Interaction between task characteristics and technology affordances

Purpose: Enterprise social media (ESM) usage has gained considerable momentum within organizations. The purpose of this paper is to seek a better understanding of ESM usage based on the task environments and the technology affordances of ESM. Design/methodology/approach: This study is based on a survey consisting of 556 usable responses. Regression methods are applied to analyze the data. Findings: This study finds strong support for the positive impact of task-technology fit on ESM usage. Considering separately, task equivocality had no impact; task interdependence had a negative effect on ESM usage; bridging social capital had a positive effect; and bonding social capital had a marginal impact on ESM usage. Research limitations/implications: This research incorporated social capital into discussions of task-technology fit. A 2×2 matrix based on task equivocality and task interdependence was developed, which may be extended to other contexts or technologies. Practical implications: ESM implementation should account for both task environments and the appropriate technology affordances. Individuals access bridging social capital to a greater extent than bonding social capital using ESM, and they do not use ESM when the task environments alone are considered. Originality/value: This is an original study that considers task environments and technology affordances in the context of ESM usage. The findings offer valuable and timely contributions to both scholars and practitioners.