Social Networking is HR's Largely Untapped Communication Vehicle
Savvy HR professionals are embracing corporate social networking and are using such programs to communicate effectively across the HR spectrum: to recruit and manage employees, create alumni programs, mentor, learn and collaborate with people across the entire organization.
“Social networking represents a number of opportunities to help companies better harness and serve the talent and knowledge they already have within,” says Michael Wilson, Small World Labs CEO. “To name just a few applications, HR professionals can use online social networks to foster connections between employees, share information quickly and effectively across geographically diverse offices, and establish broad recruiting circles by keeping in touch with former employees.”
How can HR take part? HR professionals can take part in social networking in two basic ways:
- Leverage existing social networks such as Linkedin and Facebook by using employees' contacts on those networks; or
- Build their own internal social network.
“The most successful HR departments use both to their benefit,” says Wilson.
Trending towards networking
When asked whether or not he sees a trend of more and more HR departments engaging in social networking, Wilson responded with a solid and immediate, “Yes.” He notes that “We do see more HR departments deploying their own social networks, especially as companies diversify offices across greater distances. At the end of the day, social networks represent one of the most cost effective means of engaging in a two-way conversation with your employees. More and more HR professionals are recognizing this importance.”
Balance risks with benefits
“At a certain point it is critical for HR to be involved in internal corporate social networks,” Wilson stresses. “The social network serves as a mirror for corporate culture, and HR should ideally be its steward. On the other side of the equation, if conflict erupts or a need for cultural change is presented, HR has the unique skill set to help the online community.”
In addition, Wilson claims that social networks either can create or expand talent management and mentorship programs by allowing employees access to a pool of executives and coworkers, rather than the one or two supervisors they'd otherwise interact with. “Social networking also makes the conversations and advice shared between a handful of employees available to a larger audience because it's archived in blogs and forums,” he explains.
HR must walk a fine line. There are always two sides to the proverbial coin, and social networking presents no exception. Although Wilson touts the benefits it can provide HR, there are also dangers to consider. Social media clearly emphasizes the need for transparency, forcing HR professionals to walk a fine line between the free exchange of ideas and the sharing of privileged information.
“An employee posting confidential information, such as salaries, potentially could gain a large audience,” Wilson explains. “Regular monitoring and a clear policy for dealing with inappropriate content are your best precautions against the dangers in social networking. We often draw from existing email and intranet communication policies when drafting social network governance policies for large implementations.”
The rewards outweigh the risks. According to Wilson, the potential rewards that come from HR’s participation in social networking outweigh the potential risks. “A properly executed internal community can help increase employee retention and improve productivity, and can even serve as positive collateral for young prospective recruits,” he said. “All of these attributes have the potential for making a significant impact on a company's financials and, when stacked up against potential risks, make a compelling case for social networks.”
Size doesn’t matter, but goals do. Small organizations, those with fewer resources and fewer employees, can benefit just as greatly from social networking as large organizations, according to Wilson. “However, building your own internal social network is not for everyone,” he cautions. “The decision to build a network versus leveraging existing networks should be driven by the purpose and goals behind it rather than the size of an organization.”
Best-practice social networking tips
Wilson provides the following communication tips for those HR departments looking to invest in social networking:
- Make networking relevant. People don't use a solution just because it is available --they use it because it helps them get something done, or saves time, or makes more money. How you structure an internal online community is based on the value it can provide its users. For example, a corporate social network whose main purpose is to connect subject matter experts scattered around the world might include profiles that allow people to easily view all community members that share a job title. This allows employees to be able to quickly collaborate with their peers around the company who have been working on something similar. That type of value would drive employees to rely more on the network, and drive more social networking activity, increasing the network’s value.
- Consider demographics. If your organization is entirely populated by people in their early 20s, they're likely already users of social media. But for the majority of organizations whose staff varies in age and technological savvy, be sure to allocate time and budget to adoption and training in how to best use the network. Once you launch, encourage novice-friendly activities like “best vacation photo” or “submit a caption” contests that will encourage participation and drive content creation by people who may not be all that familiar with social media. By empowering people to both use the solution and to create content, you are seeding the potential for success.
- Prepare the C-Suite. The true value of an internal social network relies on people using it. Nothing will quash employee interaction faster than an over-policed community. Work proactively with your executives to establish policies for openness and to address, in advance, how occasions of inappropriate exchanges will be handled. Communicate those policies from the get-go, but also let them evolve with input from your members.
- Be prepared for Legal. Furthermore, be prepared to deal with the legal department. Involve legal in the policy review process to minimize risk instead of trying to eliminate it all together. The end result may be a little more tame than your original plans, but it will likely make implementation much more comfortable for the entire team.
Social networking will become second nature
“Online social networking 10 years from now will be so ubiquitous that we will no longer be conscious of it,” says Wilson. “We will navigate from website to website on any number of devices and take for granted that key pieces of information from our many social networks will influence our experience.”
Wilson provides the following present-day example: Consider websites that use location information to filter content. Just a few years ago you had to specifically tell sites where you were located in order to receive content tailored specifically to your location. Now, we expect sites to be able to know automatically where we are and to deliver content relative to our location.
“The same applies to social networks,” he says. “Soon, we will expect sites to know when we are reading a review of a product written by a “friend.” HR departments also will be able to determine which job applicants are friends with existing employees. These functionalities will all be driven by a social network.”
Source: Interview with Michael Wilson, CEO of Small World Labs, reported in CCH Ideas and Trends Newsletter, Issue No. 685, a product of Wolters Kluwer Law & Business.
Submitted by CCH on July 2009
<p>HR professionals can use online social networks to foster connections between employees and share information quickly and effectively across geographically diverse offices. They also use this media to establish broad recruiting circles by keeping in touch with former employees.</p>