Online social networking in the workplace?
What are your thoughts on this subject? Should access to sites such as LinkedIn, MySpace, Facebook, Yahoo! 360, etc. be allowed, encouraged or restricted? How much time and money are wasted, or how much employee teambuilding, morale and productivity can be generated? Please leave your comments on the subject.
Social networking in the workplace proving to be a valuable tool
6 September, 2007
By Liam Lahey
Social networking has not only seeped into popular culture, but it has also made a mark in the workplace with companies more often than not seeking to block or ban their employees from accessing sites such as Facebook and MySpace.
Research from IT security firm Sophos suggests that approximately 50 per cent of employers have banned access to social networking sites, including the Ontario Government. The main reason companies are restricting employee access to these sites are concerns about productivity and security.
The corporate backlash on social networking is a similar trend that was seen a few years ago with instant messenger in the workplace, Microsoft officials said. Then, companies were concerned about the amount of time at work that was being used on personal conversations rather then work related matters. But as companies began to realize…