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March 19, 2012 By Matt Williams
Social media and networking websites have spanned the globe, but these free-to-use online services continue to be greeted with skepticism within some government workplaces.
Twenty-seven percent of government IT professionals working in state or local government aren’t allowed to access social media and networking websites such as Twitter and Facebook at work, while 20 percent said these online sites are of limited usefulness in the workplace. Another 12 percent said they are of no value at all.
The findings came from a new Government Technology survey based on responses from 100 members of the GovTech Exchange, an online community of senior-level IT professionals from state and local government.
On the whole, according to the data below, adoption and enthusiasm for websites like Facebook and Twitter appears to be vigorous.
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http://www.govtech.com/policy-management/Social-Media-Skeptics-Government.html
Doom and Gloom? Is not the flip side that 60% see usefulness for general workforce access to Social Media? Honestly from an inside view of general access much personal times wasted and productivity lost. But in the same sense your work force gains insight to the uses and benefits of such communucation. Just sayin... Stephen
Why give the general employee access to social media? We all know they already access social media sites via their personal smartphone while at work. I can see giving access to those who may be responsible for your image online, but not the general population.
The security vulnerability through social engineering is huge, just with people using in their personal lives, could be monstrous if allowed via work time too. Since several social media applications started out as open source, I always thought there should be an intrAnet application of the technology for within the State or Agency. We have almost 10K employees in just our department and the ability to share news and knowledge, inspire and manage change, and lead in 360 degrees could be outstanding. Each agency has a social ecology, and good leadership could use social media to help that ecology thrive. I think I just answered my own question, the flipside could be pretty abismal.
Social media could be an excellent way for government to communicate with its citizens. However, due to Oregon Public Records laws, our legal counsel has advised us to stay away from social media. Once you post something there, you don't control it anymore. You have no say on records retention schedules, nor what anyone else posts in relation to your postings. Without a change in statute, it makes it difficult to stay on compliance with the law, and utilize social media at the same time. One day, Oregon law will catch up with technology, and we will be free to utilize this method of communication. We are required by law to keep ALL communications for certain periods of time (usually 3 years). The only way we could use social media is to post things that are retained elsewhere, and not allow any replies, questions, or citizen postings to our pages. That would defeat the purpose, it seems to me. Take care and have a great day!
And yet you all took time out of your "busy" schedules to respond to this post....another form of social media....
Hello everyone! Social media done right will differentiate companies and government agencies and attract the quality talent who 'get' the power of social media. Many times perception is worse than reality. It's all about an educated workforce through basic training of the big four--LinkedIn, Blogs, Twitter and Facebook (pages, which aren't personal profiles but an organization's profile). Smart CEO's and Secretaries recognize that a community team of the CEO/Secretary, HR and community manager help establish their 'brand' online and radiate the policy out to their own people. Training internally empowers people to tweet and post positive news. People need to be given a bit more credit here. If someone wants to shoot themselves in the foot by not following social media policy then that's the cost of their job and good luck finding another when a would be employer finds out why he/she was fired. The truth of the matter is that it's about enhancing an organization or government agency/department's mission and allowing the people to carry that water for you (the CEO/Secretary). It's NOT about using social media for their own purposes while at work rather for the greater good of the place they choose to work presumably due to the mission!
I think this is largely due to the fact that most I.T. or other purely administrative departments have little feel for the marketing, communications and public relations functions of social media. Speaking for the field of parks and recreation, more and more agencies are embracing the world of social media because it's where our customers are, and if you don't see the world through an entrepreneurial business lens as we tend to do, it's easy for some to be underestimate and be dismissive of the value and power of social media.
"The only way we could use social media is to...not allow any replies, questions, or citizen postings to our pages." You can archive those as well, just as you do with emails. Using a backup or archiving service is all that is needed. Many things that need archiving are not generated on state technology, for example, inbound emails: you simply archive them. "...it makes it difficult to stay on compliance with the law..." it's not THAT difficult; just use an archiving service.