Tasmanians left vulnerable at work

Tasmania’s workforce is using social media during work hours more than ever, but a lack of
guidelines and training surrounding its use is leaving employees and employers vulnerable,
according to new research released by Font Public Relations.

The Font Public Relations Social Media Index 2012, which surveyed 1000 people around the
State, showed that while 44 per cent of employed respondents were permitted to access social
media at work, only 34 per cent were aware of a social media policy in their workplace.

This problem was compounded by the number of overall respondents using social media rising
from 58 per cent in 2011 to 61 per cent in 2012.

Font Public Relations Managing Director Becher Townshend said it was vital that organisations
had a formal social media policy in place to ensure workers knew what was and wasn’t
appropriate at work.

“Our research showed that 26 per cent of people now use social media for work purposes, an
increase of 9 per cent from last year’s figure,” Mr Townshend said.

“This shows that while organisations are willing to delegate the task of maintaining social
media profiles to their employees, a lack of formal policies guiding this use is leaving a gaping
hole in the entire process.

“Employees need to be given clear instructions on how to use social media for the benefit of
their organisations, as well as how to conduct themselves in a professional manner when
using their own personal pages during work time.”

Mr Townshend said the Index was commissioned following the success of Font’s inaugural
Social Media Index, released in 2011.

“It’s an important area for organisations to consider, given the rapid growth in mobile
technology and our increasing dependence on technology to communicate,” Mr Townshend
said.

“Last year’s research gave us the foundation on which to build our own social media policy and
provide strategic advice to other organisations on how to manage their own.

“This year’s results have highlighted that although more businesses are now aware of the
potential of social media, there is still work to be done to harness this potential and manage it
strategically.”
Font Public Relations Managing Director Becher Townshend