#Nextchat: The Super Social Edition—Is That Legal?

Social media is no longer cutting edge. It’s now a universal form of communication that’s woven into every aspect of our personal and professional lives.

Organizations use social media for everything from internal communication to sales and marketing, and are now concerned with creating sound strategies and policies to ensure competitiveness and prevent lawsuits.

Lawyers caution organizations about the risks of using social media in the workplace, and these warnings have caused many human resources professionals to avoid social media altogether. However, when used respectfully and with a thoughtful plan, social media’s benefits for HR far outweigh the risks. 

This is particularly true when it comes to using social media for talent management. Social media can help positively communicate the employer brand and corporate culture while engaging a diverse pool of active and passive candidates. It can also play a legitimate role in screening decisions depending on when the screening is done and who does it.

The key to social media survival in the workplace also depends on a clear and well-crafted social media policy. Employees’ use of social media in and outside of the workplace can damage an organization’s reputation–and with just one tweet. This is why social media training is important, but even more important is a policy that will protect your workers and your organization from legal woes.

Whether your organization has been using social media for years or is just getting started, it’s important to know how the latest laws, regulations and rulings will affect your policies going forward.   

Please join @WeKnowNext at 3 p.m. ET on May 7 for a super social #Nextchat with special guests, social media legal experts Eric Meyer (@Eric_B_Meyer) and Jonathan Segal (@Jonathan_HR_Law).  

We’ll chat about how organizations can use social media to accomplish goals while protecting against lawsuits.

Q1. What are the pros and cons of friending, “liking” and tweeting in the workplace?

Q2. How can social media be legally used for screening and background checks? What are the DOs and DON’Ts?

Q3. What are the DOs and DON’Ts for using social media for marketing and branding?  

Q4. What are the most important considerations when using social media for recruiting and hiring?

Q5. What are the most important considerations when crafting a social media policy?

Q6. What are the blind spots with social media use that can expose an organization to legal risk?

Q7. What organizational functions are most vulnerable to lawsuits due to social media use? 

Q8. What are the best resources to keep you up-to-date on changes in social media law and trends?

What’s a Twitter chat?

See Eric Meyer and Jonathan Segal speak at the 2014 SHRM Annual Conference, June 23-25 in Orlando, Florida.