Bosses concerned about Facebook, Twitter

A good chunk — 60 percent — of executives believe they have a right to know how employees portray themselves and their companies on online social networks, according to a Deloitte LLP survey.

But 53 percent of employees say content posted on their Facebook and Twitter accounts are not a boss’s concern.

That belief is even more prevalent among younger workers. Sixty-three percent of workers ages 18 to 34 say employers have no business looking at their online activity.

But most employees (74 percent) recognize that using online social networks makes it easier to tarnish a company’s reputation.

“With the explosive growth of online social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter, rapidly blurring the lines between professional and private lives, these virtual communities have increased the potential of reputational risk for many organizations and their brands,” said Sharon Allen, board chairman of Deloitte. “It is important for executives to be mindful of the implications of this connected world and to elevate the discussion about the risks associated with it to the highest levels of leadership.”

Just 17 percent of executives have formal ways to monitor the possible risks related to social network use. But nearly half (49 percent) of employees say such strict guidelines would not change their behavior online.

More than 2,000 employed adults — half men and half women — were interviewed for the survey, as well as 500 business executives.