Are you friends on social media with your work colleagues if you're a manager?

[Rosewaterblossom]

I work for a company who have several different working units and I go in and manage different units. The area manager is my line manager.

I've made the mistake before of becoming fb friends with colleagues whom I manage and been burnt by them and got too friendly, making the line of manager/staff blurred. I've also done the same with WhatsApp.

After lots of back stabbing etc from one unit (where I don't go anymore), I decided I won't be adding colleagues anymore.

I've been working with this lovely lady the past few weeks and we get on well. I'm her manager whilst I run this unit and the other day she friend requested me on fb. I saw it but ignored it, which was hard but after being burnt before I stuck to my guns.

Today she said "you ignored my fb request, I even sent you a message.." sounding a bit sad, which made me feel very uncomfortable. I've decided to suck it up and try to get a thicker skin.

Are you friends on social media with your colleagues?

No, never.
Explain to her why not - just your way, avoids avoid accusations of favouritism etc.

As the song says - These people aren't your friends, they're paid to kiss your feet.
Cynical & sad, perhaps, but it protects all involved.

Difficult one as I was FB friends and socially friends with some colleagues before I became their manager, and I have not unfriended them but have not added anyone else. Some staff who have left I have added.

I manage 6 members of staff and am only fb friends with one of them (not sure how that happened tbh!). Not generally a good idea to mix business and pleasure generally.

Tell her you keep your social media open to friends and family only and that you don't add colleagues on Facebook. It's the simple, honest truth.

I'm the same.

I am friends with a couple of people from work on Facebook, but not with my managers (unless either I or they leave). I made it a rule very early on when social media took off. In my view Managers are not your friends. You can have a friendly relationship by all means but how would that work if they had to discipline you for whatever reason? I've gotten on well with most of the Managers I've had but they are work friends rather than my actual friends.

I’m friends with my ex-manager but when she still worked at the same place she was still a manager (just not mine) we weren’t ‘friends’ on social media. Only when she left the company did we become friends on social media.

I have a hard and fast rule where I'm not friends on social media with anyone I work with. Everyone knows that so no one bothers to invite me and no one gets offended. I joke about it and say "I see you lot enough when I'm at work I don't need to see you in my personal time too". Every now and then I get teased but no one gives it a second thought. I've friended people when they leave as a way of staying in contact.

I just smile and say I'm sorry, I have a strict no work people on Facebook policy.

I'm wary of what friends of friends might see/share too so I wouldn't even add people who have left. It blurs boundaries.

Most of my Facebook is former work colleagues, but I started a new job in Sept and have not added any of my staff. I do however make an effort to learn about them and their families and will buy Christmas gifts for each one.

Yes. But I rarely post on there and when I do it's inoffensive generic stuff.

I have some of my team on WA, but the boundaries are clear. I like a laugh and we have a good working relationship which is usually quite light hearted, but I am the boss when I need to be. I am also circumspect about what I do and don't share with them.

I'm FB friends with our Department Head, but we were friends in person and on FB before she was promoted.

I don't have many colleagues on Facebook - half a dozen at most.

I've been a manager for a while, I'm still even now learning that you just can't blur those lines, even if you do get on really well with colleagues...

Absolutely not. It blurs the lines.

Just ignore her request and breezily say you barely ever use Facebook (obviously make your profile private so she can't know the truth!).

No Facebook friendships with colleagues regardless of role. Use LinkedIn for colleagues.

These are the unwritten rules in my experience.

@HundredMilesAnHour

No Facebook friendships with colleagues regardless of role. Use LinkedIn for colleagues.

These are the unwritten rules in my experience.

I do this too. I am friends with some ex-colleagues, but defo not while working with them.

Nope, and we are all really close (have worked with most of them for over 20 years).

No, never. After I’ve left somewhere then yes, but never whilst working with them. So unprofessional!

I'm not a manager but am FB friends with loads of people more senior than me. And they're all friends with everyone else too. It's a very friendly and professional place to work.
Never had a problem in all my FB years.

My line manager became 'bestie' with a direct report..the cliquey behaviour is one reason I'm leaving..

Nope! I don’t have any colleagues on my Facebook - recipe for disaster.

No, whether my direct reports or not.

LinkedIn- yes
Facebook- no
Instagram - no

I'm friends on Facebook with a few colleagues who I manage and my own manager, but I don't really post very often so there's nothing really personal on there that I wouldn't talk to them at work about anyway.

No colleagues on my social media.
I had to explain to some (not on Facebook at all) that my Facebook is purely personal.
I just need the mental space.

No I’m not.
I was, but I wanted the freedom to post shite on my own Facebook page without work people seeing it, so I deleted them all. I did email them all to say I’d done it for that reason though.