A pertinent question was asked by a member of the LinkedIn community. Should companies police employee use of LinkedIn?
The question strikes at the heart of how many companies are still struggling to understand social media and its impact inside and outside the organisation.
There are a few considerations.
1. Is social media an effective way to engage customers and employees?
2. Are companies better off regulating or educating their employees about the use of social media?
In my opinion, regulating the use of social media is not only futile, it's counter-productive. If your company has disengaged employees or unhappy customers there are probably wider issues to worry about than whether they are venting their frustration on LinkedIn or Twitter.
Social media is an effective way to conduct conversations with your companies constituents in a context meaningful to them. Who knows, it might actually help achieve some business objectives along the way.
