Blurred Lines: Professionalism vs Personal Opinions in the Social Media World
Everyone is on social media: you, your team, and your customers. In the current online communications climate it has become easy for us to speak our minds and share our thoughts, but much more difficult to control who hears them. What is said now lasts longer and travels farther than ever before, and the “delete” button can do little to undo damage. What would you do, if your employee takes to Facebook and rants about their workday, only to have an offhand comment be shared with customers and clients? When online actions have very real ramifications to public perceptions of our business, how do you protect your brand, without curbing future conversation? How do you find balance? How does your business reduce risk of social media casualty, while respecting your staff’s right to privacy, autonomous living, and freedom of speech? When is your business responsible for employee conduct, and when do you need to accept vulnerability? Information and privacy professional Victoria McIntosh counsels on the currently clashing climate of personalism vs professionalism; why your business should be active to reduce risks, and how to remain steadfast in the face of potential problems.
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Blurred Lines: Professionalism vs Personal Opinions in the Social Media World
- 1. Blurred Lines Professionalism vs Personal Opinions In The Social Media World © Victoria McIntosh Originally presented for PDS 2016
- 2. Think you can ignore employee use of social media? Think again.
- 3. Bad taste: after the video of two employee’s video went viral in 2009, a study revealed 65% Domino’s customers would not order from them again.
- 4. Different Outcomes Changing Careers Justine Sacco, fired from IAC (The Daily Beast) in 2013 after racist tweet. In the 2015 Canadian federal election, social media landed 24 candidates in hot water. 12 dropped from the election. Kim vs International Triathlon Union A Senior Manager of Communications was fired for posting inflammatory remarks about employers on Facebook. She sued, and won.
- 5. Other Numbers A report by Nexgate on Fortune 100 companies’ social media compliance found: ✖ Average of incidents 69 per firm ✖ 12 by employees ✖ 57 by commenters Best practice social media compliance controls are inconsistently enforced.
- 7. When CAN we take control?
- 8. Corporate Responsibility ✖ Office politics ✖ Privileged information ✖ Internal operations ✖ Privacy expectations ✖ Legal grounds
- 9. What CAN’T we control?
- 10. Human Rights & Hot Topics ✖ Lifestyles, religious, racial or sexual orientation ✖ Political affiliations -esp. during elections ✖ Provincial vs Federal Policy ✖ Some issues will always be worth speaking up for!
- 11. Other Risk Factors ✖ Politicians, celebrities & easy marks ✖ Not all have an social media voices are equal ✖ Social media is documented communication: it lasts FOREVER ✖ Union vs Non- Union
- 12. Strategy
- 13. Strategy: Policy
- 14. Strategy: Policy ✖ Why a policy can help: lay out your expectations, consequences of action ✖ Best practices: plain language please! ✖ Regular review
- 16. Strategy: Education ✖ Why & when to train ✖ What training can do that policy alone can’t
- 18. Well that got ugly fast…
- 19. Strategy: Emergency Plans ✖ Regular risk management ✖ Proactive plans for reaction ✖ Company Social Media Access Control ✖ Keep your own records
- 20. BAD IDEA ALERT ✖ What if an employee says something inflammatory about my business behind a private Facebook post? As an employer, can I ask employees for their social media logins? ✖ Short answer: NO! Whether or not privacy is protected by law or contract, fostering a workplace culture where privacy is valued and respected contributes to morale and mutual trust, and makes good business sense. – Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada
- 21. Risk Factor: Is social media really the problem?
- 22. Sometimes Social Media Isn’t To Blame ✖ Take a good look at your corporate culture ✖ Pay attention to online trends ✖ Social Media forces a new level of transparency: do your business actions match your business values?
- 24. Ouch I've Been Hit! Now What? ✖ You can’t control the conversation ✖ Look at the situation: what must I prepare to lose? ✖ Know when to apologize ✖ Accept: You might needs to work harder or change objectives ✖ Crash. Burn. Heal. Recover
- 25. Where Do I Go For Help? ✖ Lawyers & Law Firms Canadian Law List Canadian Legal Information Institute Provincial Barristers’ Societies ✖ Public relations firms Canadian Public Relations Society Canadian Council of Public Relations Firms ✖ Consultants – Social Media, Communications, Privacy & Risk Management
- 26. Other Useful References & Resources Books ✖Dezenhall, Eric (2014). Glass Jaw: A Manifesto for Defending Fragile Reputations in an Age of Instant Scandal. ✖Duchatschek, Burns, Hanke, et al. (2014) Defeating an Internet Boogeyman: Simple Secrets of Reputation & Crisis Management. Web ✖ The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms: ✖ Canada Occupational Health and Safety Regulations ✖ The State of Social Media Infrastructure (by Nexgate): Part I, Part II, Part III Articles ✖ How an online posting can cost you your job ✖ The Court Weighs In: Termination for Social Media Misconduct ✖ 5 Infamous Social Media PR Disasters and How to Avoid Them
- 27. Want To Learn More? Let’s Talk. bloom@victoriamcintosh @vmcntosh www.victoriamcintosh.com