Question

Should companies use social Web sites as a communications tool to building employee networks? What are the advantages and the disadvantages of using a social network web sits as a formal and informal communications channels for employee? Express yore personal and professional experience and opinion regarding this issue.

Answer 1

Companies can use social media platforms to form informal groups among the employees where they can interact with each other. It will help to strengthen the bonding among the employees that is translated into the cooperation among the employees and superior performance in the organization. Here, the companies should take care to place a moderator or admin who will facilitate the interaction among the employees. Not doing so, the social media groups of the employees can soon become the place of protected concerted activities where the employees can share the grievances, come together to form strategies of collective bargain and act together against the management. Once the employees step out of the scope of protected concerted activities, they have a higher probability to get fired from the jobs. So, unregulated informal groups in social media can have dire consequences also.
For formal group formation & communication, the company should focus to develop its own dedicated social media forums where the employees should be encouraged to create informal groups also. It gives close monitoring of the interaction without breaching the privacy of the individuals. It will facilitate the healthy interaction between the employees and employers and both the stakeholders work together to achieve their common goals.
In my professional experience, I have observed that individuals try to vent their frustration on social media by sending posts or status updates in the informal group. It is taken as offence by the management and disciplinary action is taken against the concerned person as well as against those also, who were associated with that person. If not so, then an element of doubt is created among the management people. Further, informal groups in the social media, create a scope of distraction at work in the working hours. So, it is closed later on, even if it has different benefits to the organization. So, companies should carefully devise its own platform as well as policies for the effective use of social media.