Community Casebook

Company Twitter

In  "BT Richard's" post, as previously mentioned, he discusses examples of Internal and External social media use and wonders if a better approach couldn't be found to provide more of a One Stop Shopping (my words) experience.

They've developed an internal version of Twitter, but employees also use the real Twitter (external in reach), including his team!  What do they do with it? Well, the use Grouptweet, ideal because they are in large a remote workforce! In Richard's words they "can bond and share on an on-going basis." He is sure it will have a "positive effect on team dynamics". They also use  Twhirl, a desktop client that makes for more of an email experience. I beam when I read, "I think this is a really good example of how the intranet has become more than just web pages behind a firewall."

BT also launched a full enterprise social network and is intelligently incorporating/integrating content from Twitter and Blogs... so that a profile can truly reflect the person and their thought contributions. Not sure how these integations relate to the complaint of multiple versions (internal/external), but I'll let you know after I speak with him and find out!

Social Networking meet Recruiting- what to know

LinkedIn's biggest asset is arguably the data it has about, and the access it provides to, some 23 million professionals.  This allows for targeted advertising, as well as targeted recruiting. With the launch of LinkedIn Recruiter back in March, companies with corproate staffing licenses can search from nearly all of the 23 million- person database to source for matches to job opportunities.  While there is no guarantee the owner of a LinkedIn profile will reply and accept connection to discuss an opportunity, a recruiter is far more likely to connect through LinkedIn's InMail system boasting a 60% open rate.  Clearly, this far exceeds quality, contact and exposure with traditional career sights and sourcing methodologies.

LinkedIn's Company Insider adds another interesting and compelling aspect to the job search process. It shows a prospective candidate, or a recruiter, the path of connection between a person, a job, and a company. If you are looking for a job and find a posting on LinkedIn, you can then see who you know that has contacts the company and a route of connectivity to find out more about the opportunity... The same is true for a recruiter that may be interested in a candidate; he or she can see the best path of connectivity to make a connection through a shared social network on LinkedIn. Taleo announced in June an integration with LinkedIn for its SMB ATS solution, and we are sure to see a trend towards ATS vendors seeking this integration to optimize their social networking took sets. 

A bevy of companies are entertaining solutions with both LinkedIn and Facebook, Facebook reaching a considerably larger audience, and LinkedIn serving the professional set with arguably more business-minded tools.

Banning Access to Social Networks?

It seems that 40%-50% of businesses currently ban access to social networking sites like Facebook, even access to professional networking sites like LinkedIn.  Is the control worth the risk? Is it possible you might loose employees that may not appreciate corporate social media policies?

Surveyed employees have definitely stated a strong preference for connectivity and networking in their business lives.  Some 70%-80% feel social connectivity is essential, even critical, at work.

Today I read that a recent survey of 1000 European office workers revealed:

• 39% of 18 to 24 year-olds would consider leaving if they were not allowed to access sites like Facebook and YouTube
• A further 21%indicated that they would feel ‘annoyed’ by such a ban
• The problem is less acute with 25 to 65 year-olds, of whom just 16 per cent would consider leaving and 13 per cent would be annoyed

By the way, it points out, in Canada, 90% of 18-34 year-olds use Facebook – that's 9 million people! The article then asked, "Can you imagine the results in North America?".  The stats I've read are not quite as high but remain strongly compelling.

I look at this and sense a communications preference and a shift in communications trends. What about embracing it and using it to your advantage? What about a company Facebook and LinkedIn strategy, and integration of a company Social Network drive engagement and retention, while gaining some of the recruiting, marketing and productivity advantages that social networks can offer?

Or, is it easier to ban access, proceed with business as usual...  To quote that infamous TV Dr., "Well, how's that working for you?"