Introduction
Social media have been gaining a lot of popularity and importance these days and has the power to influence the activities and the branding of an organization. The increased use of social media by employees has reaped benefits for employees as well as posed potential risks in few cases. An appropriate social media policy should help America West in setting up control mechanisms to make the best possible use of social media for the operational success of the company.
Social media policy is quite important as it shall provide a vision to the organization and its employees on the usage of social media, the sites which are allowed at the workplace, utilizing social media for increasing the business and also what to avoid at the work place. The proposal for the social media policy has been made after careful conducting internet research about the subject which covered the use of social media by other organizations and their stand on social media policy. After a careful analysis of the benefits and the potential risks associated with the use of social media at the work place, it has been concluded that a social media policy shall benefit the organization in multiple ways.
A social media policy is essential to address the various risks associated with the use of social media within the organization. Employees have the risk of sharing personal and professional connections which may lead to issues at work place. Research suggests that the surveyed employees admit to rarely paying attention to the content shared on social media and the concern if the posted updates may affect the boss, colleagues or clients. Increased use of social media in the workplace also has an adverse impact on employee productivity. Nearly 30% of surveyed employees think that usage of social media for personal interests at work is justified.
Benefits of Social Media for the Organization
Social media is particularly helpful for the organization in hiring new talent. Various research studies have suggested that more than one quarter of the surveyed workers express their desire that their employer should have a social media presence. Most talented work professionals of organizations are more likely to use social media for their career change decisions. The mere observation that 75% of the organizations have been using social media for business and that 20.5% of the companies have been using social media for more than 3 years further emphasizes the benefits of social media for organizations.
Employee Awareness
Research has shown that nearly 24% of employees in various surveys confess their confusion on whether their employer has a formal policy regarding use of social networking by employees. Therefore a clear social media policy for the organization shall help employees in deciding how to use social media efficiently for work.
Conclusion
The formulation of a comprehensive social media policy is highly recommended for America West Finance in the light of its potential benefits for the organization and the risks associated with the unmediated use of social media by employees. A social media policy shall help employees in determining the appropriate use of social media at work place and also guide them in making the optimum use of social media to enhance organizational productivity. The social media policy shall help in the prevention of any serious outcomes as a result of unmonitored social media usage by employees.
All board members are invited to post their comments, feedbacks and suggestions regarding the social media strategy. Any questions or queries can be addressed to me for clarification on the issue.
