Influence Analysis Based Expert Finding Model and Its Applications in Enterprise Social Network

Abstract

In this paper, we propose a novel model for finding experts on a given topic using social influence analysis in enterprise social network. In enterprise social networks, employees usually talk about some topics relevant to their tasks. With the integration of social technology in BPM (Business Process Management), more expertise characteristics are reflected by their actions in social networks. Social networks became an important place for sharing expertise. We explore the potential of enterprise social networks, such as Yammer and IBM Connections, as a source of expertise evidence. In this work, we utilized influence analysis approach to find experts in enterprise social network. Generally, not all experts have the habit of sharing their expertise in social networks. So expert finding approaches, such as simply using link analysis, are of limited use. Our approach can address this problem. The experimental results show that the proposed approach can find real experts, not just managers with higher influence. Empirical results have also been presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed models.