Business Communication Report: Social Media in the Workplace Analysis

This report analyzes the use of communication technology, specifically social media, in the workplace for staff communication. It explores the advantages, such as improved information sharing and broader reach, and disadvantages, including security risks and potential for misuse. The report identifies key factors for successful implementation, such as defining objectives, considering employee input, and assessing technological suitability. Recommendations emphasize encouraging social media use to boost workplace productivity, ensuring security and safety. The conclusion underscores social media's power for collaboration, information sharing, and problem-solving while highlighting the importance of managing security aspects. The report references various sources to support its findings.

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Introduction
In recent times, the process in business is incomplete without communicating where it is
essential to share information among individuals. It is effective when there is an interaction
between management and employees for achieving goals in the company. Business
communication is processes within and outside the company as the purpose is to make
improvement in errors reduction and organisational practices (Leddy, 2015). This report is
based on analysing the use of communication technology along with its advantages and
disadvantages related to the topic of “using social media in the workplace to communicate
with staff”. The discussion covers the factors to consider for implementing along with
recommending the best way to use it.
Communication Technology
In business, communicating is important to connect and interact with individuals consisting
social purposes as well using technology. This includes digital means such as the Web or
mobile phones for proper functioning. Communication technology helps in business to
exchange information and ideas smoothly and efficiently (Martic , 2019). Further, use of
communication technology like social media for communicating in the workplace among
staff including various sites provides great opportunities in business. It helps in the area of
recruiting, public relations, organizational learning and collaboration, and internal and
external communications (SHRM, 2016).
Uses
In the workplace, communication technology is useful among the staff for communicating
through social media in terms of sharing information and ideas. Social media technologies
helped in creating value in the company by productivity improvisation for the reason of value
chain. It gives the power to managers for sharing knowledge and information within and
outside the companies covering the broad business purposes range (Miller-Merrell, 2013).
Using social media internally can help in communicate messages enabling the process of
improvement by providing easily, single findable template used for eliminating the staff’s
problem trying to locate difficult-to-find, different templates in case of various technology
innovation within the business (Taurasi, 2015). Also, communication technology in social
media is useful for the companies to improve organizational performance. It supports in

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inward facing collaboration and responds altogether to sales and marketing, customer
support, and innovation opportunities (Haddud, Dugger, & Gill, 2016). Further, the use of
social media makes individual engages in using technology for working. At work, use of
social media through technology involves communication along with distribution, hiring and
recruitment, personal development and research, engagement and employee recognition,
collaboration and social learning, monitoring and listening, and employment branding
(Mishra, Walker, & Mishra, 2014).
Advantages and Disadvantages
Most of the companies use technologies for using social media applications without any way
or approach that fits but there are its disadvantages as well along with its benefits where
social networking platforms can vary from platform features, types, industry, and the
company as well (Martindale, 2016).
Advantages
Social media helps in facilitating open communication enhancing to lead information
delivery and discovery. It permits staff to ask questions, discuss ideas, share links and post
news. Also, social media provides an opportunity in business to broaden contacts, and helps
in targeting broad audience by making it as an effective and useful recruitment tool. In
business, it helps in improving the client base and reputation with less use of advertising. Not
only useful in communication but promotes inclusion and diversity as well (Jeanetta, 2017).
Lastly, use of social media helps in implementing marketing campaigns, market research
expansion, directing individuals interested to specific websites, and delivers communications
in business. Communication technology enhances the speed while sending information and
making decisions, improves the communication in the company, increases the participation in
processes of the company, impacts the people’s way of interacting, makes the structures
better, supporting open discussion, eliminating stereotypical classifications, and providing a
voice where some individuals from the workforce are not able to speak up (Ramey, 2012).
Disadvantages
Social media is used as a tool that helps in business for individuals to interact and connect by
communicating in relation to sharing knowledge and information. But, there are some issues
creates as well based on legal liability and security for employers that might generate some
amount of risks. In the workplace, sometimes staff uses social media for its own personal use
or sometimes by the employer as an official tool. In companies, this can leads toward the

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possibility of fraud committed by hackers and attacks relation to virus and launching spam
(Catherine Lee, 2012). There is also a risk of individuals falling prey to online scams that
might look genuine to them while identifying theft or resulting in data compromising the
security of the company in the on-going business. Also, there is a possibility of negative
comments from employees with a potential outlet relating to the company. Lastly, the
possibility of legal consequences is present when workforce uses these sites for distributing
or viewing offensive, objectionable or illicit material (Adams-Mott, 2018). It is not safe with
a poor substitute for communicating face-to-face instead, difficult to train staff, and
expensive as well.
Implementing factors
In business, maximizing and sustaining the use of social media should apply the right
technologies for facilitating communications and sharing information internally and
externally with people. Moreover, technologies used as collaboration are valuable in the
workplace for improving teamwork and understanding effectively, lateral communication
development and building relationships (Sharp, 2016). Communication technology helps
individuals to exchange information on time and within small extracts. Though, issues
involved in relation to business are confidentiality, productivity, privacy, time management
and appropriate communication styles. The factors considered to implement communication
technology while using social media in the workplace for the staff to communicate are
determining objective of using social media, finding an internal converter, taking employees
consideration, checking the technology, and start listening at first (Araújo & Zilber, 2016).
Thus, engaging and exploring in social media activities is easy but it still requires proper
execution and planning to integrate it into the business for achieving outcomes company
needs to adopt. Though, there should be formalised organizational structure considering big
companies while adopting social media along with technology for communication. Other
factors consist of network externality and competitive pressures in the market where the
company focuses on the communication skill and ability of employees through using social
media (Cleary, 2019).
Recommendations
It is to recommend that in every organisation, there is a use of technology at the workplace by
staff for communicating. Moreover, individuals who are not able to speak up can easily covey
their issues through social media. Also, can share information and knowledge among each

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other, and also bring change in the workplace that is convenient and fast as well in terms of
working (Smithen, 2019). Also, it is essential to adopt it for encouraging the use of social
media for improving the productivity within the workplace with right execution to make staff
efficient and engaged in the work to make sure about the greater outcomes in the future.
Conclusion
To conclude, social media is a powerful tool for employees to communicate by collaborating
and sharing their ideas and information along with solving problems and interacting
altogether. It is essential to use communication technology for working effectively and
efficiently within the business but requires looking after the security and safety dimensions
while using it.

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References
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Araújo, J., & Zilber, S. (2016). What Factors Lead Companies to Adopt Social Media in their
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