Social Media Policies Come Under Legal Review

(Note: Hat tip to Christopher Barger for flagging this story and for making sure the below made some sort of sense.)

An incredibly important decision has been made with, as reported the other day, federal regulators and other officials finding that some common aspects of corporate social media policies infringe on the rights of employees.

Specifically various regulators and boards have found that policies that seek to limit what employees can say about the company they work for on social media platforms are illegal. These platforms – Twitter, Facebook and the like – are instead increasingly seen as being like a neighborhood watering hole, where everyone is free to kvetch and converse as much as they like regardless of the topic of the conversation. That includes complaining about your boss, your co-workers, your employer, its customers and everything else, all without the fear that a misstep will get said employee fired.

On the one hand this makes sense; You’re not going to get fired for complaining to your friend about your boss when the two of you are together in person. So to some extent it follows that the same sentiment expressed to your friends on Twitter should similarly be protected.

But that logic only holds up so far and eventually falls victim to a fundamental misunderstanding of how social media communication works. If I share a work-related gripe with a friend that stays (hopefully) between myself and him. If I share the same gripe on Twitter I’m immediately broadcasting it to some subset of my 2,300+ Followers.

That’s a seismic shift in the proportion of the spread of that message. And it doesn’t even begin to take into account the fact that everything said on social platforms is assumed to be “on the record” and therefore fair game for any industry reporters who follow me. And then there’s the issue of how such gripes are seen and perceived by any current clients who follow me and who, by seeing my gripe, may have a changed sense of how the company operates that could eventually have repercussions on whether they continue to work with someone. It could also impact recruitment, new business ventures and maybe even stock price if the mix of elements is just right.

Social media policies, including bans on or warnings against disrespectful or disparaging comments about an employer or its staff, clients, vendors or other partners, are there to protect the interests of everyone involved. So while it may eventually become settled policy that an employer cannot fire someone for what’s said on social media there can still be discouragements about doing so that lay out the potential downsides.

Also – What happens the first time that a manager sues an employee and a company for disparaging (and perhaps untrue) remarks made about them in a social network by an employee? The NLRB has ruled their speech protected… but does a fellow employee who happens to be above them on the chain of command have a right to not be disparaged?

It goes back to the idea that such corporate policies need to be just one part of a broader dialogue between employers and employees. HR teams should be monitoring what employees are saying on social media to the extent that’s possible and, if a complaint is registered, then it should be addressed in the same manner as if it had come in through any other outlet. Most important, the question “Why do you feel like this?” needs to be addressed.

The next most important conversation needs to be educating employees – either singly or en masse – about the potential pitfalls of bad-mouthing some aspect of their work environment in a public forum. It may be that, independent of whether or not they think they may be fired for what they say, someone just hasn’t thought through all the other ways it can come back to burn either them individually or the company as a whole. So some friendly reminders about all the ways their legally protected complaints are still a really bad idea are going to be helpful here.

As with many things, the legal and regulatory issues surrounding this will likely continue to be discussed and worked out over the next couple of years. But outside of that it’s important that companies review their policies for what parts may be in dispute and what parts can be adapted into educational components instead of outright penalties.

About the Author
Chris Thilk works on the Client Services team, part of Voce Connect, developing and executing social media strategy. You can follow him at @christhilk on Twitter.

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Not Getting Enough Support for Social? Go Straight to the Execs

It’s almost 2013, and let’s be honest, most people – even executives – now understand that this thing called “social” does have value. But that does not necessarily translate into even a basic knowledge of what social is or why it is so important, and it certainly doesn’t always translate into adequate support or funding to put social on par with more traditional marketing efforts.

There are a host of ways to try to change the mindset at a company, but one of the most successful ones can be to go straight to the top: educate the executives and secure their personal sponsorship of social media programs. Yes, plenty of organizations have successfully managed to advance social from the bottom up, but this post is focused on seven tips for gradually converting executives into social media champions.

1. Have a Plan – First, make sure that you have a coherent plan and strategy in place. Your plan should show that this is not a fly-by-night idea, that you’ve already been making progress, that you’ve got others on board, and that a lot more can be accomplished if the executives throw their weight behind it. You of course should already have a full social strategy if you’re doing your job right, but you’ll want to tailor it and narrow it down to a few key points for when you get in front of an exec.
2. Get in Their Face – Sometimes the most challenging step is simply getting in front of the execs. While it’s unlikely you’ll have a chance to present your full social strategy directly to the leadership team (if you do, see tips 5 and 6), think about other ways to get in front of them. Stop them in the hallways if you see them or speak up and ask a question at an All Hands meeting. Consider setting up posters near where execs congregate to spotlight social, or install TVs showing a feed of customer complaints on social.
3. Make Friends – As you’re looking to get in front of execs, look to others to help as well. If it’s going to fall on you exclusively, you’re in for a much larger challenge. Arm teams, friends, colleagues, and anyone else you know who may have contact with execs with a few key data points and an elevator speech. Think about setting up an intern/exec buddy system to pair social-savvy interns with the executives who you’re trying to teach social to. And of course make friends with the executives’ EAs.
4. Start With One – If you can get the ear of even one executive, use it to the fullest extent. Try to figure out a particularly suitable “gateway drug” to get that individual involved in social so they can develop an understanding firsthand. If they’re good on camera, start a video blog. If they’re known for brief, value-packed comments, start them up on Twitter. Then focus on promoting their activity to drive up their stats and play to their ego, which in turn can convert them into an evangelist for all things social. Note, however, that some execs can require extensive coaching or start focusing on the wrong stats (follower count, etc), so don’t expect it to be an easy process. But it can often be a contagious one; if one exec dives in, the rest won’t want to be left behind.
5. Showcase Successes – If you have any sort of social media program, chances are you’ve been able to achieve some level of success with or without the desired level of executive sponsorship. Use those existing successes – whether metrics or anecdotes – to build momentum for your social program. Create succinct case studies in a format that will resonate with executives and start sharing them up your own chain of command and with anyone else who will listen. If you get those around you excited about what you’re achieving on social, that enthusiasm and those success stories will gradually make their way up to executives.
6. Demonstrate Value – As you develop these case studies, focus on the value that they drive for the company. Rather than spotlighting the number of new Facebook fans in the past month, point to examples – even anecdotal examples – of social media impacting corporate priorities or especially the bottom line. Ideally you should be able to point to social referrals as part of your website’s conversion measurements, but even that only accounts for some of the social ROI. Talk to the other teams, especially the sales teams, to find out if they have stories to share, and don’t be afraid to use anecdotes to demonstrate value.
7. Go Grassroots – Finally, never underestimate the impact of a grassroots campaign. Train employees across the board on social – especially in-person training where you can give them rewards, stickers, or some sort of schwag that can spark others to ask them where they got it. Leverage those already involved on social (whether personally or professionally) across the organization to help contribute to and amplify success stories. Get as many folks excited and involved on social as possible, and you’ll soon start to see that enthusiasm spread quickly across – and up – the organization.

There are certainly challenges with going straight to the execs, not the least of which that it’s often difficult to get in front of them. Just as important, though, it is often (though certainly not always) difficult for execs that have a very limited understanding of social to truly “get it” without repeated coaching and patience. It’s a process, a gradual process, but hopefully these tips can help make it a more successful one.

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