With a mission to inform, empower, celebrate and advocate for British Columbia's current and aspiring business leaders, BCBusiness go behind the headlines and bring readers face to face with the key issues and people driving business in B.C.
Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/443582
february 2015 BCBusiness 27 SabrINa SMeLKO Like This. Don't Follow There. D - I - Y M a n a g e m e n t advice from two workplace gurus—Taryn Mackie, a bull Housser partner specializing in labour and employment, and Chris Gouglas, senior corporate counsel at best buy Canada – on the Dos and Don'ts of using social media in the office by Felicity Stone On new colour scheme matching icons palette On existing provided colour scheme On new colour scheme matching icons palette On existing provided colour scheme Be caUtioUs UsinG social media in hirinG There are two considerations in conducting a social media background check, says Taryn Mackie: human rights and privacy. A prospective employee's social media page may include information that is inaccurate, protected under the human rights code or not relevant to making a hiring decision. First, employers should read "Guidelines for Social Media Back- ground Checks" provided online by the Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner for British Columbia. rememBer that the internet never forGets Taryn Mackie recommends reminding employees to be careful what they post online. Social media is neither secure nor private, and once posted, informa- tion can go viral with no way of remov- ing all traces of it from the Internet. Employees should also be sure not to imply that they are representing their employer without first getting consent. speak with a stronG, aUthoritative voice In the context of crisis management, when there is a lot of buzz and con- flicting messaging, people are looking for an authoritative voice, says Chris Gouglas. Make clear who is allowed to speak on what topic in social media. Multiple parties responding with differ- ent messages weakens the message and its delivery. If you can provide a con- sistent message, then you can break through that clutter and have a real advantage in landing your message. clarify employees' online responsiBilities Company policies, including confiden- tiality and harassment, apply to social media activities whether or not they are on company time and company computers, smartphones or other devices, says Taryn Mackie. Employ- ees may be held accountable by their employer or third parties if the activi- ties are illegal, cause damage or are in breach of any duties, which could involve being terminated and facing criminal or civil liability. estaBlish GUidelines for online forUms The online community is a critical forum for us to communicate with customers and allow them to exchange ideas and their love of technology, says Chris Gouglas. Clear guidelines are key to setting up expectations of how you expect community members to interact with each other. Community sentiment and behaviour should then mature over time, resulting in the com- munity self-policing and supporting each other without intervention from the brand. 1 2 3 4 5 palette icons palette On new colour scheme matching icons palette On existing provided colour scheme