value of Dog Updates (Social Networking)

Slack• Streamlined Work Updates

• Value in Email Reduction

• Integrated Platform

• Focus: Productivity / Chat

IBM Connections• Status Updates

• Mixing personal content

into workplace

• Focus: Social Network

Adoption: where will the average employee find value?

Official screenshots taken from official app listings on Google Play / iTunes

F@W Could Disrupt Usage of the Core Product

F@W is a Social Network not a Productivity Tool• Emphasis on News Feed / Likes encourage posting content that will be

popular (social network), not necessarily useful (productivity) – these

incentives may affect workplace participation and vice-versa

Could Disrupt Emotional Connection to Facebook• Over 1 billion people use Facebook for friend management – how does

friend-focused (UX) behavior translate in a work setting?

• Can users switch mindsets easily within the same interface?

• Does this risk long-term detachment from the personal product?

Jill: “I use Facebook already, thus I already know how to use Facebook at Work“ (competitive advantage: UI / brand awareness)

*Facebook.comOfficial screenshots taken from official app listings on Google Play / iTunes

F@W Does Not Fit Facebook’s Strengths and Strategies

Competing Platforms WILL NOT Change HOW People Communicate, Limited Upside in Market• Limited potential (30M vs 1B User Impact)

• Limited business value ($2.4B Market in 2018)

• Social Enterprise products do not change fundamental

behavior, how people communicate and share

Limited Synergies• Facebook has no natural conversion point for Facebook at Work

(like Poke, Slingshot, Camera)

• Limited existing B2B support and sales infrastructure

F@W is a risky initiative with limited strategic value, particularly considering existing competition and potential effects on usage of core product. Consider BLUE OCEAN approach (next slide) to reduce risk. Alternatively, acquisition.

*http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/facebook-page-statistics/

Paths to a Blue Ocean Without Competition

Keep Product “As Is”• Keep features on Facebook at Work as close as possible to Facebook to reduce

risk in product investment, divergent product paths

• Integrate existing content features into work context (Industry News though

Trending, Internal Corporate Memos and File Management through Notes, etc.)

Target Non-Traditional Businesses• Businesses new to Enterprise Social Software (SMB’s, non-profits)

• Run workshops at undergraduate universities to introduce F@W and

business tools to increase skills among social media-savvy generation

Transition Existing Facebook Partners• Convert existing business: 41% of all US small businesses on Facebook (40 Million

Small Businesses on FB total)*

• Integrate Facebook for Business / Page Manager into F@W to ease interorganizational

information sharing – offered free to businesses that reach ad spend threshold