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There has been a lot of discussion lately about whether CEOs should or shouldn’t use social media, and to a larger extent under what conditions should companies encourage their employees to blog, tweet, or use other social media tools.
The easiest route for companies to take would be to simply ban all use of social media in the workplace. But that would greatly hinder the company’s and employees’ ability to learn and leverage the social media phenomenon.
Instead, I like the approach that some forward thinking companies like Intel have taken. They have provided a clear set of guidelines for their employees so they can feel comfortable experimenting with social media and not worry about facing the wrath of their superiors or corporate lawyers.
Intel has, in fact, published its guidelines offering other companies a good framework to perhaps copy or adapt to their own needs. In it Intel states the following:
“If you’re an Intel employee or contractor creating or contributing to blogs, wikis, social networks, virtual worlds, or any other kind of social media both on and off intel.com – the guidelines are for you.” The company does go on to say that failure to follow the guidelines could put the contributor’s future participation at risk, and that the guidelines will continually evolve as new technologies and social networking tools emerge.
Despite the warnings, it’s important to note that Intel encourages its employees to embrace the medium. “Emerging platforms for online collaboration are fundamentally changing the way we work, offering new ways to engage with customers, colleagues, and the world at large,” it states in the guidelines. “It’s a new model for interaction and we believe social computing can help you build stronger, more successful business relationships. And it’s a way to take part in global conversations related to the work we are doing at Intel and the things we care about.”
Again, I encourage anyone trying to decide how their company should engage with social media to review the complete guidelines, but I’ll share Intel’s guiding principles for participating in social media:
• Stick to your area of expertise and provide unique, individual perspectives on what’s going on at Intel and in the world.
• Post meaningful, respectful comments – in other words, no spam and no remarks that are off-topic or offensive.
• Always pause and think before posting. That said, reply to comments in a timely manner, when a response is appropriate.
• Respect proprietary information and content, and confidentiality.
• When disagreeing with others’ opinions, keep it appropriate and polite.
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