Md.Tariq Hassan
The information revolution has given birth to new economies structured around flows of data, information, and knowledge. In parallel, social networks have grown stronger as forms of organization of human activity. Social networks are nodes of individuals, groups, organizations, and related systems that tie in one or more types of interdependencies: these include shared values, visions, and ideas; social contacts; kinship; conflict; financial exchanges; trade; joint membership in organizations; and group participation in events, among numerous other aspects of human relationships. Indeed, it sometimes appears as though networked organizations outcompete all other forms of organization — certainly, they outpace vertical, rigid, command-and-control bureaucracies. When they succeed, social networks influence larger social processes by accessing human, social, natural, physical, and financial capital, as well as the information and knowledge content of these. (In development work, they can impact policies, strategies, programs, and projects— including their design, implementation, and results—and the partnerships that often underpin these.) To date, however, we are still far from being able to construe their public and organizational power in ways that can harness their potential. Understanding when, why, and how they function best is important. Here, social network analysis can help. Social network present in organizations are increasingly becoming a powerful managerial tool as it affects the satisfaction and performance of employees. Personal relationships within the organization define and resolve issues impacting group performance. There is a clear indication that social network influences job satisfaction, employee commitment and employee performance in business organizations.
The defining feature of social network analysis is its focus on the structure of relationships,