I just returned from a small Web 2.0 Roundtable event sponsored by The New New Internet and Executive Biz. Unlike most Web Managers Roundtables (founded by Julie Perlmutter), which I think are wonderful BTW, this one was only fifteen people or so instead of 70. This gave us the opportunity to really discuss what we think about web 2.0, how we are using it for our companies and clients, and who is really gaining the advantage through these new technologies.

It was a lively discussion among the likes of Vishal Gupta from Cisco, Thomas Wallace from Ecofusion, and David Gorodetski from Sage Communications among others. An interesting mix of small startups and large established technology leaders, each person had a different viewpoint. The group consensus was that the individual user stands the most to benefit from web 2.0 because it puts the options in their hands instead of what is pushed out by companies online.

This brings up a difficult point that some companies have yet to overcome; putting control in the hands of their online consumer. Those that are embracing it—knowing that if they aren’t joining the conversation, it will go on without them—are fairing the best. In fact, the more innovative companies like Cisco are using their internal employee base to test social networking ideas before rolling them out to the public with great success. Other consulting companies are running into a mix of client responses, where some are still watching the waters before jumping in, and others are trying it out with various levels of moderated conversation.

The part I find most interesting, besides the obvious utility of connecting people, is how to track the success of the ideas you implement with web 2.0 technology. When you implement a podcast, blog, wiki, or anything else, how do you measure success. Ogilvy’s John Bell moderated a previous Web Managers Roundtable on exactly that topic. What we discovered is that the industry is figuring that out as we forge ahead. Using new tools like BuzzMonitor which the World Bank has so kindly provided for free to developers, it is becoming easier to monitor the reach of an online conversation and transform that into recommendations for improvement and conversion tracking.