Mathemagenic:As other social media weblogs hold the promise to change the way in which work is done. In this dissertation early adopters of weblogs are studied to provide insights relevant to introducing blogging in knowledge-intensive environments.

The findings suggest that while in some cases weblogs are used to perform ones core tasks, the open-ended and public nature of blogging makes it more valuable for enabling work indirectly through supporting sense-making conversations, developing ideas over time and being able to tap into ones network when needed. By describing the practices of knowledge workers who blog, this research provides a view into the changing nature of work that becomes increasingly digital, nomadic and networked. It shows the power of individual knowledge workers, who bypass existing authorities and use their networks to stay informed and to get things done. It documents the blurred boundaries between what is personal and what is professional, as well as the growing need to know how to deal with transparency and fragmentation of ones work.