The Internet has totally changed the communication dynamic, Rosner believes, and his web site is an ongoing experiment in community development. One woman accused me of trying to destroy the community. It s fascinating to me how protective people are over something that doesn t physically exist. Other employee-oriented communities are cropping up all over the web. Inc. provide bulletin board space where people are free to post messages on nearly every topic of interest.
Boards focusing on the stock prices of individual companies draw a lot of traffic.
One Yahoo bulletin board, the IBM Pension Club, received nearly 15,000 hits a day during its first two weeks online. The site now features hundreds of postings from employees upset over IBM s plan to change its defined benefits pension plan. Employees expressed shock and anger that the conversion to a cash balance plan would reduce their retirement benefits. Another Yahoo bulletin board, the AMP Water Cooler, has generated nearly 250 message postings since its founding in September 1998. I believe it was the statement of purpose and empathy of the participants that allowed the cooler to draw in members.