Peter R. Scott - Auditing Social Media: a Governance and Risk Guide

Contents

Copyright 2011 by Institute of Internal Auditors Research Foundation. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Scott, Peter R.,

Auditing social media : a governance and risk guide/Peter R. Scott, J. Mike Jacka.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-118-06175-6 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-06369-9 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-06370-5 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-06371-2 (ebk)

1. Internet marketing. 2. Social media. 3. Business enterprisesComputer networks. 4. Customer relationsTechnological innovations.

I. Jacka, J. Mike. II. Title.

HF5415.1265.S394 2011

658.8'72dc22

2010053514

To my father for his perseverance and generosity, to my mother for her strength and courage, and to Taberi, my wife, for everything

Peter

To Sally and Dan, who opened my eyes to what was going on

Mike

Foreword

As I look back on my career at Microsoft, I feel fortunate to have had a front-row seat to witness an incredible shift in how people and organizations communicate and interact. I started at Microsoft in October 1994about a year after America Online released AOL 1.0 for Windows. As early adopters of social media, Microsofts technical evangelist, Robert Scoble, emerged as a social media pioneer, blogging and producing videos of our employees and products as part of Microsofts Channel 9 MSDN Video team. Since then, weve led the way in embracing the power of online communities.

Today, people around the world are sharing their opinions and experiences about practically everything and anything. What started out as small groups of like-minded people talking about their profession and passions has transformed into an unbridled content democracy. Anyone with Internet access can readily voice his or her opinion, create multiple forms of content, create new products, andin their own waychange the world.

Over the past few years, organizations around the world have been trying to figure out how to enter the social media pool. Some decided to jump in and quickly learn how to swim. Others were pushed into the deep end and figured it out after thrashing around a bit. And there are even those who chose to stay out of the water, hoping to avoid risk. Unfortunately, if you believe you can simply avoid social mediayou cant. You or your organization can choose not to participate, but that doesnt mean people are not talking about you, your products, your programs, your customer service, or the people within your organization. So while there are risks in engaging your stakeholders using social media, there are also serious risks in avoiding it altogether.

What makes the book youre reading unique from most books written for internal auditors is that this book is a collaboration between an internal auditor and a social media practitioner. It provides two different perspectives, but one common message. The end result is a guide to help internal auditors and other leaders throughout the organization collaborate to identify the opportunities and risks of social media as a communication medium. Mike and Pete also provide the details of how to create an effective strategy, governance structure, metrics, and audit program to help provide the assurance, insight, and objectivity necessary for success.

As the use of social media continues to transform within organizations, its not a matter of if but when internal auditors will need to play a role. This book is a must read for anyone who wants to have a seat at the table and help develop a program that is based on sound business principles.

Rod Winters,

General Manager Finance Operations, Microsoft USA

20092010 Global Chairman of The Institute of Internal Auditors

Acknowledgments

Peter would like to thank Ted Murphy, CEO and founder of IZEA, Inc. Teds vision, creativity, and perseverance serves as an inspiration to achieve great things. Teds constant innovation and disruption with a smile has forever changed the future of social media. He would also like to thank his friends, colleagues, and fellow board members of the Orlando Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. It is truly an honor to serve and learn from such exceptional professionals.

Mike would like to thank Paulette Keller and Stan Sherman, who constantly inundated him with concepts, articles, blogs, updates, and various other information on the rapidly evolving world of social media.

And both authors would like to thank the staff and leadership of The Institute of Internal Auditors and The Institute of Internal Auditors Research Foundation, not only for their support throughout this project, but also for the opportunity to work with them in various projects throughout the years. They would also like to thank the team at Wiley for all their expertise and guidance.

Introduction

Why Should Anyone Care about Social Media?

As you are reading this, it is very probable that someone somewhere is writing about your organization.

Why should you care? People have written about organizations, their products and services, and how they conduct business seemingly forever and, except in rare occasions, it hasnt really been a significant risk. Hundreds of years ago a nameless accountant was writing about his organization by recording entries in Sumerian that would probably be read only by an appointee of the king. A couple of hundred years ago some Colonial American may have been writing a tract about the poor handling he received at the hands of the local cobbler. As recently as a few years ago, your worst-case scenario may have been a disgruntled employee trying to convince a publisher to print his tell-all book about your organization.