Fed up with corruption, employees and customers are demanding that organizations become more transparent. When glancing through today's business section headlines, you can't help but get the impression that "Corporate America" is built upon the foundations of closed doors, hierarchical structures, and ultimately degeneration. As a business major with a penchant for new age thinking, it's sometimes difficult to justify my idealistic belief that corporations can serve the needs of society in an ethical and positive way.
Why do I believe in this seemingly hopeless ideal? Well it's called the internet. More specifically social media. Twenty years ago if company X decided to treat it's employees poorly, the chances of anyone actually finding out were pretty rare. It would take a serious lawsuit of sorts before the company started to get a bad reputation, and even then you'd have to rely on heavy media coverage, which again would be rare. Today however, social media has exponentially increased the power of word-of-mouth communication. I don't feel the need to go into too much detail on what this means, because we've already seen this phenomenon take place with online reviews of hotels, restaurants, and businesses. What is happening right now though, is that employees and prospective job candidates are looking up your company on social media sites. Employees are telling their friends and family what they love or don't really like about working for you. Regardless of your awareness or approval, employees are sharing their stories. Now that fact in and of itself is nothing new - people have always complained or raved about how much they love or hate their job. The difference with social media is that 1. the potential for the stories of love or hate to spread has grown exponentially, and 2. you actually have more influence over what is said about your company than you might think.
Transparency in HR means that you hold pride for the way you've taken care of your employees. You have dedicated your profession to serving the needs of your employees, while simultaneously meeting the organization's goals. These two purposes are at the heart of the HR function, and if you've done this, you should be proud. Yes, there may be a stray manager here or there that wouldn't be the best representation of your company. That is unavoidable. What is avoidable is letting that stray manager become the face of your employees. You can do this by taking control of your social media. Join the conversations your employees are having by making their stories fun and accessible. Look at Zappos Facebook page where they offer hilarious videos for their employees and customers to share. Not only will your employees be proud to share their work with friends and family, but other people will view employment at your company in a very positive light.
Regardless of how bureaucratic, or antiquated your company may be, this is the future of corporations and thus HR: open, transparent, and engaging employment practices. Social media, and the all-encompassing web 2.0 world serves as a welcome forum to engage in conversations and reveal a "day in the life" of your employees. Let's make it a good one!
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