Social Media Basic Policies for Companies

Basic Policies

• HR fairness and capacity to learn about employees and potential hires.
• Legal obligations and issues (Who, What and Why?)
• IT security requirements
• Address confidentiality requirements, address defamation, appropriate conduct and use of your organization's technology
• Build public relations contingencies and avoid a BP nightmare
• When you speak into a telephone there is no reason to believe you are not being recorded. (Likewise for social media, email and instant messaging).
• Policies should enforce inappropriate behavior as actionable (especially commenting about other employees).
• Policies have to be thoroughly communicated throughout the organization in order for them to be enforced.

 All organizations should have and communicate to their employees what is considered to be appropriate behaviors. This especially concerns trade secrets, stakeholder information and internal affairs. Lack of an clear and "actionable" policy allows for substantial risk to the organization and its mission.