Risk and Social Media
"One of the first things I learned when I took my career online is that anyone can be big and bad behind a computer screen, and especially on social media. For some reason, it’s so much easier to put a company on blast, pick fights with strangers, and rant about politicians on a forum where someone who matter may actually read the comments (but you don’t have to look anyone in the eye.)"
Continuing my "awesome finds on the interwebs" series this week, here is the Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media's 12-word social media policy.
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is at it again, by recently releasing its first two rulings on employer social media policies. In 2010 the NLRB’s administrative law judges issued several findings that employers’ social media policies were violating their employees’ right to engage in “protected concerted activity” as protected by the National Labor Relations Act of 1935. The Board has issued three (3) reports providing guidance on social media policies.
"I’m all for an organization using risk management techniques to address its risks, but a “social media risk management” program should be a part of your enterprise-wide risk management program. If you only address your social media risks your association still has serious threats to its survival. Don’t misunderstand me, social media creates risks that need to be managed--but those risks go beyond social media. If after reading this report, you take some action to manage these risks, then I’m happy. But your actions should extend into all potential causes of loss, not just social media."
Modern technology has made of us less formal when it comes to communication. Just because you're not always able to see the person in whom you are speaking to, doesn’t mean that you can cease to use good manners. Even in the age of digital media, etiquette is highly important, especially for businesses.
"You hear a lot of hype about the benefits that Facebook and Twitter can bring to your business, but these social networking sites can often overshadow the even greater potential LinkedIn has for virtually every department within the company. What makes LinkedIn so superior to alternative social networking sites is its exclusively professional audience and no-nonsense atmosphere. Although many companies will want to reach out to customers through Twitter and Facebook, LinkedIn is a preferred choice for making more professional connections with like-minded people. To discover how various departments within your company can benefit from this highly useful social networking tool, consider the following extensive breakdown."
See the huge list of associations we've worked with. Chances are there's one similar to yours - we can help you optimize your social media presence.
I understand that many of these finance, human resources and business operations folks don’t “get” social media but they need to recognize that social media is important to their association’s survival and growth. In one session when questioned only a few attendees knew if their association had a private online community. This tells me these folks are out of touch with their members. Perhaps as a CFO, controller, accountant, bookkeeper, facilities manager, or HR person, they don’t see a need to interact with their members. They may believe that is not their job but the responsibility of their membership, marketing and component relations colleagues. BUT, knowing your members and their industry or profession is critical to you doing your job even when you fall into the General and Administration part of the budget. Understanding why your association exists and how you provide value to your members is important for you to be an engaged employee. Otherwise you are just doing a job.
