What motivates members to contribute to enterprise online communities?

Abstract

A major challenge for online communities is encouraging members to participate and contribute to the content of the community. A qualitative study with a group of very active members we called informal leaders, revealed that they were motivated by wanting to help other members but only for those communities which related to their "day job". Surprisingly, they did not appear to be motivated by the need to develop their reputation or to connect with others. These results provide new insights into participation in enterprise online communities.