Chapter 8. Organic Growth

8.1. Cross-Fertilization

When one wiki becomes successful in an organization, it can help seed and speed the implementation and growth of other wiki projects. When other user communities see the benefits of using a wiki they will invariably start to see places where they too could benefit from using a wiki. You will also find that people who contribute to and use a successful wiki will begin to expect that, no matter what project they are working on, a wiki will be in place to support cross-functional collaboration and enable knowledge sharing.

The inherent cross-functional nature of wikis means that team members from one project are likely to be involved in other projects and departments and will bring their wiki experiences with them. This, “I used a wiki over there, so I expect to be able to use one over here,” mind set will help propagate wikis across an organization. In these cases the secondary wikis have a greater chance of growth and success, as they are based on clear perceived need, plus those who champion them tend to have positive experiences using wikis.