HR Professional - April/May 2008 - (Page 25)

COVER STORY FIVE LARGEST ORGANIZATIONAL NETWORKS ON FACEBOOK Fortunately, there is a mutually satisfying alternative to banning sites and infantilizing staff. “The best approach is to treat employees like adults,” says Ward. “Establish acceptable-use policies and have employees agree to it. Employees should be judged by the criteria for which they were hired, not how they spend idle time. If you are trusting employees with a phone and a computer, then why would you not extend that trust to other areas? If you can’t trust your employees, then social media is the least of your concerns.” “Above all, be realistic and pragmatic,” says Carla Goertz, VP of human resources at Internet services company Tucows. “Facebook is the latest in a long line of Internet services to gain popularity and come to the notice of employers. The reality is knowledge workers who have access to the Internet at the office will do personal tasks CISCO SYSTEMS ORACLE JOHNSON & JOHNSON UBS ERNST & YOUNG online while at the office. The key is to set an expectation of appropriate personal use of company time via an Internet usage policy and consistent communication starting at orientation. In cases where personal use is excessive, enforce the policy.” C on sider a n ex a mple fr om Tucows, whose recent efforts are focused on developing an internal wiki through which all employees are encouraged to share and collaborate. “Our staff directory is a wiki where each employee can list their contact information, where they sit, who they report to (and who reports to them), as well as a personal web page where they can post a photo and share information about themselves,” explains Goertz. “We also support and encourage employee blogging. x We’ve developed employee blog guidelines, which remind employe e s a b out ke e pi n g c omp a ny secrets and provide tips about how to best represent themselves (and Tucows) online.” McGrath, who makes big use of social media on her HR.com website, points out that “HR can use social networking tools, to create communities, build alumni and keep in touch with people. There are so many opportunities they can use to build loyalty within their company and within ex-employees. We did a survey in conjunction with The Institute for Corporate Productivity and 55 per cent of business professionals are connecting via personal and professional social networking sites.” The onus is on HR to understand that the newest generation’s expectations are different than Leading Service Sector Lost-Time Injuries Injury # 2 Struck by Object Getting struck by an object accounted for more than 4,441 Lost-Time Injuries in the Ontario Service sector in 2006… The total cost to industry was more than $6,493,634. The potential direct cost to your business from a single injury was $1,462. That’s money out of your pocket. We can help. Visit www.ossa.com/safetytips.cfm for a wide range of FREE downloadable safety check sheets for your business and other resources that can help you build prevention and learn how to safeguard your employees against this type of workplace hazard. Ontario Service Safety Alliance 1-888-478-6772 www.ossa.com w w w.H RThought L eader. c om 365720_OntService.indd 1 A p r i l / M a y 2 0 0 8 25 1/15/08 11:43:19 AM http://HR.com http://www.ossa.com http://www.HRThoughtLeader.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of HR Professional - April/May 2008

HR Professional - April/May 2008 Contents Editor's Letter Contributors Leadership Matters By the Numbers On the Web Careers World Watch Accounting Health & Safety Foreign Professionals Management Office Life Legal Compensation Web 2.0 @ Work Talent Management Systems On Message Strategy HR 101 Interview With Colin Mackay Off the Shelf The Last Word

HR Professional - April/May 2008

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