Social Media Access by Employees in the Workplace - Essay Sample

Introduction

Despite organizations being able to utilize social media to grow their businesses and interact with their employees, several adverse effects arise from employees using social media in the workplace. The use of social media is linked to time wastage by employees and the exposure of information that may be indecent or confidential to the public thereby affecting the reputation of a company. Additionally, specific social media sites may pose a security threat to a company by introducing malware into the electronic system of the company in cases where employees utilize the company's systems to access the internet. This paper aims to evaluate the efficiency of possible solutions in managing the use of social media in the workplace by employees, which include the provision of restricted access to social media, education of staff members on the security issues that may arise from improper this action and the use of administrators to monitor all online activities by the employees to determine the most effective method that employers can implement to avoid the adverse effects that result from this activity.

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One of the solutions that organizations can utilize is the monitoring of employees' online activities (Cilliers, 2013). This solution entails having access to various social media accounts of employees, and requires that they provide their passwords and usernames for the process to take place. In certain organizations, the company provides employees with selected passwords for easy monitoring of their online activities. Monitoring is effective in determining instances when employees' use of social media has failed to follow the set policies of the company. The administration may provide proof on how the employee has abused the company trust, giving a basis for disciplinary action or eventual dismissal (Cillier, 2013). However, this method may appear to be an abuse of privacy for the employees and may inhibit their freedom of expression on social platforms. Additionally, some employees may cite the violation of privacy as a reason to sue the company. In certain extreme cases, employees may choose not to work for the company due to the restrictions placed on the use of social media (Cilliers, 2013). This method thus fails to effectively provide a solution, since it poses the problem of employee retention.

The other solution that employers may implement is the provision of training and education regarding the efficient use of social media to avoid posing security issues to the company (Cilliers, 2013). This solution entails teaching employees to avoid clicking on random links on social platforms that may lead to the introduction of viruses and other malware into the company's electronic system. Additionally, this method entails addressing the issue of identity fraud that may arise from poor use of social media sites by providing personal information of the user or the company. This method is useful in mitigating specific issues such as identity fraud which may cost the employees their reputation and jobs, and which may have adverse effects on the company. However, the disadvantage of this method is in its inability to be effective, since employees may fail to heed the training and thus engage in the prohibited activities, resulting in the issues explained above. It is therefore not very useful in managing the use of social media by employees within a company.

However, Cilliers (2013) suggests the restriction of access to various sites within the electronic systems of a company to limit the online activities of employees as being the most effective. A company may block the access of individual websites and social media platforms during work hours, and only allow their access before and after work hours, and during lunch breaks. It also includes the inclusion of web filtering software to ensure that system administrators introduce time-based access into the system to time access to these sites (Cilliers, 2013). Restriction of access in company computers entails selecting a particular web browser for the company which the employees use as the default browsers, then identifying the specific websites that the employer wishes to prohibit from access ten blocks them within the browser (Wood, 2013). This action disables their access using company electronic systems and ensures that the employees only have access to a limited number of websites. The restriction of sites is effective in dealing with all the problems that arise as a result of the use of social media by employees during working hours.

According to a report by Infosec (2013) on general security, several advantages arise from the restriction of website access for employees during working hours. Firstly, this method is efficient in reducing the time that employees waste on social media during work hours. According to a survey by the Proskauer International Labor and Employment Group in 2011, at least forty percent of businesses have to discipline their employees for misusing social media sites during office hours (Infosec, 2013). A different survey showed that most employees tend to use Facebook while at work, which may hinder them from completing specific tasks while at work. By preventing the access of these sites, employers can ensure that employees utilize their time at work. Another advantage is in the prevention of the attack of a company's electronic system by malware. According to a survey by Barracuda Networks, at least 10 percent of circulating tweets and 17 percent of Facebook posts contain malicious codes which may infect a company's electronic system (Infosec, 2013). As a result, restriction from access to such websites helps to reduce the chances of a virus affecting company data and resulting in huge losses. As a result, this solution helps mitigate losses for an organization in various capacities.

While restriction may be a practical solution, it has its disadvantages as a mitigation strategy. This strategy negatively affects employee morale and may pose an issue for companies when sourcing for new employees (Infosec, 2013). However, this issue can be refuted by the argument that companies can boost the morale of their employees using alternative methods such as pay increases and promotions. Also, communicating the benefits of the restriction in protecting the employees and the company should be enough morale to encourage the staff members to concentrate on more vital matters such as the completion of their tasks. These refutations thus disregard the cons as a reason to ignore this method in solving the problem of employee access to social media sites in the workplace.

To further establish the effectiveness of this strategy, it is essential to compare it to the other solutions. Whereas monitoring employees is time-consuming and an infringement on their right to privacy, restriction ensures that the company is within limits of the right to privacy and gives it the power to access any activity on the electronic system without disregarding this right. Besides, restriction provides additional backup to the training of employees on the proper use of social media by preventing the access of websites that may pose a threat to the company. This method thus caters for the inadequacies that the other techniques present and provides additional security benefits to a company.

Conclusion

In conclusion, companies should focus on limiting the use of social media in the workplace by employees owing to the dangers it poses to the individual and company. Despite there being several methods to mitigate this issue, the most effective way is in restricting the access of social media sites to minimize any dangers that arise from its use. This solution will thus ensure that a company can save on resources such as time and money, and therefore focus on maximizing its profits while retaining its employees.

References

Cilliers, F.Q. (2013). The Role and Effect of Social Media in the Workplace. Journal of North Kentucky Law Review, 40(3).

Infosec. (2013). Restricting Social Media at Work. Retrieved from https://resources.infosecinstitute.com/restricting-social-media-at-work/#gref

Wood, H. T. (N.d.). How to block Websites from Employees. Chron. Retrieved from https://smallbusiness.chron.com/block-websites-employees-12326.htmls