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Telstra Lays Down Law On Social Media
Kerrieanne writes to tell us that Australian telecommunications giant Telstra has become the first major player down under to lay down the law with respect to social media. Still recovering from the shakeup surrounding a Telstra worker using the name of the communications minister on Twitter, they have released a six-page set of guidelines on the use of Facebook, Twitter, and other similar websites for both company and personal use. "Under the guidelines, which are backed up with the threat of disciplinary action, employees using sites on official Telstra business should disclose who they are, ensure they do not give away confidential information and treat other users with respect. They are required to complete an accreditation process and undergo training to update their 'knowledge on emerging social trends and evolving best practice in social media.'"
In all seriousness, can anybody think of a less suitable venue for obtaining "knowledge on emerging social trends and evolving best practice in social media"? The corporate training department of one of the more regressive ISPs in the "free" world? It'd be like taking a course on "Anarcho-syndicalism in theory and practice" from Pat Robertson.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
http://twitter.com/stephenconroy http://departmentofinternets.com/ fake stephen conroy rocks!
What I do off time is no one's business.
Fuck 'em.
Problem is Telstra tries to "lay down the law" when it comes to personal use on your own time at home!
I know it's a bit much to ask you to RTFA, but please, can you at least read the summary? Emphasis mine:
"Under the guidelines, which are backed up with the threat of disciplinary action, employees using sites on official Telstra business should disclose who they are, ensure they do not give away confidential information and treat other users with respect.
There's this bit:
If the employee refers to Telstra, they are expected to identify themselves as an employee of the company and ensure they do not imply they are authorised to speak on Telstra's behalf.
...which I'm reasonably sure was intended to apply mostly in cases where an employee refers to Telstra AND in doing so mentions they're employed by Telsra. It's pretty standard/common for corporations to require that- and I know a couple of friends who do it anyway just to cover their asses. Sucks, but...even if you're 100% in the clear, all it takes is one complete idiot who THINKS you're somehow speaking on behalf of the company, and you're in the unemployment line.
Honestly, this is more enlightened than most companies, which haven't addressed these issues and thus employees have no idea what is expected of them. If they don't like it, they can either unionize or find some other way to earn a living.
Please help metamoderate.
Australia is predominantly female.
If you make a statement like that, you had better be ready for someone to call BS.
According to the most recent figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics there are 9,799,249 males and 10,056,038 females - a difference of only 2%.
I understand you're being funny (and it's great you got +5 for it) but it also shows that you don't really know what their accreditation means. As a previous Telstra Dealer, I can tell you it's a little more complicated than that.
Before I left the dealership I was working for, Telstra had instroduced a new system that aimed to correct gaps in knowledge people often found when talking to multiple people and to ensure correct information was given. The result is a website where all staff and dealers need to complete training scenarios to receive accreditation for the course they are undertaking. Whether that be ISDN, Satellite, Next G, home or business phone lines, retail practices, workplace health and safety, how-to's on using certain system software and interfaces (like connecting phone and mobile services, applying for relocations, etc), or legal requirements.
While it's a terrible Java app, it does serve its purpose which is to educate. For example, all dealers needed to complete their Next G accreditation by April of 2008 (to coincide with the CDMA shutdown) to make sure they have the appropriate knowledge of the network and its capabilities, the handsets, and what they need to tell the customer. Aside from the cheesy scenarios and crappy Java app, it was very thorough and provided a good unified platform for most training needs.
There is no knowledge that is not power.