Social Media in the Office: Yes or No
Posted by Manuela Barreto @ May 28th, 2009 in Social Marketing
According to a recent study by Deloitte, nearly one-third of interviewees (30%) revealed that social networking is a part of their business and daily operations.
Now, if we were to go back, say one year, such statement would have seemed atrocious to many. But it can also feel as if we’re going against nature. Companies are made up of people, and people like to talk. People have lives, hobbies, interests and friends, whether they’re work friends, friends met through business or just lifetime friends.
Here at 77, for example, we’re encouraged- even required on some level to explore and engage in social media networks. We all know socializing is good for business and that contacts can really take you places. In fact, the same study also shows that 31% of respondents said their CEO is on Facebook (14% have a Twitter profile). These are exactly the guys that take you places.
Other significant numbers reported leveraging social media and Web 2.0 tools to create brand awareness, brand building, communicate internally with employees and for recruitment purposes.
Now the downside of it all, which is nothing new to us– is the fear that these new media tools may harm a company’s reputation, which made up 24% of respondents who strongly agreed.
“While the decision to post videos, pictures, thoughts, experiences, and observations to social networking sites is personal, a single act can create far-reaching ethical consequences for individuals as well as organizations,” said Sharon Allen of Deloitte. “Therefore it is important for executives to be mindful of the implications and to elevate the discussion about the risks associated with it to the highest levels of leadership.”
There’s nothing a little online reputation management wouldn’t be able to solve. However, what I would recommend is for companies to dedicate the time to teach their employees and give them the option to participate in social media. In the end, they are your company’s best endorsers, so it’d be best to capitalize on their energy in order to deliver all the right messages to the right audience.
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Comments
Peter Jackson
May 28th, 2009
Its a definite must. Any business who doesn’t use social media internally are mad. This case study should convince them: http://www.socialmediatoday.com/SMC/56944
Social Media in the Office: Yes or No , 77Lab « Unemployment Killer’s Daily Blog
May 28th, 2009
[...] See the original post: Social Media in the Office: Yes or No , 77Lab [...]
Georgia Jenkins
May 28th, 2009
If a person is in an office where not much is happening, or doing cumbersome repetitious jobs where attention isn’t important, I guess its OK.
I used to work in nursing, and have made some errors in my day even without such distractions. One has to consider the critical nature of work and attention required first — as in driving before deciding whether to use — or even allow.
I , for one, can only focus well on one thing at a time.
m.barreto
May 29th, 2009
Hi Georgia,
I agree with you 100% in that these can be distracting if done solely to kill time and mingle with friends.
However, there are various reasons why we consider social media or Web 2.0 tools useful in the workplace. One of the approaches is for communication purposes within an organization: helping to keep everyone up-to-date and well-informed about the latest developments and activites taking place. This also stimulates teamwork and collaborative learning. Another approach is that of building relationships and interacting with similar industry players, who like yourself, are looking for future business opportunities. Social networking serves as a great opportunity for individuals to market themselves or the company they work for.