Strategies for Managing Social Networking & Personal Web Use in the Workplace

Today’s Internet user is increasingly more connected and technology savvy. Social media usage in the workplace has become more prevalent. While not blatantly dangerous or offensive (such as hacking or pornographic sites), this can be a substantial problem for businesses when it is unmanaged. Productivity can be affected by Internet distractions, malware is an ever increasing threat, privacy and confidentiality can easily be compromised, data leakage readily occurs and unchecked bandwidth use can reduce the performance applications and possibly run up large unbudgeted expenses.

This white paper will explore not just the issues resulting from unmanaged personal Internet use, but also the cases for enabling social networking and other forms of personal Web use in the workplace.

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To Ban or Not To Ban

• 54% of US companies block access to social networking sites completely.
• Facebook in the workplace has been responsible for a 1.5% drop in productivity in workplaces that allow full access.
• Some employees use Facebook for 2 hours a day.

The Risks of Unmanaged Personal Web Use in the Workplace

• Reduced Productivity - 233 million hours are lost every month as a result of employees “wasting time” on social networking
• Bandwidth Consumption - YouTube consumes between 75 and 90% of bandwidth in a typical organization
• Exposure to Malware & Spam - likely to result in data theft and compromised security

The Business Case for Enabling Social Networking Access

• Connectivity & Communications – a means of connecting and communicating with customers, staff, suppliers, venture capitalists
• Potential Increases in Productivity - knowledge of solutions to common problems, access to a group of peers with ideas on dealing with work-related issues, & ability to benchmark processes with colleagues within a forum
• Marketing Advantages & Branding Opportunities - social networking presence is a key factor for an online marketing strategy

Strategies for Managing Personal Web Use in the Workplace

Read our 4 step approach that encompasses educating users, enforcing policy consistently through Web filtering technologies, evaluating your needs and the effectiveness of enforcement technologies through reporting, and evolving your policies as your needs change.