Social Networking: Time Waster or the Next Big Thing in Collaboration?

Facebook, the social networking application made popular on college campuses, is increasingly being adopted by businesspeople. College kids use it to organize parties, make friends, share photos, and pursue relationships - but what's any of that got to do with the workplace? How the social networking model is applied to business will determine whether it becomes the next office collaboration tool or the latest Web app to get blocked at the firewall.

Hinting at the potential of social networking at work, thousands of employees of Shell Oil, Procter & Gamble, and General Electric have Facebook accounts. A Facebook network of Citigroup employees - only those with Citigroup e-mail accounts can join - has 1,870 users. Procter & Gamble employees use Facebook to keep interns in touch and share information with co-workers attending company events.

Further evidence of Facebook's rise among the business card crowd: People over 24 are its fastest-growing demographic.

Still, there are reasons for business and technology managers to be wary of Facebook, as well as MySpace, LinkedIn, and other social networking apps. They can sap employee productivity or, worse, be a source of governance violations or breaches of company protocol. A poll by Sophos found that 66% of workers think their colleagues share too much information on Facebook. Forrester Research recently found that 14% of companies have disciplined employees and 5% fired them for offenses related to social networking. No wonder half of companies - Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, UBS, and Lehman Brothers among them, according to Financial News - restrict access to Facebook.

The city of Toronto blocked access to social networking sites four months ago. "There's potential for staff to spend an inordinate amount of time on sites like this," explains a spokesman for the city. "Is it necessary for work?" Certainly not if you consider that some of the most popular apps on Facebook include fortunetelling and comparing yourself to a celebrity. "A girl in my office and I send each other nonsense and Dane Cook quotes from 10 feet apart," admits one Facebook user.

Teens and undergrads started the social networking trend; now business professionals and IT pros are coming up to speed. The pitfalls are obvious and mostly avoidable, while the benefits remain largely unexplored by most companies. Curious to know more? Knowledgeable peers are only a few clicks away.

Associated Link: Full article: Social Networking: A Time Waster Or The Next Big Thing In Collaboration?

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