Shel Holtz has commented recently on yet another report which negates the popular belief that employees can’t be trusted to use social media in the office, providing justification for organisations to block popular social media sites from their networks. Despite results such as those mentioned in the Aberdeen Group report indicating that engagement with social media actually produces tangible, positive results, it seems that due to a lack of understanding on the part of employers, they are ensuring that their employees are kept away. Justifications include time-wasting and the accusation that employees who are spending time on social media are ‘messing about’ when they should be working. It is all very well to make these claims, but lets look back to a time before social media sites became popular.
Every employee at some time during their employment will find ways to waste time. Whether it was having a game of solitaire, sitting on eBay all day (I actually knew someone who did this for hours and hours on end), spending too much time getting coffee or in the loo, or just chatting with others, time-wasting will happen. In an ideal world we can hope to make work so engaging, stimulating, inclusive and exciting that our employees will be far too engrossed in what they are doing. In the real world, employees will engage in time-wasting activities. Social media engagement can offer network opportunities, growth opportunities and the exchange of education and ideas. Wouldn’t it be better for the ‘time-wasting’ to actually produce tangible and positive results?
As for the accusation of social media sites being ‘games’ or excuses for ‘messing about’ or non-work-related fun, I would ask these naysayers to take a minute to think of the overseas conference. Or the team-building day. Or the company dinners, events or Friday drinks. Many employers see these as useful learning and team building exercises. In fact, a lot of employees love them because they are fun. It may be ‘work related’ but I have seen the state of many delegates as business conferences during the evening get-togethers… I honestly don’t see how social media engagement could be seen as worse than the expense bill from a post-conference party.
I sometimes feel that the reaction against social media engagement by employers arises not out of concern but more out of fear and lack of understanding. If these two things were really of such serious concern then solitare would be removed from every computer, all telephones would be banned from making any external calls unless a number received approval, all staff would be locked into separate cubicles so they couldn’t talk to each other and paper, pens, newspapers, magazines and books would all be confiscated at the door. It is ridiculous – people are people. And if you take this report as well as the others that Shel has mentioned as any evidence, in fact you have far more chance of getting results out of your staff if you go against your fears and allow them online social engagement with their colleagues, peers and extended global network.
Image: Jason Pratt
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Tags: Social Media, Web 2.0
