This link has been bookmarked by 76 people . It was first bookmarked on 03 Jul 2009, by Workcolab ..
-
17 Aug 12
-
14 Jun 12
-
27 Jan 12
-
28 Oct 11
-
Social Web Guiding Principles for Employers
Lead by example.
Rules aren't enough. Leaders should model the behavior they would like to see their employees take. Chief executive Jonathan Schwartz of Sun Microsystems ( JAVA - news - people ) set a standard on blogging. Chief Executive Tim O'Reilly has established the bar on Twitter. A corollary to this rule: don't delegate social media to interns or people who can't possibly represent your culture and brand.
Build your policies around job performance, not fuzzy concerns about productivity.
If your employees are using Facebook at work, they are also likely checking work e-mail after dinner or at odd hours of the day. Don't ask them to give up the former if you expect them to continue the latter. If you have good performance measurements, playing the "lost productivity" card is a canard.
Encourage responsible use.
Encourage employees to use social tools to engage and interact with one another and with customers. In all likelihood they are already using the social Web. The difference is that currently they are using these tools without any guidance. Company's like Zappo's encourage using social tools. Check out http://twitter.zappos.com/.
Grant Equal Access.
Don't block your employees from any site that is already talking about your products or that you would like to see talking up your products (YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, blogs and so on.). I have had many experiences sending instructional material to clients and having them tell me that they can't view the video or site at work. Enough said.
Provide Training.
The social Web is a cultural phenomenon; don't go there without a guide. Consider providing some form of education for your employees (including discussion about what tools are available, how to use them and what are the prevailing cultural norms for use). You can use one of your own employees (a power user) or bring someone in--but get educated.
Begin from a Position of Trust.
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). Modify the guiding principles for your employees below to help mitigate the risks you've identified.
Once you embrace having your employees participate in the social Web, give them a few basic guiding principles in how they conduct themselves. You can start with these:
Social Web Guiding Principles for Employees
Listen before you talk.
Before entering any conversation, understand the context. Who are you speaking to? Is this a forum for "trolls and griefers?" Is there a good reason for you to join the conversation? If your answer is yes, then follow these rules of engagement:
Say who you are.
In responding to any work-related social media activities always disclose your work relationship.
Show your personality.
You weren't hired to be an automaton. Be conversational while remaining professional. If your personal life is one that you (or your employer) don't want to mix up with your work, then consider establishing both private and public profiles, with appropriate sharing settings.
Respond to ideas not to people.
In the context of business, always argue over ideas not personalities. Don't question motives but stay focused on the merit of ideas.
Know your facts and cite your sources.
When making claims, always refer to your sources, using hyperlinks when possible. Always give proper attribution (by linkbacks, public mentions, re-tweets and so on).
Stay on the record.
Everything you say can (and likely will) be used in the court of public opinion--forever. So assume you're "on the record." Never say anything you wouldn't say to someone's face and in the presence of others. Never use profanity or demeaning language.
If you respond to a problem, you own it.
If you become the point of contact for a customer or employee complaint, stay with it until it is resolved.
-
-
02 Jun 11
-
22 Dec 10
michaelprocopioAn old article in Forbes about setting social media guidelines from a high level
-
17 Nov 10
-
05 Sep 10
-
29 Jun 10
-
03 May 10
Kami HuyseAn old article in Forbes about setting social media guidelines from a high level
-
30 Mar 10
Christine PilchHere is a set of guidelines for corporations considering how to integrate social media in the workplace
-
03 Mar 10
-
21 Dec 09
-
23 Nov 09
-
11 Aug 09
-
03 Aug 09
-
02 Aug 09
-
31 Jul 09
-
20 Jul 09
George SeyboldSocial Web Guiding Principles for Employers
-
Social Web Guiding Principles for Employers
-
-
16 Jul 09
-
-
15 Jul 09
-
09 Jul 09
-
08 Jul 09
-
07 Jul 09
-
-
06 Jul 09
-
Yvette Ferry"[S]ocial technologies including blogs, social networks and Twitter are communication tools. That means a company's social media approach must integrate with its existing communications channels and goals...if you think these guidelines don't apply to you
-
05 Jul 09
-
Whether you call it Web 2.0, the social Web or any other neologism, the new network economy is about communities, collaboration, peer production and user-generated content. It is a place where business reputations are defined by customer opinions and ratings, where press is delivered by independent bloggers, and product development and insight is driven by customers.
-
If you are an executive, keep in mind two points as you gear up your social media strategy: First, social technologies including blogs, social networks and Twitter are communication tools. That means a company's social media approach must integrate with its existing communications channels and goals. Second, if you think these guidelines don't apply to you, you are probably already on the endangered species list.
-
Leaders should model the behavior they would like to see their employees take.
-
A corollary to this rule: don't delegate social media to interns or people who can't possibly represent your culture and brand.
-
If your employees are using Facebook at work, they are also likely checking work e-mail after dinner or at odd hours of the day. Don't ask them to give up the former if you expect them to continue the latter.
-
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).
-
Social Web Guiding Principles for Employees
-
-
04 Jul 09
-
03 Jul 09
Ruth ParlinWhether you call it Web 2.0, the social Web or any other neologism, the new network economy is about communities, collaboration, peer production and user-generated content. It is a place where business reputations are defined by customer opinions and rati
-
02 Jul 09
Monique PriestleyHow do you guide employees in the social Web? Start here.
socialmedia business corporate web2.0 socialnetworking marketing guide guidelines social
-
01 Jul 09
-
-
Renato Albano"don't delegate social media to interns or people who can't possibly represent your culture and brand." (via @timoreilly)
tips social business socialmedia socialnetworking guide bestpractices corporate guidelines
-
-
-
-
30 Jun 09
Would you like to comment?
Join Diigo for a free account, or sign in if you are already a member.