Here is a press release from Robert Half Technology on a survey about companies and social networks. Saw a story on this in Sunday’s N&O and thought it a worthy topic for discussion here. Some good tips about employee use of social networks – common sense – but many need to be reminded about common sense! I do wonder what type(s) of workforces were dominant in the companies that forbid social networking completely. Also, what policies do these companies have about using the Internet overall? What is different (time-wise) about using a social network and reading a blog, or sports commentary or a news story or shopping online?
Some questions for you – how – if at all – do you think future survey results might change? What types of companies do you think should be most controlling about social networking at work? Most lenient? Why? Should a company differentiate among social network sites? (LinkedIn vs. Facebook, …)
Here is the information – your thoughts?
“MENLO PARK, CA — Workers who want to share the latest news with Facebook friends and Twitter followers will need to wait until after hours or risk violating company policy, a new survey suggests. More than half (54 percent) of chief information officers (CIOs) interviewed recently said their firms do not allow employees to visit social networking sites for any reason while at work.
The survey was developed by Robert Half Technology, a leading provider of information technology (IT) professionals on a project and full-time basis, and conducted by an independent research firm. It was based on telephone interviews with more than 1,400 CIOs from companies across the United States with 100 or more employees.
CIOs were asked, “Which of the following most closely describes your company’s policy on visiting social networking sites, such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, while at work?” Their responses:
| Prohibited completely |
|
54% |
| Permitted for business purposes only |
|
19% |
| Permitted for limited personal use |
|
16% |
| Permitted for any type of personal use |
|
10% |
| Don’t know/no answer |
|
1% |
| |
|
100% |
“Using social networking sites may divert employees’ attention away from more pressing priorities, so it’s understandable that some companies limit access,” said Dave Willmer, executive director of Robert Half Technology. “For some professions, however, these sites can be leveraged as effective business tools, which may be why about one in five companies allows their use for work-related purposes.”
Willmer cautioned that employees should always exercise good judgment, no matter how lenient their company’s policy. “Professionals should let common sense prevail when using Facebook and similar sites — even outside of business hours,” he said. “Regrettable posts can be a career liability.”
Robert Half Technology offers the following tips for protecting your professional reputation when using social networking sites:
- Know what’s allowed. Make sure you understand and adhere to your company’s social networking policy.
- Use caution. Be familiar with each site’s privacy settings to ensure personal details or photos you post can be viewed only by people you choose.
- Keep it professional. Use social networking sites while at work to make connections with others in your field or follow industry news — not to catch up with family or friends.
- Stay positive. Avoid complaining about your manager and coworkers. Once you’ve hit submit or send, you can’t always take back your words — and there’s a chance they could be read by the very people you’re criticizing.
- Polish your image. Tweet or blog about a topic related to your profession. You’ll build a reputation as a subject matter expert, which could help you advance in your career.
- Monitor yourself. Even if your employer has a liberal policy about social networking, limit the time you spend checking your Facebook page or reading other people’s tweets to avoid a productivity drain.
About the Survey
The national survey was developed by Robert Half Technology, a leading provider of IT professionals on a project and full-time basis, and conducted by an independent research firm. The survey is based on more than 1,400 telephone interviews with CIOs from a random sample of U.S. companies with 100 or more employees. In order for the survey to be statistically representative, the sample was stratified by geographic region, industry and number of employees. The results were then weighted to reflect the proper proportions of the number of employees within each region. The margin of error for this study is +/- 2.6 percent at the 95 percent level of confidence.
About Robert Half Technology
With more than 100 locations worldwide, Robert Half Technology is a leading provider of technology professionals for initiatives ranging from web development and multiplatform systems integration to network security and technical support. Robert Half Technology offers online job search services at www.rht.com.”
NC State MBA 590-005 