Q: Last week you advised supervisors and managers not to send Facebook friend requests to their subordinates so as not to put employees in an awkward situation.
Well, how about the reverse? As a manager, how should I respond to the frequent friend requests I get from employees?
A: I’m guessing that if you’re getting these requests from your employees, your workforce is probably mostly under age 35. over 70% of this age group -a recent survey found- saw nothing wrong with friending a supervisor. But, just because they are initiating the request does it mean it’s a good idea for you to go ahead and accept? Not necessarily. Before you decide whether or not you’re going to play ball let’s look at the implications.
On the one hand, it’s perfectly all right for you to decide not to accept the request. You could explain, “Thank you, but it’s not my policy to friend subordinates (or people from work or whatever), however I would love to connect on LinkedIn.” As you reject requests, you must to be consistent. Do not play favorites by friending some and not others, otherwise discord and conflict will follow. And, since you won’t be reachable via Facebook it’s important that you stay accessible and approachable at the office. You wouldn’t want to be seen as a snob.
Alternatively, you could decide yes, your going to engage with your employees through social media, either because you truly want to or because you think it’s expected –which depending on the age of your workforce– it very well could be.
If you go this route, go into it with eyes wide open. You will have to be a model of good social media behavior and practices. More importantly you should plan for what you’ll do when the inevitable happens and one of your employees does something you find objectionable. It could be posting an inappropriate picture, complaining about their job, or co-workers or sounding off about some politically incorrect (or worse) topic.
Remember, if you decide to play ball you ARE exposing yourself to information that would normally not reach you at the office. Therefore, take that into account and be prepared.
© Copyright Eva Del Rio
