7.15Employee Bad News: No Social Media at Work

Your manager at MarketingMind, a successful midsized public relations agency, is concerned that the youngest employees may be oversharing on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other popular social media platforms. Two supervisors have complained that they spotted inappropriate photos on Facebook posted by a small group of millennials on the company payroll. This group of twentysomethings is close-knit. Its members maintain friendships outside the office and in cyberspace. They are smart and plugged in, but they seem to have trouble recognizing boundaries of age and authority. They party every weekend, which is code for a lot of drinking, marijuana use, and even salacious escapadesall of which the young workers generously document with smartphone cameras on the spot and occasionally in real time. Sometimes they share snarky comments about their workplace, such as "Rough day at work" or "Talked to the most idiotic client ever!" On top of that, the young people think nothing of friending their colleagues and supervisors. Their friends rank in the hundreds; some in the group have exceeded 1,000 friends on Facebook and Instagram.

MarketingMind has embraced cutting-edge technology because the management believes that information sharing and collaboration tools can lead to networking opportunities and, if used correctly, to increased productivity. The company maintains a permissive stance toward Internet use, but concern is growing that the young people are headed for trouble. The abuses continue despite the company's comprehensive Internet and social media use policy, which was widely disseminated. Probably the biggest risk MarketingMind fears is the leaking of confidential information on social networking sites. The managers also complain that the millennials spend too much time on social media during office hours. Your boss is becoming impatient. After several meetings, the management decides to disallow social media use during work hours and to caution all employees against dangerous breaches of company policy and social media netiquette.

Your Task.Draft an e-mail for the signature of your boss, Emma P. Sharpe, Director, Human Resources. Your message should remind all employees about the existing social networking policy and tactfully yet clearly announce the end of social media use at the office. The prohibition is effective immediately. Your message should also warn about the pitfalls of oversharing online.