Brand consistent behavior of employees on social media: the role of social media governance and policies

Employee behavior on social media is an opportunity for brand building as customers perceive it as highly authentic. But employees could spread inappropriate messages or breach rules. Companies increasingly adopt social media policies (SMP), providing employees with guidelines. This paper proposes two models of SMP. Enabling SMP stimulate authentic employee brand consistent behavior to seize opportunities by means of balanced governance. Prescriptive SMP suggest or restrict employee behavior to prevent risks by means of managerial control. A content analysis of 25 SMP reveals a homogeneous distribution. Companies should adopt social media governance, and integrate SMP with training, communication and human resource management, to sustain employee brand consistent behavior.