Social Media Issues at Workplace are potential professional hazards. Though employers are using social media to benefit businesses and may also be egging employees to do the same for the sake of business, employees need to maintain a degree of exclusivity when it comes to using social media.
In fact, communication disasters are one of the most potential areas that can vitiate the relation between employees and employers. The entire gamut of social media is amenable to misuse and misadventure. You need to avoid such lapses.
Here are some guidelines to avoid or fight problems with social media in the workplace.
Guidelines for Employees
Be Aware of Generational and Technological Challenges
Your immediate boss or team manager may be one or even two generations older than you. It is no surprise that the adoption of social media is tardy in older generations. This creates a situation when there are two or more generations working together, but not all of them are equally adept in the niceties of social media, in particular, and technology in general. This gives rise to conflicting communicative ethics and etiquette. In such a setup, an apparently trivial act of putting a like in the wrong post or a share on Facebook or Instagram can turn out to be a potential issue that can get out of control. This is often the core of Social Media Issues at Workplace.
Maintain Privacy
- You need to set permissions in your social media account in such a way that anonymous account holders cannot stalk you. Stalking is one of the most frequent problems with social media in the workplace.
- Posting a picture of yourself may be normal, but there are people out there to stalk. Deny them a chance to do so.
Maintain an Air of Neutrality and confidentiality
- Don’t go overboard with polarizing topics like religion, sex, politics etc.
- Stay away from posting anything about your employer or co-workers that put them in a negative light. It may just take hours to go viral and become a potential headache for you.
Don’t Infringe on Proprietary Information
Since you have signed NDA, you need to stay away from posting proprietary information. You should avoid posing anything about trademarks, copyrights and other proprietary information. You need to understand that such posts can not only damage the company’s position, but also expose you to potential legal scrutiny. This can be among the gravest problems with social media in the workplace.
Don’t Breach the Privacy of Colleagues
Your colleagues have as much right to privacy as you have. So, ask for permission before posting a photo of any of your colleagues.
Aware of competing Business
Social media has evolved as a barometer of efficiency, culture, habits, characters, and much more that matters for employers. Keep in mind that competing businesses are monitoring your posts.
FOR EMPLOYERS
Employers too need to be prepared to prevent Social Media Issues at Workplace. This is important for them since disclosure of company proprietary information has the potential to create business hazards. They can conduct annual audits, impart training to their staff, identify risks and implement guidelines for use of social media. In the event of any such mishap, they can mitigate the damage caused by an ex. Employees.
It is important for both employers and employee to avoid problems related to social media. In severe cases, an employer can also terminate employee for their social media post. This is why it is important to know how you can avoid these issues.
