In-House Counsel, Social Media, Technology

Swipe Left On That Colleague's Social Media Request

Should in-house lawyers accept invitations from colleagues to connect over social media?

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social mediaBetween Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and Tinder – hopefully not Tinder – there are more ways than ever to keep connected with your employees and colleagues. But what may start as an innocent online follow or friendship can quickly alter an employee’s or colleague’s perception of your well-groomed in-house counsel persona.

I know I might sound like a broken record, but in-house counsels are effective only if their colleagues and organization value and respect their counsel. Think about it: unless you wear dual hats in your organization (and granted many do), by and large your contribution to your organization is your intellect. You advise on a merger someone else negotiated and drafted. You review a contract or public statement someone else created. You answer hypothetical questions of import to your organization in your best cagey lawyer response possible.

The moment your ability to provide input that is valued by your organization stops, so does your potential career advancement.

Which brings me back to social media. As a rule, I post almost nothing online and have a very limited online footprint. Sure I bet you could find a few unflattering photos of me out there, but by and large I attempt to keep a low profile. I have worked hard to cultivate a certain image at work and would hate to see it destroyed by that time I wore footed pajamas with a half-open back flap for Halloween in college. Unfortunately, not all of my colleagues keep the same low online profile.

Back during the advent of Facebook, I made the mistake of accepting a friend request from a particularly well-regarded member of the management team. He always wore the nicest suits and presented an “old-soul” personality. How racy could his pictures from his latest Yo-Yo Ma concert really be?

Turns out, very, as that “Yo-Yo Ma concert” was really a motorcycle rally. One where he opted to wear a leather vest – with no undershirt. His posts also showed his fondness for his wife, which is a good thing, and their trips to Victoria’s Secret, which I could have done without. Of course he still made a fine colleague and produced quality work, but my perception of him admittedly changed, which was a bit unfair of me. None of his activities were illegal or impacted his work in any way, but my view of him was still forever transformed.

Since then, I have opted to politely declined my colleagues’, and especially my subordinates’, attempts to connect with me via social media (except LinkedIn; if you have embarrassing content on your LinkedIn profile, you likely have bigger issues to worry about).

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With my colleagues, this can prove difficult sometimes as I have developed some genuine friendships with those with whom I work. Heck, I am probably in some unflattering photos with that very colleague who requested the connection. However, if they are connected with another colleague whom you are not particularly close with, they may inevitably have access to those same photos. In a rapidly advancing age of social media that I do not pretend to keep up with or understand, it’s best to keep it simple and decline any requests.

And with my subordinates, yes, I want to keep them from certain aspects of my private life in order to be regarded as a professional boss. But more importantly, I do not want to know too much about how they unwind after a day in the office. So long as they are dependable and competent employees when they are in the office, far be it from me to judge how they spend their time when they leave. And as my changed perception of my previous colleague illustrated, judge them I will.

Call me an old-fashioned Luddite, but the relationships you cultivate in person are, and should be viewed, as more valuable than those cultivated in the digital world. Judge your employees and colleagues by their work ethic and work product during business hours, not for their penchant for leather biker vests.

Likewise, as in-house counsel, we should be judged by the quality of our counsel, not our choice of wardrobe or adult beverage on the weekends. So please, resist the temptation and swipe left the next time a colleague or employee attempts to connect online.

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Stephen R. Williams is in-house counsel with a multi-facility hospital network in the Midwest. His column focuses on a little talked about area of the in-house life, management. You can reach Stephen at [email protected].

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