- To: Management of the Company
- From: Social Media Expert
- Date: ______________________________
- Subject: Guidelines for Employees’ Use of Social Media
After considerable deliberation, I have come to a conclusion that it is necessary for public relations staff to take steps and develop special digital and social guidelines for the company and its employees to use. There are many problems that can arise if public relations are not regulated properly. The implementation of the following actions will help to avoid possible lawsuits and liability:
Setting restrictions
The first issue that should be discussed by public relations staff is to what degree employees’ activities will be restricted by the guidelines. Reasonable preliminary analysis of future restrictions can help prevent interfering in employees’ private lives, as well as avoid other possible problems.
Keeping employees informed
The next important rule is to be clear about monitoring employees’ activities: although employers now have the right to read employees’ email, they should make sure that the employees are aware of that. Not warning the workers that certain areas of their lives are monitored is considered as a violation of privacy and can lead to lawsuits filed against the employer.
Encouraging employees to have a blog
Having a blog is a good way to stimulate discussion and allow employees to get informal feedback (Wilcox, at al.). The company, however, is to set clear guidelines about “what employees, as well as executives, can and cannot say on their blogs” (Wilcox, et al. 220). If employees have space where they can talk about the issues connected to the company and its work, they will have no need to discuss it somewhere else.
Creating disciplinary policy
The last essential step is to create a number of disciplinary actions that may potentially be taken if employees’ posts on social media negatively affect the company’s image. These measures will help to correct employees’ unfavourable attitudes at work and ensure that all the workers are treated in a fair way. It is also important to provide employees with detailed information on those measures, and explain that these actions are not used to punish certain behaviors, but to correct them.
Please take into consideration that these steps are crucial in ensuring employees’ understanding and acceptance of the company’s standards, as well as creating favourable environment for a more effective workflow.
Work Cited
Wilcox, Dennis L., et al. Public Relations: Strategies and Tactics. Pearson, 2015.