subject: Facebook Usage In The Workpalce. [print this page] A very interesting question that many corporates seem afraid to address is 'what is our policy about social media use in the workplace'.
Clearly in this age of connectivity, a blanket ban simply is not going to work as many staff have their own internet access through their mobile devices and with these devices set to outsell PCs globally next year it will not be long before everyone has one. Perhaps though the most difficult question to answer is not 'can we stop our staff using social media at work' but 'should we stop our staff using social media at work'.
I know from past experience that feeling of excitement when a member of staff announces that they know someone that I've been trying to make contact with, or that they met someone interesting in a bar. As employers, we often feel that it is the duty of our employees to bring home these introductions. That they should always be flying the flag for the company.
So, if we have such high expectations of staff, should we not be extending to them the tools to enable them to do it efficiently?
Although there are many studies showing how much time is wasted in the working day through the unregulated use of Facebook and alike, I can't help feeling that these reports are somewhat luddite in their roots, as for every report which shows how productivity is dwindling as a result of Facebook usage, there's another report showing how much social networking aids efficiency.
Whilst this is an interesting debate, and one which IT, HR departments and Boards are having all over the the world, the reality is that social media connects people, and business is more about relationships than about widgets. Social media enables each of us to stay in contact with many more people than we would otherwise be able to do, and for most businesses a good portion of new business comes through friends & contacts rather than cold calling.
These potentially disruptive technologies require organisations to trust their staff, set guidelines yes, but trust that staff will not abuse these tools. Because it wasn't that long ago that we were having the same conversations about direct dial telephones, email and personal internet access.
So organisations should be thinking not about stopping social networking by their staff, but about promoting it, and using it as a marketing tool. Its adoption in inevitable, it is just a matter of when they get on board with it.
For more information on this, and other social media related topics visit the blog at http://www.grayuk.com
