With the ease of access to the internet and the price of computers falling, it is more likely than not more than 90% of your employees have access to online social media sites after they leave the confines of your establishment every day.  A good portion of your employees are likely involved with sites like Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and Flickr during their off hours.  They likely have their profiles filled out with information so that the friends in their network know more about them, including where they work and what they do for a living.

If an employee has questionable hobbies in the off hours of business, that’s not under your control.  However, if that employee is involved in social media, promotes those questionable hobbies and then also links to your company as their employer from their profile on the social media site they are involved in, you have to stop and wonder if there is something you can do.

Setting policies in place regarding how your employees should represent themselves and your company in both working and non-working hours is quickly becoming a highly debated topic in both the human resources and marketing worlds.   The question of what social media activities the company does or does not have control over is becoming an increasingly murky subject employers have to deal with.  Employers don’t want to be a heavy hand, dictating what employees can and can’t say, but they also do not want their company name and reputation put into jeopardy by an employee with questionable hobbies socializing in a forum on the internet listing the company as their employer.

Rather than being caught by surprise, it’s best to work with your online marketing, human resources and legal teams to come up with policies that can be acceptable to all employees.  These policies can help your entire staff understand what impact their actions could have on your company’s reputation.  It can also hold them accountable for any questionable actions they take that can harm the company even in the most indirect manner.

When devising these types of policies companies need to take into account the following:

• Tolerated Language:
  What happens if the company employee uses vulgar, racist or threatening language in a social media site?
• Tolerable Activities:
  If employees are linking themselves to your company via the information in their profile, it’s imperative that the employees understand that their activities can have a direct impact on your reputation whether it’s on or off hours.
  • What types of activities will your company not tolerate being associated with
    • Racist group sites
    • Terror group sites
    • Illegal activity sites
    • Activist sites
• Representation of the Company:
  If an employee is active in a community and lists you as their employer, clear policies on how employees should represent themselves while also representing you should be defined.
  • What happens if the employee doesn’t list you as their employer, but is well known for working for you?
  • What happens if the employee posts something but then it’s taken down?
• On Hours vs. Off Hours:
  Is visiting social media sites permitted on the clock if its helping to promote your business?  What happens if an employee uses foul and vulgar language in a forum but it’s after hours?
• Repercussions of Actions:
  What happens if an employee violates your defined policies?  Is there a different punishment if the employee does any type of violation during their off hours away from the office?
• Your Own Social Media Sites:
  • What kind of comments will you allow?
  • What kind of language you will allow (i.e. no vulgar, racist or threatening language)?
  • Will links be allowed?
  • What kind of trackbacks will be accepted?

It’s important for companies to sit down with representatives from all parts of the company to devise these types of policies because it gives a better understanding not only of how the company is affected by employee actions on social media sites, but also how employees themselves can find themselves in situations they never dreamed could actually harm their employer.  Understanding both perspectives will help your company make better policies that can adapt to most of your employees on staff.