Workplace worries: blogging, IMing, iPods and camera phones--oh my!(SELECTED TOPIC)

There is no doubt that new technological means of communicating and entertaining are invading the workplace. The question thus arises as to any steps that should be taken by employers to grapple with and potentially control blogging, instant messaging and the use of iPods and camera phones by employees.

Blogging

Blogs are tantamount to personalized Internet diaries. It has been estimated that there were more than 10 million blogs created within the United States by the end of 2005, with more than eight million U.S. adults having created blogs. Recent estimates conclude that at least 20,000 blogs are created daily. Plainly, this is an emerging and exponentially growing form of communication.

So, what are employers to do with respect to blogs created by their employees? Employers legitimately might be worried about disadvantages related to blogs. For example, they could be concerned that blogging can distract employees and sap their productivity.

They also could be disturbed by the potential for inappropriate content contained on blogs that could harass other employees, impugn the reputation of their companies, defame others and could improperly disclose confidential company information or trade secrets.

On the other hand, employers should be mindful that in certain settings employee blogs could be beneficial. Blogging can serve as an important means of communicating between company partners, customers and employees. Blogs can be the spark for innovation and development.

Thus, many companies may not want to outright ban blogging by employees (which could also be a PR nightmare). Instead, they would be smart to incorporate blogging activities into their (hopefully) existing computer and Internet policies.