The Pros and Cons of Social Media in the Workplace

 Online Reputation, Social Media in the Workplace, Social Media Policy, Social Media Risk  No Responses »
Jun 032013
 

Social media has bought a variety of benefits to the workplace, however with it also comes perhaps an unwelcome distraction for employees.

If used effectively social media can provide business with the opportunity to enhance its communications both external and internal as well assist with management of business brand and reputation.  However, by its very nature social media creates many difficulties in the workplace.  Its ‘one to many’ and ‘many to many’ structure combined with its immediacy and viral capacities, can create confusion as it blurs the lines between personal and public.

So what can an employer do?  Block complete access to social media or allow unlimited access to particular networks are the main reactions by employers.

The Case For Social Media in the Workplace:

  • It can facilitate greater trust between the employer and employee.
  • Consider this: Are employees who surf the net just a new version of employees who chat by the water cooler?
  • For Gen Y, social media is an essential part of their life. They see access as fundamentally a ‘right’ not a ‘privilege’.
  • Blocking these sites really does nothing as employees have smartphones which provides access in the workplace.

The Case Against Social Media in the Workplace:

  • It is a disruptive element in the workplace – employees are there to work not to connect with friends.
  • Employees can’t multi-task. According to some researchers, multi-tasking is a myth – you can’t surf the net, check emails and do your work at the same time.
  • Access will lead to decreased productivity and therefore is not favourable for employers.

In reality, each workplace will need to handle the issue differently depending on their culture, industry and expectations.  However, there is no doubt that a paradigm shift is needed by employers to stop seeing social media as a problem.  There have always been disruptions in the workplace and this will continue because at its core people are social beings.  Employers can be proactive and take the opportunity to see social media as an advantage and put policies in place to manage the negatives.

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 Posted by on 3 June, 2013 at 7:27 pm

Is there Such A Thing As Privacy in Social Media?

 Privacy, Privacy & Social Media, Social Media, Social Media Risk  No Responses »
Apr 222013
 

As social media usage continues to grow the privacy debate becomes more intense.  The more we interact on social media, the more information we relinquish and the more we diminish our privacy. It is a user driven collapse that shows no bounds exposing individuals to a number of issues including:

  • identify theft
  • hacking of personal information
  • data storage
  • harvesting of personal information
  • bullying/stalking and more

Social media sites actively encourage disclosure of information and in most cases information is given up easily.  Birthdays, employment information, friends, photos and slowly a picture of your life is accessible online.  This information stays permanently online and can be easily searched becoming accessible to any number of people not originally intended to see the information.  The default privacy settings on social media sites still remain weak regardless of what the organisations say.

When individuals keenly give up personal information it shifts the boundaries in terms of what is acceptable content to be considered private.  As privacy is being challenged in the context of social media are people concerned about this lack of transparency?  Or are our expectations of privacy changing?

The most proactive approach moving forward is encouraging a culture of self responsibility and education where users are aware that the more information they give up the less privacy they have.  This is especially so with teenagers who still lack maturity and don’t fully understand the consequences of disclosing information.

The line between what is considered personal information in the context of privacy is being blurred.  If people are concerned about their information, the only safe way to keep it private is to not put it online.

What to people think – are they concerned about this so called lack of privacy or is it just a perception?

 

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 Posted by on 22 April, 2013 at 10:46 am

What are Businesses Doing About Social Media Policy in the Workplace?

 Social Media, Social Media in the Workplace, Social Media Policy, Social Media Risk  No Responses »
Apr 172013
 

In an ever increasing online and mobile world, social media is an important tool for business.  With the many opportunities that come with it, there are, however, also risks that need to be managed.

A key social media issue is the one involving employees and their personal usage of social media platforms.  Some may argue that what an employee posts on their personal platforms is irrelevant to business.  However, I disagree with this because if an individual posts comments about their employer then this can impact the business so it is relevant.  Negative behaviour in particular can be damaging to a brand and reputation of a business.

Take a look at the Fair Work Commission website and you can see how social media is impacting the workplace.  Employers can’t control employees using social media platforms outside work hours.  This is fine if nothing is written about the employer; however, guidelines are needed in respect to what employees can post when making reference to their employer on social media.

Any employee who publishes content about their employer on their personal social media platforms needs to remember that this information is public information.  Once something is posted online it is there for all to see and if it goes ‘viral’ damage can be substantial.

A strong social media policy can be extremely valuable in managing these risks and providing parameters to employees. A policy needs to be tailored to the culture of the workplace, it needs to be flexible and it needs to have the employees on board.

As the prevalence of social media usage continues employers need to communicate to their employees what their expectations are in respect to social media.  Without a social media policy businesses are leaving their reputation in the hands of others.  As an employer what are you doing to implement a social media policy?

Thanks for reading!

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 Posted by on 17 April, 2013 at 5:46 pm