A Little Too Public?

As with any type of social media, content flows in social networks are difficult to control.

Embarrassing disclosures can emerge from public systems or insecure internal networks.

Employees embracing a culture of digital sharing may err and release confidential or

proprietary information. Networks could serve as a focal point for the disgruntled (imagine

the activity on a corporate social network after a painful layoff). Publicly declared

affiliations, political or religious views, excessive contact, declined participation, and other

factors might lead to awkward or strained employee relationships. Users may not want to

add a coworker as a friend on a public network if it means they’ll expose their activities,

lives, persona, photos, sense of humor, and friends as they exist outside of work. And many

firms fear wasted time as employees surf the musings and photos of their peers.

All are advised to be cautious in their social media sharing. Employers are trawling the

Internet, mining Facebook, and scouring YouTube for any tip-off that a would-be hire

should be passed over. A word to the wise: those Facebook party pics, YouTube videos of

open mic performances, or blog postings from a particularly militant period might not age

well and may haunt you forever in a Google search. Think twice before clicking the upload

button! As Socialnomics author Erik Qualman puts it, “What happens in Vegas stays on

YouTube (and Flickr, Twitter, Facebook…).”