Reputation management

Another web 2.0 endeavor that i got invited to join today Ziki deal with a bolder approach to reputation and identity management online. I like the fact that at least it’s not afraid of saying what it is, something that Linkedinis , in my opinion, is very bad at.

Linkedin wants to be a networking environment but there is absolutely nothing that it offers more than a way to browse CVs and add people to your contacts. I don’t think that business contacts are meant to be shrouded with this veil of conspiracy and privacy. Why is it that you should be able to see who someone knows but not be able to contact those people unless you’re using what i’m calling “secure people channels”. Isn’t that what’s already happening in real life? That most interesting people aren’t usually accessible unless you know someone who knows them.

This is usuallyw the web is interesting for business opportunities because you don’t need these secure channels, you’ve got your soapbox, your blog, your flickr account, your del.ico.us library and you’re available to be contacted for any reason, including business, at all times.

Matt once told me that he knows what to expect from someone he meets at a conference based on whether that person adds him to Linkedin or Flickr. He usually has more positive interactions through people who add him to the latter, and that is hardly surprising.

So my list of requirements for a good networking environment based on these observations would be:

– Open to anyone to join
– People are accessible directly
– People’s relationships to others are represented

(can you tell i’ve been doing information architecture recently : P )