Social Network Analysis (SNA)

Social network analysis (SNA) tools are used to analyze patterns of relationships among people in groups. They are useful for examining the social structure and interdependencies (or work patterns) of individuals or organizations. SNA involves collecting data from multiple sources (such as surveys, emails, blogs and other electronic artifacts), analyzing the data to identify relationships, and mining it for new information—such as the quality or effectiveness of a relationship. Organizational network analysis is the form of SNA that examines the information flow among individuals. It depicts the informal social network—typically of groups working in the same enterprise. Value network analysis (VNA) examines the deliverables exchanged among roles—typically groups of people from multiple organizations that need to work together. Social influence network analysis scans social media to identify influential people, associations or trends in the collective.