Social Networking–Time to get formal?

0 CommentsWednesday • October 12, 2011 • by Steve Clark

The explosion of social networking has been phenomenal in the last few years. It undoubtedly has had a positive impact – even my mum and dad (who are in their 80’s) use it to keep track of the family!

However, from an employer’s point of view it’s not without it’s problems and issues that, if not carefully controlled, can come back to bite them in a Tribunal or legal case.

To that end those all round nice people at ACAS have commissioned some research by the Institute for Employment Studies. The report advises employers to:

• draw up a policy on social networking
• treat ‘electronic behaviour’ in the same way you would treat ‘non-electronic behaviour’
• react reasonably to issues around social networking by asking ‘what is the likely impact on the organisation?

You can click through to the full article on the ACAS website here.

One thing is clear, Social Networking is here to stay and the potential issues are only going to multiply. Many SME employers would do well to have a look at the ACAS guidance and decide whether to introduce a formal policy to cover Social Networking.

Steve Clark

Posted in: Social Media, Twitter

Tagged with: ACAS