Educational Alliance Social Media Guidelines
Updated: August 22, 2017
PURPOSE
For the purposes of this document, digital communication is defined as email, social, and web content.
At Educational Alliance, we believe that social media and digital community play key roles in supporting our staff, serving current participants, reaching potential clients, and inspiring meaningful dialogue. Whether you do so by participating in a blog, online social network or any other form of online publishing or discussion is completely up to you. We want to create an environment where our customers, members, patrons, or users feel comfortable sharing, connecting, and receiving help. All staff are all representatives of EA, both at work and in our lives.
With the many options for posting one’s passion and promoting programs and events, these new ways of communication are changing the way we talk to each other and even to our consumers, target audiences and partners. In order to avoid any problems or misunderstandings, we have come up with a few guidelines to provide helpful and practical advice for you when operating on the internet as an identifiable employee of the Educational Alliance. Furthermore, while staff are encouraged to engage in digital communication, this participation is voluntary and up to each individual's discretion.
As a first step, these guidelines are meant to supplement the Educational Alliance Code of Conduct, which therefore should be reviewed. Please familiarize yourself with the Educational Alliance Code of Conduct provided to you on your date of hire.
TIPS & BEST PRACTICES
- Build buzz! Use social as a way to build buzz for upcoming products or services.
- Disclaimer when posting on personal accounts. When posting on your personal social channels, make it clear that you are speaking for yourself and not for the Educational Alliance. You can use a disclaimer like "The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily represent the position, strategy or opinions of the Educational Alliance". Please always write in the first person and don't use your company email address for private communications. And please consider that even anonymous postings can be traced back to the company.
- Use common sense. You are personally responsible for the content you publish on blogs or any other form of user-generated media. Please remember that the internet never forgets. This means everything you publish will be visible to the world for a very, very long time. Common sense is a huge factor here. If you are about to publish something that makes you even the slightest bit uncomfortable, take a moment to review. If you are still unsure and it is related to the Educational Alliance and its brand, please talk to your manager or communications team.
- Respect your audience. Don't use ethnic slurs, personal insults, obscenity, or engage in any conduct that would not be acceptable in the Educational Alliance workplace. You should also show proper consideration for others privacy and for topics that may be considered objectionable or inflammatory (like religion or politics). We all appreciate respect.
- Giving credit. Always give people proper credit for their work, and make sure you have the right to use something with attribution before you publish.
- Please respect copyright. If it is not yours, don't use it. It is very simple. It is that person's choice to share his or her material with the world, not yours. Before posting someone else's work, please check with the owner first.
- Always get approval to cite others. Don't cite or reference clients, partners, sponsors or vendors without their approval. When you do make a reference, where possible, link back to the source.
- Presentation. Be aware that others will associate you with your employer when you identify yourself as such. Please ensure that your Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram profile and related content is consistent with how you wish to present yourself with clients and colleagues.
SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES
A Valuable Resource
Social media is an enormously valuable resource for Educational Alliance. Management recommends all staff, regardless of position, use social media to stay informed of communications of all Educational Alliance programs.
Professional Outreach
Staff in a communications role at the Educational Alliance should also incorporate social media into their professional outreach efforts and use it to follow reporters, media and advocacy influencers. Every employee is responsible for using the Educational Alliance computer system, including, its Email system and the internet, properly and in accordance with the policy in the Human Resources Policies & Procedures Employee Manual. Any questions about this policy should be addressed to the Director of Human Resources, Cheryl McPherson.
Be an Active Participant
Educational Alliance staff members are encouraged to be active participants on social networks both personally and professionally, including:
- Using social media to monitor and track news of the Educational Alliance and its programs, including media mentions, direct mentions by others, responses, reviews and criticism.
- Connecting with specific individuals in the field of your program, project or center’s work, including reporters, academics, issue influentials and leaders of other organizations to promote Educational Alliance content and solicit sharing and feedback.
- Sharing Educational Alliance content that appears on our website, including events, reports, op-eds, blog posts, videos, quotes and interactives across all social networks and sharing websites.
- Monitoring for and sharing external articles that quote or are written by Educational Alliance staff, lay leaders and program participants.
- Following Educational Alliance social network accounts and engaging with their updates, such as retweeting a tweet, liking, commenting on, or sharing a Facebook post, sharing a YouTube video, liking, commenting, or re-gramming on Instagram.
- Promoting Educational Alliance public events and post-event materials, such as videos, audio, transcripts and related content.
Live Tweeting during Public Events with Your Program
Live tweeting or engaging in online conversations during Educational Alliance public events within your program, project or center. EA staff may identify as such on their personal social media profiles. However, those who choose to identify as EA employees on social media must strive to reflect the general character of the Educational Alliance taking into account the following additional guidelines:
- Avoid direct advocacy of political organizations or candidates during working hours. No matter your title or role at the Educational Alliance, the public will see you as a representative of the our Agency. If you advocate for a political organization or candidate during non-working hours, be sure it is done in your capacity as a private citizen without any online references (direct or indirect) to your position at the Educational Alliance.
- If it’s confidential, keep it confidential. Do not post information on social networks about private events, meetings, conversations or activities that take place at the Educational Alliance, as these may be confidential and not intended for public consumption.
- Never purport to speak “on behalf of” the Educational Alliance or any of its programs, without authorization from the Senior Vice President of Development and Communications, Executive Director of your center, or Chief Executive Officer. You may be prompted to respond to questions or comments about the Educational Alliance’s work via social media, and should avoid making any statement not already public on the EA, or any agency website, or without a program director’s or supervisor’s approval.
- Your profile photo and associated branding on a social network must remain personal and not incorporate any Educational Alliance logos or images. If you have questions about appropriate use of social media as an employee of the Educational Alliance, please contact your supervisor. Only the Vice President of Development and Communications, Executive Director, or Director of Marketing and Communications can grant the right to staff to write or post comments or photos on behalf of the Educational Alliance or its programs, be it on our Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, Instagram accounts, blogs or other social media accounts. Should anything be published that is deemed inappropriate, the management reserves the right to remove said postings, remove posting privileges, and/or consider it grounds for dismissal. As a part of your work duties you may be asked to write a post for a Educational Alliance sponsored blog or maintain Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media accounts that represent the Educational Alliance or its programs.
Educational Alliance Sponsored Account Policy Considerations
While working on a Educational Alliance sponsored account, please keep in mind the following policy considerations:
- It’s a privilege. Posting to official Educational Alliance blogs and social media accounts is a privilege which may be rescinded. Posts which are deemed to be offensive, inappropriate or unnecessarily controversial will be removed and their author disciplined, which may include cessation of posting rights and/or possible termination of employment.
- Offensive posts. If a post or subject may be construed as offensive, inappropriate or unnecessarily controversial, you must ask for a review of that post from the Executive Director or Director of Marketing and Communications prior to posting regardless of perceived urgency to post. Failure to ask for a review due to staff availability issues is not an excuse for posting without review.
- Monitoring personal channels. While the Educational Alliance does not, as a routine, monitor personal social networking usage, the Center reserves and may exercise the right to access and review, and as a result, discontinue an individual’s access to these sites during work hours.
- Damaging or harmful posts. Any revelation about the Educational Alliance, its grantees, donors, employees, Board of Directors, partner agencies, program partners or vendors that are deemed damaging and/or harmful in any way may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination.
- Other social sites. Should you need to establish an account on any social media site for work-related purposes, please discuss with the Vice President of Development and Communications, Executive Director, or Director of Marketing and Communications prior to creating an account. All Educational Alliance social media accounts, URLs, logins, passwords, and information changes must be emailed to the Director of Marketing and Communications.
Failure to adhere to any of the abovementioned policies may result in the revoking of privileges. Egregious violations could possibly result in suspension or termination.
Updated: August 22, 2017
PURPOSE
For the purposes of this document, digital communication is defined as email, social, and web content.
At Educational Alliance, we believe that social media and digital community play key roles in supporting our staff, serving current participants, reaching potential clients, and inspiring meaningful dialogue. Whether you do so by participating in a blog, online social network or any other form of online publishing or discussion is completely up to you. We want to create an environment where our customers, members, patrons, or users feel comfortable sharing, connecting, and receiving help.All staff are all representatives of EA, both at work and in our lives.
With the many options for posting one’s passion and promoting programs and events, these new ways of communication are changing the way we talk to each other and even to our consumers, target audiences and partners. In order to avoid any problems or misunderstandings, we have come up with a few guidelines to provide helpful and practical advice for you when operating on the internet as an identifiable employee of the Educational Alliance. Furthermore, while staff are encouraged to engage in digital communication, this participation is voluntary and up to each individual's discretion.
As a first step, these guidelines are meant to supplement the Educational Alliance Code of Conduct, which therefore should be reviewed. Please familiarize yourself with the Educational Alliance Code of Conduct provided to you on your date of hire.
TIPS & BEST PRACTICES
● Build buzz! Use social as a way to build buzz for upcoming products or services.
● Disclaimer when posting on personal accounts. When posting on your personal social channels, make it clear that you are speaking for yourself and not for the Educational Alliance. You can use a disclaimer like "The postings on this site are my own and do not necessarily represent the position, strategy or opinions of the Educational Alliance". Please always write in the first person and don't use your company email address for private communications. And please consider that even anonymous postings can be traced back to the company.
● Use common sense. You are personally responsible for the content you publish on blogs or any other form of user-generated media. Please remember that the internet never forgets. This means everything you publish will be visible to the world for a very, very long time. Common sense is a huge factor here. If you are about to publish something that makes you even the slightest bit uncomfortable, take a moment to review. If you are still unsure and it is related to the Educational Alliance and its brand, please talk to your manager or communications team.
● Respect your audience. Don't use ethnic slurs, personal insults, obscenity, or engage in any conduct that would not be acceptable in the Educational Alliance workplace. You should also show proper consideration for others privacy and for topics that may be considered objectionable or inflammatory (like religion or politics). We all appreciate respect.
● Giving credit. Always give people proper credit for their work, and make sure you have the right to use something with attribution before you publish.
● Please respect copyright. If it is not yours, don't use it. It is very simple. It is that person's choice to share his or her material with the world, not yours. Before posting someone else's work, please check with the owner first.
● Always get approval to cite others. Don't cite or reference clients, partners, sponsors or vendors without their approval. When you do make a reference, where possible, link back to the source.
● Presentation. Be aware that others will associate you with your employer when you identify yourself as such. Please ensure that your Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram profile and related content is consistent with how you wish to present yourself with clients and colleagues.
SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES
A Valuable Resource
Social media is an enormously valuable resource for Educational Alliance. Management recommends all staff, regardless of position, use social media to stay informed of communications of all Educational Alliance programs.
Professional Outreach
Staff in a communications role at the Educational Alliance should also incorporate social media into their professional outreach efforts and use it to follow reporters, media and advocacy influencers. Every employee is responsible for using the Educational Alliance computer system, including, its Email system and the internet, properly and in accordance with the policy in the Human Resources Policies & Procedures Employee Manual. Any questions about this policy should be addressed to the Director of Human Resources, Cheryl McPherson.
Be an Active Participant
Educational Alliance staff members are encouraged to be active participants on social networks both personally and professionally, including:
1. Using social media to monitor and track news of the Educational Alliance and its programs, including media mentions, direct mentions by others, responses, reviews and criticism.
2. Connecting with specific individuals in the field of your program, project or center’s work, including reporters, academics, issue influentials and leaders of other organizations to promote Educational Alliance content and solicit sharing and feedback.
3. Sharing Educational Alliance content that appears on our website, including events, reports, op-eds, blog posts, videos, quotes and interactives across all social networks and sharing websites.
4. Monitoring for and sharing external articles that quote or are written by Educational Alliance staff, lay leaders and program participants.
5. Following Educational Alliance social network accounts and engaging with their updates, such as retweeting a tweet, liking, commenting on, or sharing a Facebook post, sharing a YouTube video, liking, commenting, or re-gramming on Instagram.
6. Promoting Educational Alliance public events and post-event materials, such as videos, audio, transcripts and related content.
Live Tweeting during Public Events with Your Program
Live tweeting or engaging in online conversations during Educational Alliance public events within your program, project or center. EA staff may identify as such on their personal social media profiles. However, those who choose to identify as EA employees on social media must strive to reflect the general character of the Educational Alliance taking into account the following additional guidelines:
1. Avoid direct advocacy of political organizations or candidates during working hours. No matter your title or role at the Educational Alliance, the public will see you as a representative of the our Agency. If you advocate for a political organization or candidate during non-working hours, be sure it is done in your capacity as a private citizen without any online references (direct or indirect) to your position at the Educational Alliance.
2. If it’s confidential, keep it confidential. Do not post information on social networks about private events, meetings, conversations or activities that take place at the Educational Alliance, as these may be confidential and not intended for public consumption.
3. Never purport to speak “on behalf of” the Educational Alliance or any of its programs, without authorization from the Senior Vice President of Development and Communications, Executive Director of your center, or Chief Executive Officer. You may be prompted to respond to questions or comments about the Educational Alliance’s work via social media, and should avoid making any statement not already public on the EA, or any agency website, or without a program director’s or supervisor’s approval.
4. Your profile photo and associated branding on a social network must remain personal and not incorporate any Educational Alliance logos or images. If you have questions about appropriate use of social media as an employee of the Educational Alliance, please contact your supervisor. Only the Vice President of Development and Communications, Executive Director, or Director of Marketing and Communications can grant the right to staff to write or post comments or photos on behalf of the Educational Alliance or its programs, be it on our Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, Instagram accounts, blogs or other social media accounts. Should anything be published that is deemed inappropriate, the management reserves the right to remove said postings, remove posting privileges, and/or consider it grounds for dismissal. As a part of your work duties you may be asked to write a post for a Educational Alliance sponsored blog or maintain Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media accounts that represent the Educational Alliance or its programs.
Educational Alliance Sponsored Account Policy Considerations
While working on a Educational Alliance sponsored account, please keep in mind the following policy considerations:
1. It’s a privilege. Posting to official Educational Alliance blogs and social media accounts is a privilege which may be rescinded. Posts which are deemed to be offensive, inappropriate or unnecessarily controversial will be removed and their author disciplined, which may include cessation of posting rights and/or possible termination of employment.
2. Offensive posts. If a post or subject may be construed as offensive, inappropriate or unnecessarily controversial, you must ask for a review of that post from the Executive Director or Director of Marketing and Communications prior to posting regardless of perceived urgency to post. Failure to ask for a review due to staff availability issues is not an excuse for posting without review.
3. Monitoring personal channels. While the Educational Alliance does not, as a routine, monitor personal social networking usage, the Center reserves and may exercise the right to access and review, and as a result, discontinue an individual’s access to these sites during work hours.
4. Damaging or harmful posts. Any revelation about the Educational Alliance, its grantees, donors, employees, Board of Directors, partner agencies, program partners or vendors that are deemed damaging and/or harmful in any way may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination.
5. Other social sites. Should you need to establish an account on any social media site for work-related purposes, please discuss with the Vice President of Development and Communications, Executive Director, or Director of Marketing and Communications prior to creating an account. All Educational Alliance social media accounts, URLs, logins, passwords, and information changes must be emailed to the Director of Marketing and Communications.
Failure to adhere to any of the abovementioned policies may result in the revoking of privileges. Egregious violations could possibly result in suspension or termination.
