Your social media policy, (you have one, right?) likely says something about confidentiality, not accessing social media during working hours, and not posting derogatory or embarrassing comments about you as an employer. Okay, but…. Do working hours include breaks or lunch hours? What about the employee who says she has a right to free speech? If my sales person is connected through Facebook or Linked In with our customers and quits, how do those connections impact the non-compete agreement? Even if I can answer all of these questions, how — with increasingly effective smartphone apps, telecommuting and 24-hours access – do I, as an employer, enforce these laws?

My answer may surprise you – as an HR professional, I recommend you embrace social media and enter into an open and evolving dialogue with your employees that focuses on the following issues.

Defining boundaries specific to your organization and even to positions within the organization. There is no “one-size-fits-all” policy for social media in the workplace. Do you have client privacy issues? Are you an executive with the firm or an entry-level employee? Is there already a fraternization policy in place or are there other ethical restrictions (e.g. teachers may not contact, students, families of students or former students whom they have taught in the last 5 years). Consider focus groups to involve employees in identifying concerns unique to your company and to solicit ideas on how to monitor and enforce policies.

Encouraging positive uses of social media. Can you create a closed Facebook group for your employees to post suggestions, comments or best practices on particular issues? Can employees link to or follow corporate social media pages for your company? Do you have a corporate blog to which staff can submit approved posts?

Being specific in your policies surrounding use. Is it okay to check social media during working time? If so, how often or for how long? If not, how is “working time” defined and does it include breaks? Are there “personal technology free” zones (e.g. meetings, client visits, etc.) where cell phones, laptops and tablets must be put away? Have you included social media posts in your harassment and discrimination policy?

Revising often. The first decision regarding social media and termination was released less than 3 years ago by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in September of 2012, and, due to a US Supreme Court ruling in 2014, many of the decisions made by the NLRB during that time frame may be under review.^2,3 The short answer is: There is no short answer. Be prepared to be flexible and act quickly as social media outlets change and laws are interpreted over the next several years.

Getting professional help. If no one on your staff is a social media subject matter expert, find one. Create a small team to attend trainings or speak with a knowledgeable attorney or other specialist. Talk about what you are trying to accomplish with your policy and procedures – whether it is productivity, confidentiality, legal protection or something else.

The bottom line: Be honest about your concerns, be open to ideas and get your staff involved in solutions. Managing social media, by definition, cannot be a one-person show. Oh, and feel free to ‘friend’ me on Facebook!

¹ Source: http://www.statista.com/statistics/264810/number-of-monthly-active-facebook-users-worldwide/

² Source: http://www.natlawreview.com/article/nlrb-s-first-facebook-firing-decision-it-has-little-to-do-firings-facebook-posts-abo

³ Source: http://maximizesocialbusiness.com/us-supreme-court-case-impacts-social-media-employment-law-14559/

Some research organizations put employee disengagement at up to 70%!¹ While that number is often debated, three things are true. One, even if the correct number is only half the stated statistic, it means that about four out of every ten of your team members is not engaged in their job or your business. Two, the problem of a disengaged worker is at least 50% a leadership problem; and, three, disengagement is expensive.

At one extreme, workplace shootings are often perpetrated by people who have become not only disengaged but completely disenfranchised and are seeking meaning or release through violent or criminal means. Less obviously, recent studies have quantified the number for small businesses as over $2,000 per year per disengaged employee.²

Most people agree that employee engagement reduces turnover and absenteeism and increases creativity, problem-solving and discretionary effort. Did you know, however, that increased employee engagement can positively impact employee mental health… which can positively impact subsequent engagement… and so on?³

The first step to improving engagement is to take a look at company culture. Every company has a culture – but is it deliberate and is it the one you, as a leader, intend? Regardless of what your vision and mission statements say, consider these questions:

1. Where do you have the biggest problems with motivation and discipline? Does it require rules and write ups to get people to do the right thing?

2. When is the last time you did an anonymous survey to ask employees their opinions about the most important things in the company?

3. How often does your management team talk about what kind of culture is needed in your industry and organization to get the operational results you need? And how often do you take deliberate steps to shape your culture?

4. If someone was behaving in an unusual or negative way, how would the people in your company respond? Would anyone notice?

Once you have the answers (or at least a start) to these questions, it’s time to create an action plan to shape the culture you need. In my practice, we created the FEELTM (Five Essentials of Exceptional Leaders) approach to leadership concerns, and the first essential is to “create a vision” of the culture you want to have. What does it look like? How do people behave? Where does productive work happen? And, most importantly, how will I know that we have attained that culture?

Getting the answers to these questions early in 2016 – and then acting on them – just might get you to stop signing big checks for apathy and cashing ones for engagement instead.

The new year is a natural time to take stock of the current situation and create a plan to move things forward. I find the compensation budget goes a lot further in satisfying employees with a robust company culture on the side.

¹ Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/joefolkman/2014/03/06/seventy-percent-of-workers-not-engaged-what-about-the-managers/

² Source: https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/how-much-disengaged-employees-really-cost-you/

³ Source: http://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/article-details/employee-engagement-closely-tied-to-health-and-wellbeing