Let’s face it. CIOs are still not at ease with social networking. For the past two weeks I am pushing hard to ignite a discussion on almost all my LinkedIn groups about social networking, but I have got abysmally low response – you can say it’s nil.

At times, social media can be distracting and the use of certain sites by employees can lead to a confict of interest for business. I agree. But ignore the capabilities of social media tools and you do so at your own peril. The networking culture that social media engenders has the potential of transforming the business to stay ahead of its competitors.

I have a strong opinion about social media and its usefulness to organisations. Various functions across companies have valid business reasons to use social media to not only network with peers but also mine the invaluable data that is generated. And thus I trash the very idea of putting a frewall to blindly block all micro blogging sites or prevent users from using social media.

A recently released survey from Robert Half Technology – the US-based IT Staffing Company – came as a dampener. The survey shows that many CIOs are clamping down on employee access to social media sites. 38 percent of CIOs questioned said they've created stricter policies on use of social networks compared with just 17 percent who said they've relaxed their rules. CIOs are worried about sites like Facebook and Twitter and tag them as distractive ones. When the whole world is talking of social media as one of the strongest enablers, why are CIOs wary of it?

Even as we are discussing this issue, the Web is undergoing transformation. Do your IT, marketing and HR functions realise that? Do they understand how they can use it to their advantage? That not using it can deprive them of a competitive edge? From incubation of an idea to innovation in product marketing strategies to realtime customer interaction and feedback, social media can help businesses achieve everything much faster.

Social media is here to stay. What is important is education and guidance. We must know where the challenges lie, what the opportunities are and what checks must be put in place to ensure that risks are minimised and benefits are maximised.

rahul.mani@9dot9.in