Managing Employee Use of Social Media in the Workplace

Social media has completely changed the way that individuals, Gen Y especially, interact with each other and the world. Suddenly, everyone has their own voice, etched in digital stone, with the ability to reach the masses. Society is still learning how integrate the various platforms like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter into their everyday lives which obviously includes time spent in the workplace. Companies recognize that they have a double-edged sword in their hands. On one hand, social media allows companies to turn their employees into brand champions where word of mouth is essentially put on steroids the second it hits the web. On the other hand, some companies view the use of social media in the workplace to be detrimental to employee productivity and internet security. This paper will explore both sides of the debate (allowing employee use of social media in the workplace) as well as my own personal take on what companies should be doing to better manage their employees use of social media.

Companies Against Employees Using Social Media in the Workplace

There are a number of reasons companies are extremely hesitant to allow employees to engage in social media while at work. One of the primary reasons is because it has a propensity to be a major waste of time impacting employee productivity. Some companies are more concerned about their IT infrastructure and the impact on server security. Others are worried about how employees convey and represent their brand. Also, companies wonder, if employees are allowed to use social media at work – how do we effectively compensate them?

Lost Productivity – If employees are spending time at work on Facebook socializing with friends or watching videos on YouTube – they’re simply not spending the time working. Companies in the past have banned the use of company time to make personal phone calls or emails, and the same is becoming true for social media platforms because they tend to take a person’s attention away from their work which a company is paying them to do.

IT Network Security – The reason many companies have specific sites fire-walled to their employees is because of the risk associated with their use. While most individuals think of internet security relating strictly to viruses and other external threats – most forget the impact that seemingly innocent activities might have on the company mainframe. For example, imagine there is breaking news on CNN.com in the form of video. When a number of employees traffic the site to check out the news, the overall bandwidth within the server suffers and decreases internet productivity across the company and could potentially crash the networks. Things like Instant Messenger are, “a fear point to most organizations. For whatever reason, they see that little rectangle not as a time-waster, but a portal through which you will accidentally copy/paste the outside world your best code, or copy for your CEO’s big merger announcement.” (1)

Brand Management – Word-of-mouth on the internet and Web 2.0 travels like wildfire. It’s inevitable that even if employees are using social media only outside of work, they have the potential to misrepresent the company and its’ brand. “Some users may not realize what they say on a social media site — whether it be at home or work, on a company computer or a personal computer — can be grounds for firing. Recent privacy breaches of sites such as Facebook show that once information is divulged, it may be impossible to control.” (3) For any employer that is a very scary thought.

Compensation – Consider for a second that your company has given all of its’ employees the full right to engage with social media while at work. It hopes that you will help to improve their branding and image while further tapping into the voice of the customer. Your job might be in accounting, but what if you find the next regional supervisor on your LinkedIn network? How does a company measure the value-add you bring to the company – especially when your social media use falls outside of your job description or expertise? Nobody can provide that answer at the moment. Chris Brogan, Web 2.0 expert and blogging juggernaut explains how he is compensated for his explicit social media responsibilities: “Most decent IT organizations log how much active time you’re using XYZ apps. If you’re slacking, it will show. (My workaround on this is being measured on my results, not what web page I spend time searching).” (1)

Companies Supporting Employee Use of Social Media in the Workplace

In spite of all the potential pitfalls behind allowing employees to engage in social media spaces while at work – there is significant evidence suggesting its’ imminent integration into corporate culture should be embraced immediately. It’s here to stay. A survey from Forbes took a look at the habits of 1,600 Internet users from the U.S., UK, Germany and Japan and found that over the past two years alone, social web use in the workplace has risen from 19% to 24%. (6) More than ever before, employees have become an extension of the corporate brand wherever they go and interact with others. The opportunity for employees to forge relationships with others across the company allows for greater leadership and even mentorship capabilities cannot be ignored. As Boomers exit the workforce and are replaced by Gen Y, the way individuals seek out information and communicate it to others will change as well.

Brand Champions / Brand Extension – As an employer, you have the ability to set up some basic guidelines or models of behavior for your employees to follow while engaging on the web. Another article from Forbes suggests employers do a number of things to effectively transform their employees into solid brand extensions. Two of their suggestions, “lead by example” and “begin from a position of trust” are critical for companies to embrace. “While there are possible negatives involved in having employees on the social Web, most employees have common sense. Begin with a set of possibilities first (increasing awareness, improving customer service, gaining customer insight and so on) then draw up a list of worst-case scenarios (bad mouthing the company, inappropriate language, leaking IP, to name a few).” (7) The same way you learned how to behave at the dinner table, employees can be taught and shown examples of how to behave and interact online.

Advanced Learning – Did you know that you can learn how to do just about anything on YouTube? “As associations increase their use of social media, members will become more self-sufficient at obtaining answers to basic questions.” (4) Employees should be allowed access to many of the social sites including YouTube because in general – their questions can be answered by their friends or by someone’s post on the internet much more quickly than having to phone or email a supervisor. At this point one could argue that the information available on the internet provides individuals the opportunity to get an entire college degree for free.

Company Culture and Communication – As mentioned before, instant messengers can be a double-edged sword. On the other side of the blade, simple tools like instant messengers can speed up communication processes. “Human Resource professionals can use wikis, chat and enhanced search features to more efficiently share resources, distribute information and address questions. These technologies can also facilitate real-time dialogue between leaders and employees, and among peer groups.” (4) Also, consider what social media could do for new hires entering the company. “New Hire” wikis can focus on answering new employees’ frequently asked questions like dress code, vacations etc.” (4)

Leadership and Mentorship – From a professional development standpoint, “Social networks can facilitate and enhance mentoring programs by creating opportunities and channels through which mentors and protegees can conveniently communicate. Leadership blogs can help junior leaders learn from the philosophies, styles and experiences of senior leaders.” (4) In larger organizations it’s common that you may never meet or speak to the CEO directly. When you break down the physical barriers with social media, the influence of upper management can be leveraged into things like blogs where employees at all levels can engage and interact with management where they would have never had a voice before.

A Personal Perspective on Using Social Media in the Workplace

After examining both sides of the argument on whether to include or keep social media out of the workplace, I feel like I have a pretty good idea of what they should be doing. Add to that, my personal expertise and involvement in the social media field and my opinion becomes fairly dynamic. “Whether or not companies decide to embrace social media for business purposes, they can no longer ignore its role in the workplace. By anticipating the risks of employees’ social media use and crafting an appropriate policy, employers can make clear to their employees what is acceptable and what is not.” (5) To me, this statement sums everything up. Social media policy and training are critical components for any company moving into the future – because the platforms, while ever-evolving, are here to stay.

Policy – Include the “Do’s and Do Nots.” It should be made clear to employees what kind of activity is appropriate and what could be grounds for firing. This might include the sharing of negative sentiment amongst the company. It might also bar employees from starting their own blogs which might impede company intellectual property. Setting guidelines or rules is an important first step.

Training – Similar to policy and “setting the ground rules,” employees should be trained on how to behave online and offline, inside or outside of work. I found a set of guidelines for employees to follow that elude to material that should be covered within any social media training program. They are as follows: “Listen before you talk, say who you are, show your personality, respond to ideas not to people, know your facts and cite your sources, stay on the record, and if you respond to a problem – you own it.” (7) I see these guidelines as a great place to start because they ensure that employees act with respect and maturity representing the company in a positive manner.

Conclusion

While society and corporate America become more comfortable with social media they will find better and more effective ways to incorporate it into their strategies. Some companies see the potential for brand detriment while others have already embraced the power their employees hold in championing their brands wherever they go. In the end, “Social media allows organizations to communicate in ways that didn’t exist ten years ago, promoting their services and brands while also supplementing their recruitment strategy.” (2) Which simply means that corporate is going to have to get creative with their policies, especially if they don’t view social media in the workplace as an opportunity.

Works Cited:

(1) Brogan, C., (2008, Jan. 9) Challenges of social media types in the workplace Retrieved from http://www.chrisbrogan.com/challenges-of-social-media-types-in-the-workplace/

(2) CareerBuilder (2010, Aug. 18) 10 things workers want to see on social media Retrieved from http://bx.businessweek.com/social-media-in-the-workplace/view?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ramanmedianetwork.com%2Fusing-social-media-for-your-company%2F

(3) Chen, S., (2010, May 12) Workplace rants on social media are headache for companies Retrieved from http://articles.cnn.com/2010-05-12/living/social.media.work.rants_1_social-media-facebook-social-networking

(4) Hunt, C., (2010, Sept. 10) Managing human capital in the 2.0 era Retrieved from http://bx.businessweek.com/social-media-in-the-workplace/view?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.associationforum-digital.com%2Fassociationforum%2F201009%23pg20

(5) Lotito, M. J., (2010, May 21) Is Your Social Media Policy Clear? Retrieved from http://www.entrepreneur.com/management/legalcenter/legalcolumnistmichaeljlotito/article206770.html

(6) O’Dell, J., (2010, July 12) Social media use in the workplace is on the rise Retrieved from http://blogs.forbes.com/velocity/2010/07/12/social-media-use-in-the-workplace-is-on-the-rise/

(7) Ross, J., (2009, June 30) How do you guide employees on the social web? Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/2009/06/30/social-media-guidelines-intelligent-technology-oreilly.html