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Attention all social media savvy executives: The people who work for you might not want to accept your call for online friendship.
A new survey from Office Team, a Menlo Park, Calif.-based staffing service firm, reveals that unsociable nugget. The survey states that nearly seven out of 10 senior managers who responded, 68%, are “uncomfortable being (Facebook) friended by their bosses.” Nearly two-thirds, 62%, are also uncomfortable being friended by employees they supervise. That rate of discomfort is up from 47% and 48%, respectively, over a similar survey conducted in 2009.
The survey is based on telephone interviews with more than 1,000 senior managers at companies with 20 or more employees. “People have different comfort levels when it comes to social media, so it's best not to blanket colleagues with friend requests,” OfficeTeam Executive Director Robert Hosking says in a statement. “Along with being selective about who you ask to connect with online, you should always post prudently. You don't want to share information that could reflect poorly on you.”
Here are some OfficeTeam tips on how a senior manager can approach Facebook at work:
• Let the boss or a more senior employee “make the first move. Proactively sending a friend request could create an awkward situation.”
• See who colleagues have on their networks. Use that to guide who you reach out to with a friendship request;
• If you are in doubt, ask that person if he or she is interested in social media connection before you send the invite;
• Don't succumb to peer pressure. “You aren't obligated to share social media updates with everyone in the office. If you're concerned about slighting people by turning down invites, you can accept friend requests but use privacy settings and lists to control who can view certain content.”
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