Industry News
Online Social Networking in the Workplace?
Most Companies Receptive: Survey
CHICAGO – As the popularity of online social networking
websites like Facebook and MySpace grows, so does the number of people visiting
the sites during work hours. While many companies look the other way, a new survey
reveals that nearly one in four are putting the kibosh on what is considered a productivity
killer.
The survey results, released Tuesday by global outplacement and business coaching
consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., indicate that most companies (59
percent) do not have a formal policy regarding the use of social networking sites
at the office. Nearly half of those polled said social networking sites are not
a problem as long as employees' work gets done.
The survey was conducted by Challenger at the 82nd annual conference of the Society
for Human Resource Management, held in Chicago. Approximately 200 human resource
professionals completed the survey.
While many companies do not view social networking as a threat to productivity,
one in three survey respondents said their companies consider the sites a major
drain on worker output. Twenty-three percent of companies block access to these
sites entirely.
"Social networking sites are a relatively new phenomenon, which is why the majority
of companies still have no formal policy regarding their use. However, that is changing
daily as more companies come to realize both the pros and the cons of giving employees
access to these sites," said John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger,
Gray & Christmas.
"Employers face the challenge of maintaining a productive workplace while allowing
their employees access to sites that facilitate communication with a variety of
resources. More companies will be forced to address the issue as the number of workers
using these sites continues to grow."
According to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People and the
Press, one in five (22 percent) Americans use an online social networking site,
up from just seven percent in 2005. One reason for this jump is the rising number
of business professionals using the sites. Facebook's most rapidly growing demographic
are users 35 years and older, a demographic which already comprises more than half
of the site's daily visitors.
"As the popularity of social networking sites continues to increase among older
people, so will the amount of time spent on these sites at work," said Challenger.
A recent study from U.K.-based IT security firm Global Secure Systems found that
workers spend at least 30 minutes of their work day on a social networking site.
The study concludes that such behavior costs U.K. employers several billion dollars
a year in lost productivity.
However, lost productivity is not the only reason some organizations ban or limit
the use of social networking at the office. These sites produce an extra demand
on bandwidth. They also pose a security risk for corporate networks, making company
systems vulnerable to hackers and viruses. There is also the potential for employees
to leak corporate secrets or damage the company's image due to the content of their
personal profiles.
Despite these drawbacks, social networking sites are not necessarily bad for business.
In fact, some researchers believe that social networking can boost employee and
company productivity.
"Some companies are choosing to use social networking sites to their advantage instead
of banning them. These sites can be used to communicate with current and former
colleagues, as well as other industry professionals, share best practices, meet
customers, resolve issues and answer questions," said Challenger.
About 10 percent of the respondents to the Challenger survey said their companies
view social networking sites as invaluable marketing, networking and sales tools,
and six percent actually encourage employees to have a presence on these sites.
An Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp) survey revealed that 52 percent of
workers use online networking sites to keep connected with internal and remote staff,
while 47 percent used them to identify and build relationships with potential customers
and to showcase their skills.
Some online social networking sites are geared specifically for business professionals.
LinkedIn, Plaxo, Ecademy and Ryze are a few of the professional networking sites
facilitating communication and connections among businesspeople in much the same
way social sites as Facebook do, through profiles, blogs and community discussion
groups.
Recognizing the benefits of social networking site features in the workplace, companies
such as InsideView and Genius are integrating business intelligence software and
social networking. Oracle, IBM and Microsoft are adding social networking capabilities
such as creating and joining groups to their corporate software applications. IBM's
Lotus Connections enables employees to create profiles, flag areas of interest using
tags and host blogs, facilitating collaboration among its users.
"Of course, every company must examine its workplace and evaluate whether social
networking has the potential to be a valuable tool or simply another distraction.
One thing every company should keep in mind, however, is that enacting bans on these
sites could hurt recruiting, particularly among young people just starting their
careers. This generation has adopted the new form of communication technology like
the previous one adopted cell phones," said Challenger.
"For the best recruiting edge, it will not be enough to simply allow access to these
sites. It will require the integration of social networking and other Web 2.0 tools
into every facet of the organization, from marketing to internal employee communication."
Back to Industry News