(Published in Business World under the View from Taft columng, October 13, 2010)
On October 9, I attended the Manila Science High School Grand Alumni Homecoming, where my batch mates and I (Batch ’85) were the Silver Jubilarians. The mood was festive as batch mates, classmates, and friends mingled the whole afternoon until a night of singing and dancing.
Our batch had the most attendees, with 50 of the 270 who attended. This high attendance can be attributed to the tight network that our batch had established. From the simple beginnings of an e-mail group in the early 2000s, our network has evolved into a more sophisticated Facebook account. Our network has cultivated not only personal relationships but also business and professional connections.
The benefits of social networking to professional life or to the workplace may not be clear to many companies, but they are many. Social networks allow organizations to reach out to and target select groups and individuals. Many sales and marketing professionals use Facebook to connect to and be friends with clients and potential customers. Most customers appreciate the personal touch; furthermore, the sales and marketing professionals can gain access to the customer’s own network of contacts.
Marketing practitioners also use social networking to promote the company among customers and the general public. More and more companies are putting up Facebook sites to reach customers, conduct market research, and enhance their reputation.
Human resource practitioners can also use social networking to search for candidates for employment. LinkedIn, the biggest professional social network, is widely used by recruiters in searching and reaching potential employees in a cost-effective manner.
Apart from the business uses of social networking, surfing Web sites such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter at work could actually increase concentration levels and increase workforce productivity, according to a 2009 University of Melbourne report. The report said that people who surfed the Internet at work for a reasonable time -- less than 20% of their total time in the office -- were more productive by about 9% than those who did not surf. The reason for this was due to the way a working day was broken up into smaller chunks of time.
Social networking also enhances personal bonding among employees, especially in virtual teams. In today’s workplace where team members are scattered in different locations, social networks such as Facebook and Twitter enhance team bonding and communication, which are otherwise difficult to achieve. Greater bonding and clearer communication increase the team’s productivity.
While social networking in the workplace clearly has benefits, it is not without its share of controversies. A growing argument of many companies is that social networking in the workplace is more of a boon than a bane. In fact, more and more companies here and abroad are banning social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.
One argument against social networking is the decline of productivity in the workplace. According to a 2009 study in the US, companies that allow employees to access Facebook in the workplace lose an average of 1.5% in total employee productivity. The survey of 237 employees also showed that 77% of workers who have a Facebook account use it during work hours.
However, the decline in productivity is not the only threat of social networking in the workplace. The risks of viruses, malware, and offensive content that employees put into their social network are perhaps more dangerous.
So how do we settle the score for and against social networking in the workplace? It depends on the company’s assessment of the risks and benefits involved. A company may ban access to social networks among certain employee groups while allowing access among marketing practitioners and salespeople. For companies that see the benefits of social networking among employees, several policies can be implemented.
One would be to restrict access to during lunchtime and before and after office hours. Web filtering software allows administrators to implement such time-based access.
Another would be to educate employees on the risks of malware and on the type of language they can use that would not compromise the company’s confidential information and reputation. Additionally, employees could be taught not to click on suspicious links and to be careful about giving out personal details online. All of these can be part of security and usage policies that employees need to comply with.
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The writer teaches management and marketing courses in the MBA Program of De La Salle University. Readers may e-mail him at rlugtu2002@yahoo.com or visit his blog at http://rlugtu.blogspot.com.
On October 9, I attended the Manila Science High School Grand Alumni Homecoming, where my batch mates and I (Batch ’85) were the Silver Jubilarians. The mood was festive as batch mates, classmates, and friends mingled the whole afternoon until a night of singing and dancing.
Our batch had the most attendees, with 50 of the 270 who attended. This high attendance can be attributed to the tight network that our batch had established. From the simple beginnings of an e-mail group in the early 2000s, our network has evolved into a more sophisticated Facebook account. Our network has cultivated not only personal relationships but also business and professional connections.
The benefits of social networking to professional life or to the workplace may not be clear to many companies, but they are many. Social networks allow organizations to reach out to and target select groups and individuals. Many sales and marketing professionals use Facebook to connect to and be friends with clients and potential customers. Most customers appreciate the personal touch; furthermore, the sales and marketing professionals can gain access to the customer’s own network of contacts.
Marketing practitioners also use social networking to promote the company among customers and the general public. More and more companies are putting up Facebook sites to reach customers, conduct market research, and enhance their reputation.
Human resource practitioners can also use social networking to search for candidates for employment. LinkedIn, the biggest professional social network, is widely used by recruiters in searching and reaching potential employees in a cost-effective manner.
Apart from the business uses of social networking, surfing Web sites such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter at work could actually increase concentration levels and increase workforce productivity, according to a 2009 University of Melbourne report. The report said that people who surfed the Internet at work for a reasonable time -- less than 20% of their total time in the office -- were more productive by about 9% than those who did not surf. The reason for this was due to the way a working day was broken up into smaller chunks of time.
Social networking also enhances personal bonding among employees, especially in virtual teams. In today’s workplace where team members are scattered in different locations, social networks such as Facebook and Twitter enhance team bonding and communication, which are otherwise difficult to achieve. Greater bonding and clearer communication increase the team’s productivity.
While social networking in the workplace clearly has benefits, it is not without its share of controversies. A growing argument of many companies is that social networking in the workplace is more of a boon than a bane. In fact, more and more companies here and abroad are banning social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.
One argument against social networking is the decline of productivity in the workplace. According to a 2009 study in the US, companies that allow employees to access Facebook in the workplace lose an average of 1.5% in total employee productivity. The survey of 237 employees also showed that 77% of workers who have a Facebook account use it during work hours.
However, the decline in productivity is not the only threat of social networking in the workplace. The risks of viruses, malware, and offensive content that employees put into their social network are perhaps more dangerous.
So how do we settle the score for and against social networking in the workplace? It depends on the company’s assessment of the risks and benefits involved. A company may ban access to social networks among certain employee groups while allowing access among marketing practitioners and salespeople. For companies that see the benefits of social networking among employees, several policies can be implemented.
One would be to restrict access to during lunchtime and before and after office hours. Web filtering software allows administrators to implement such time-based access.
Another would be to educate employees on the risks of malware and on the type of language they can use that would not compromise the company’s confidential information and reputation. Additionally, employees could be taught not to click on suspicious links and to be careful about giving out personal details online. All of these can be part of security and usage policies that employees need to comply with.
===============
The writer teaches management and marketing courses in the MBA Program of De La Salle University. Readers may e-mail him at rlugtu2002@yahoo.com or visit his blog at http://rlugtu.blogspot.com.
Cited in:
1. "Employers restricting employees rrom social networking sites", http://www.oppapers.com/essays/Employers-Restricting-Employees-From-Social-Networking/591546
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