"Meet the team/Our people" Company Web pages

Dav010

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

It's actually quite simple. Someone knows where you'll be by day, will have a fair idea of when you'll be away and how long it will take you to get to and back from work.

No one who's house gets robbed thinks it's going to happen or how.

No different from all those warnings we hear all the time from the gardai telling people not to post on facebook etc where they're taking their holidays.

A little paranoid, but I suppose that’s one way of looking at it. I read somewhere that virtually all burglaries are opportunistic, the burglar looks for an empty house, preferably without an alarm and robs it if they can get in. Thinking you are going to get burgled because your picture is on your work website is a little out there.

In relation to your main point, I suppose if you are not dealing with clients, or indeed not that important, then there really shouldn’t be any reason for your employer to have you on their website. If you do deal with clients and are a key personnel, then if you aren’comfortable with it, you should be able to opt out. Maybe this is something that should be addressed at interview and it it is a deal breaker, they just hire someone else.

I wonder are there people who get pissed off when they aren’t deemed important enough to have their profile on the company website?

Ruraldweller56

gandalf wrote: »

To be honest it depends on your role and whether you are customer facing or not.

I am customer in a customer facing profession and I was also part of the management team in my last company so of course I was on the "meet my team" page and I didn't have a problem with it. I work for a much larger company now and whilst I am not on their meet the team page I have spoken at a couple of events so those events have put my details up as well. So it's all part of the territory for me.

If you aren't in a customer facing role then I don't see the value for the company in putting your name out there. But you should always have the final say on whether you are put up on the web page and you definitely shouldn't be bullied into being part of it if you are not comfortable.

I'm talking about a name and mugshot.

Ive had the recent misfortune of dealing with eir customer service. I had no idea what the person on the other end of the phone looked like. I don't see what difference it would have made. They give you their first name which is enough to have the conversation.

Knowing what someone looks like makes no difference to their ability to work.

huskerdu

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

It's actually quite simple. Someone knows where you'll be by day, will have a fair idea of when you'll be away and how long it will take you to get to and back from work.

No one who's house gets robbed thinks it's going to happen or how.

No different from all those warnings we hear all the time from the gardai telling people not to post on facebook etc where they're taking their holidays.

All this does is alert a burglar is that you have a job, not your address or if your house is empty (partner, flatmate, kids, childminder could be there.

We have very low unemployment, most people have jobs. Its not news.

Burglars don't care where or if you work.

If a burglar wants to find out if your house is empty during the day, the time honoured traditional way is probably still the best (check if the house looks empty all day).

Ruraldweller56

Dav010 wrote: »

A little paranoid, but I suppose that’s one way of looking at it. I read somewhere that virtually all burglaries are opportunistic, the burglar looks for an empty house, preferably without an alarm and robs it if they can get in. Thinking you are going to get burgled because your picture is on your work website is a little out there.

In relation to your main point, I suppose if you are not dealing with clients, or indeed not that important, then there really shouldn’t be any reason for your employer to have you on their website. If you do deal with clients and are a key personnel, then if you aren’comfortable with it, you should be able to opt out. Maybe this is something that should be addressed at interview and it it is a deal breaker, they just hire someone else.

I wonder are there people who get pissed off when they aren’t deemed important enough to have their profile on the company website?

Interesting spin on it.

Ruraldweller56

huskerdu wrote: »

All this does is alert a burglar is that you have a job, not your address or if your house is empty (partner, flatmate, kids, childminder could be there.

We have very low unemployment, most people have jobs. Its not news.

Burglars don't care where or if you work.

If a burglar wants to find out if your house is empty during the day, the time honoured traditional way is probably still the best (check if the house looks empty all day).

There have been a spate of house burglaries in my locality where insider information had been passed on. As in, "such a fella keeps his money in the fridge and he's out of the house every day between 1-3“.

You don't know what piece of information someone is missing or needs. My own grandmother was robbed while she was at mass a few days after an electric blanket fire in her house. They knew that the window was going to be left open because of the fumes and where she'd be.

But yes it must all just be paranoia. Anyway I'm not getting into it any further. If someone wants to start a thread on home security be my guest.

I've only mentioned it as one of the many reasons I don't want myself plastered all over the Internet.

Berserker

'Meet the team' pages are great for managerial staff and members of staff who interact with clients. Putting Tommy who works in payroll or Amy who provides desktop support in-house on the page is silly and small-time though. I would have thought that most contracts include a clause which allows the company to use your picture, so they have permission to use your picture.

Duffryman wrote: »

‘Identity theft’ – Surely you need more than somebody’s name and job title to do that? These ‘meet the team’ pages don’t have your date of birth, PPS number, bank account details, or anything else put up there for people to see….

My details were used for the subject of fraud a few years ago. Not going to go into the nitty gritty here but he used my job title and name only for the company team page. The amount of progress he made with those details alone was scary.

Dav010

Berserker wrote: »

'



My details were used for the subject of fraud a few years ago. Not going to go into the nitty gritty here but he used my job title and name only for the company team page. The amount of progress he made with those details alone was scary.

Considering profiles generally have your name, position/area of expertise and possibly qualifications, how were they able to “progress”?. If I phone a business and ask who the head of HR/recruitment is, wouldn’t that give the same info, name/position/qualifications?

Surely any type of online or card purchase in a shop leaves you far more exposured to fraud than someone know your name and job title?

Duffryman

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

There have been a spate of house burglaries in my locality where insider information had been passed on. As in, "such a fella keeps his money in the fridge and he's out of the house every day between 1-3“.

You don't know what piece of information someone is missing or needs. My own grandmother was robbed while she was at mass a few days after an electric blanket fire in her house. They knew that the window was going to be left open because of the fumes and where she'd be.

You obviously don't realise it, but you're actually arguing against yourself here. Unless of course the info that Person A keeps his money in the fridge, and that your Granny's window would be left open, was posted on profiles on company websites.

Don't know about Person A, but I presume your Granny is of retirement age, so that was hardly a factor there.

Anyway, if having your job details online really is a home security threat, here's something for you to consider:

Somewhere close to a million Irish people have a LinkedIn account, so they have details online about where they work and what they do. Are they all basically issuing invitations to would-be burglars to come along and help themselves?

Ruraldweller56

Duffryman wrote: »

You obviously don't realise it, but you're actually arguing against yourself here. Unless of course the info that Person A keeps his money in the fridge, and that your Granny's window would be left open, was posted on profiles on company websites.

Don't know about Person A, but I presume your Granny is of retirement age, so that was hardly a factor there.

Anyway, if having your job details online really is a home security threat, here's something for you to consider:

Somewhere close to a million Irish people have a LinkedIn account, so they have details online about where they work and what they do. Are they all basically issuing invitations to would-be burglars to come along and help themselves?

Neither here nor there. You own your own LinkedIn profile as far as I'm aware. It's belonging to yourself. You can have one, or not have one. You can put your mugshot on, or not. I know guys who haven't updated theirs in years.

Now on the issue of house security. I'm willing to concede that a mugshot, name and job title probably wouldn't be enough to break into someone's house. I'm saying that in conjunction with other information such as the address of the persons house, it would probably be beneficial to a would be thief to know where the person will likely be and when. That's all.

You don't think that's the case, fine by me.

If you want to start a seperate thread on home security feel free to. I've only mentioned as one of the many, many reasons I'd be uncomfortable with being asked to be on these pages.

Thats as much as I have to say on it.

Ruraldweller56

Berserker wrote: »

'Meet the team' pages are great for managerial staff and members of staff who interact with clients. Putting Tommy who works in payroll or Amy who provides desktop support in-house on the page is silly and small-time though. I would have thought that most contracts include a clause which allows the company to use your picture, so they have permission to use your picture.



My details were used for the subject of fraud a few years ago. Not going to go into the nitty gritty here but he used my job title and name only for the company team page. The amount of progress he made with those details alone was scary.

Why? Can you outline for me how they benefit productivity or effectiveness at how one performs their would be jobs?

So I'm here on site and we suddenly realise we forgot to order insulation. I Google insulation company and find a mugshot of "Amy", what she does, her direct line number and her previous industry experience. How does any of that help either of us? I mean actually help, and none of this "I can put a face to the name" claptrap.

Dav010

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

Why? Can you outline for me how they benefit productivity or effectiveness at how one performs their would be jobs?

You are missing the point, profiles are about marketing and informing the Client. They don’t make you the employee better at your job, but they may help to draw new clients to your workplace. Bios on a website help the client to connect with the business/person whose service they need. As another poster said, putting a face to the name. If all your competitors have responsive websites with lots of info about service/personnel, less informative websites can look less professional. The merits of that are debatable, but if clients or more importantly, potential clients expect to see it, then not having the info can be costly.

skallywag

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

Why? Can you outline for me how they benefit productivity or effectiveness at how one performs their would be jobs?

I can give a good example of how I recently found one useful.

We were due to have a meeting with a new supplier, where I knew a couple of people who were on the attendance list, but had not much idea about some of the others. I could quickly go their site and find details about some of the others, i.e. more detail on their exact role within the company, more detail on their area of expertise, information concerning how long they had been with the company, etc. All of this is very useful to know before stepping into the meeting.

I find even been able to immediately put a face to a name something useful, when I meet new people I know from the off who is who.

I agree fully that none of this is necessary, and can indeed be viewed as intrusive, concerning employees who have no management / customer interaction, but I find it very useful otherwise.

Duffryman

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

I'm willing to concede that a mugshot, name and job title probably wouldn't be enough to break into someone's house.

Thats as much as I have to say on it.

Thank you for agreeing with me.

That's all I'm going to say on it too.

Ruraldweller56

Duffryman wrote: »

Thank you for agreeing with me.

That's all I'm going to say on it too.

I don't agree with you at all actually. But seeing how as you've glossed over most of that particular post in order to draw the answer you want out of it, I've no doubt you've decided I'm agreeing with you regardless.

Good man.

Ruraldweller56

skallywag wrote: »

I can give a good example of how I recently found one useful.

We were due to have a meeting with a new supplier, where I knew a couple of people who were on the attendance list, but had not much idea about some of the others. I could quickly go their site and find details about some of the others, i.e. more detail on their exact role within the company, more detail on their area of expertise, information concerning how long they had been with the company, etc. All of this is very useful to know before stepping into the meeting.

I find even been able to immediately put a face to a name something useful, when I meet new people I know from the off who is who.

I agree fully that none of this is necessary, and can indeed be viewed as intrusive, concerning employees who have no management / customer interaction, but I find it very useful otherwise.

Fine, you might find it useful to you. But as you've also said it can be viewed as intrusive.

Is the insinuation here that an employee who doesn't have customer interaction would be well within their rights to be annoyed about it, but someone dealing with customers should be happy to go along with it?

I'm happy to deal with customers but I don't see why I should be plastered on the Internet.

On the phone, even when they come into the office or I have to make a visit. I don't get why they need my mugshot beforehand. I think it's extremely invasive tbh. And should only be done on a 100% voluntary basis

Duffryman

Right, I'm going to say one more thing here.

If you're as stubborn in work as you are on Boards, then I'm glad that I for one don't work with you.

Goodbye.

Berserker

Dav010 wrote: »

Considering profiles generally have your name, position/area of expertise and possibly qualifications, how were they able to “progress”?. If I phone a business and ask who the head of HR/recruitment is, wouldn’t that give the same info, name/position/qualifications?

No, HR wouldn't take your call and they'd ask why you need that information. I'll respond about the fraud in private.

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

Why? Can you outline for me how they benefit productivity or effectiveness at how one performs their would be jobs?

So I'm here on site and we suddenly realise we forgot to order insulation. I Google insulation company and find a mugshot of "Amy", what she does, her direct line number and her previous industry experience. How does any of that help either of us? I mean actually help, and none of this "I can put a face to the name" claptrap.

It's got nothing to do with you purchasing something, as others have noted.

Dav010

Berserker wrote: »

It's got nothing to do with you purchasing something, as others have noted.

The ops gripe has nothing to do with purchasing, but your assertion that you were the victim of fraud based on your name and job title only is hard to believe. My point is, you are more likely to be a victim of fraud every time you use your card in shop or online, why the heightened concern about your name/title? It’s not like the company is publishing your dob/pps/home address/cc number.

And, I’ve been put through to heads of HR numerous times to check references.

Ruraldweller56

Duffryman wrote: »

Right, I'm going to say one more thing here.

If you're as stubborn in work as you are on Boards, then I'm glad that I for one don't work with you.

Goodbye.

Well I'm just all broken up now.

Ruraldweller56

Dav010 wrote: »

The ops gripe has nothing to do with purchasing, but your assertion that you were the victim of fraud based on your name and job title only is hard to believe. My point is, you are more likely to be a victim of fraud every time you use your card in shop or online, why the heightened concern about your name/title? It’s not like the company is publishing your dob/pps/home address/cc number.

And, I’ve been put through to heads of HR numerous times to check references.

Two separate issues completely.

Ruraldweller56

Berserker wrote: »

No, HR wouldn't take your call and they'd ask why you need that information. I'll respond about the fraud in private.



It's got nothing to do with you purchasing something, as others have noted.

According to some of the people on here it does. I call a company, as a "client" looking for either goods or services and for some bizarre reason knowing what Amy on the other end of the phone looks like before I make the call is supposed to influence whether I do business with them.

Dav010

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

According to some of the people on here it does. I call a company, as a "client" looking for either goods or services and for some bizarre reason knowing what Amy on the other end of the phone looks like before I make the call is supposed to influence whether I do business with them.

At the risk of repeating what has been said earlier, the website may well influence who it is you actually make the call to, and identifies Amy as the person you need to talk to. It may also indicate how well qualified Amy is to provide that service, her seniority and her experience.

It’s obvious you don’t see the benefit in this type of information/marketing and nothing will really change your mind. If your employer’s business is web based, if ypu are in a key position, they will just have to deal with it. It certainly would be interesting, if you have to deal with clients, what your prospective employer would say when you tell them you do not want your profile on their website in case your house gets burgled. I suspect that would be the end of the interview.

Ruraldweller56

Dav010 wrote: »

At the risk of repeating what has been said earlier, the website may well influence who it is you actually make the call to, and identifies Amy as the person you need to talk to. It may also indicate how well qualified Amy is to provide that service, her seniority and her experience.

It’s obvious you don’t see the benefit in this type of information/marketing and nothing will really change your mind. If your employer’s business is web based, if ypu are in a key position, they will just have to deal with it. It certainly would be interesting, if you have to deal with clients, what your prospective employer would say when you tell them you do not want your profile on their website in case your house gets burgled. I suspect that would be the end of the interview.

Plenty of ways of doing it without using a personal profile and mugshot of the person.

Nope, as I've said a few pages back there are a few reasons why I'd be uncomfortable with it. There was the guy earlier who commented that he had a stalker for a while. There's any number of reasons someone might not be comfortable with it. And in an interview I'd simply say - as I did in the past - that I just wouldn't be comfortable with it.

Here's one for you to ponder. I've a work colleague here at the moment. With a very not attractive birthmark on her face. She's very good at her job and deals with clients all the time.

Another place I worked a guy had a disfigurement. The cause of a fire. Once again, very good at his job and dealt with clients.

Would you be OK with telling them they needed to appear on one of these "Meet the team" pages? And if not, why?

skallywag

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

Is the insinuation here that an employee who doesn't have customer interaction would be well within their rights to be annoyed about it, but someone dealing with customers should be happy to go along with it?

In my own experience, those working in roles with heavy customer interaction would be expected to play ball with regards to this.

That said, if one was to say that they were not comfortable with it, then there is no way that they would or should be forced into it. It's going to raise some eyebrows though, particularly if the company had a policy in place of doing so in place at the time when employment started. It's then fair to say that the new employee should have been aware of this expectation before they came on board.

Wanderer2010

What about people who are really self conscious of their appearance or their clothes or weight etc? Pushing someone like that into a photo is incredibly damaging to that person and is nothing short of bullying. Any company worth a damn is going to make this an optional feature and not hold it against people who don't want to partake. Your contact details etc are more than enough, you don't need the picture.

Dav010

Wanderer2010 wrote: »

What about people who are really self conscious of their appearance or their clothes or weight etc? Pushing someone like that into a photo is incredibly damaging to that person and is nothing short of bullying. Any company worth a damn is going to make this an optional feature and not hold it against people who don't want to partake. Your contact details etc are more than enough, you don't need the picture.

Though the rights and wrongs of it are debatable, saying it is bullying is just nonsense and does a disservice to those who are genuinely suffering bullying. I don’t think anyone has posted that you should not be able to refuse permission to publish your bio/portrait online based on appearance/psychological considerations, but refusing permission based on the belief that you will be burgled, identity theft, data protection or just because you think it has no baring on clients decision making is a different matter entirely.

Ruraldweller56

Dav010 wrote: »

Though the rights and wrongs of it are debatable, saying it is bullying is just nonsense and does a disservice to those who are genuinely suffering bullying. I don’t think anyone has posted that you should not be able to refuse permission to publish your bio/portrait online based on appearance/psychological considerations, but refusing permission based on the belief that you will be burgled, identity theft, data protection or just because you think it has no baring on clients decision making is a different matter entirely.

OK so how should it work then? Are you in agreement that someone in such a position should be able to refuse with a simple 'no', or should they have to pull their manager aside and explain why their not comfortable based on 'psychological considerations'? Their your employer, not your councillor and its nothing short of bullying being expected to have to explain yourself out of that type of a situation.

People who want to make an honest living very often have to take whatever jobs are available. No one should ever be forced into such a thing if they're not happy with it.

Ruraldweller56

skallywag wrote: »

In my own experience, those working in roles with heavy customer interaction would be expected to play ball with regards to this.

That said, if one was to say that they were not comfortable with it, then there is no way that they would or should be forced into it. It's going to raise some eyebrows though, particularly if the company had a policy in place of doing so in place at the time when employment started. It's then fair to say that the new employee should have been aware of this expectation before they came on board.

You've hit the nail on the head there. When I was asked about this there was no way I was going to be forced into doing it. But I think had I stayed on they would have found ways to make my life difficult. I'd have always been the odd one out.

whoopsadaisy

Ruraldweller56 wrote: »

OK so how should it work then? Are you in agreement that someone in such a position should be able to refuse with a simple 'no', or should they have to pull their manager aside and explain why their not comfortable based on 'psychological considerations'? Their your employer, not your councillor and its nothing short of bullying being expected to have to explain yourself out of that type of a situation.

People who want to make an honest living very often have to take whatever jobs are available. No one should ever be forced into such a thing if they're not happy with it.

If your employer has a brand strategy that includes featuring its staff on their website, and they have identified this as a marketing tool that would be beneficial in some way to their business, why wouldn't they listen to feedback and seek to understand why an employee is uncomfortable with it? I can't see how trying to get to the bottom of an issue could be considered bullying.

Ruraldweller56

whoopsadaisy wrote: »

If your employer has a brand strategy that includes featuring its staff on their website, and they have identified this as a marketing tool that would be beneficial in some way to their business, why wouldn't they listen to feedback and seek to understand why an employee is uncomfortable with it? I can't see how trying to get to the bottom of an issue could be considered bullying.

I'm sure they would listen to it, I don't really understand the question?

If someone is uncomfortable with it for whatever reason should that not be enough? If it's something deeply personal and your employer is demanding that you spell it out for them then it's crossing the work/personal life line.

Not all of us are best friends with our employers. Some of us just want to be able to come in and do the best job we can without grief.

There was the guy who replied earlier who said he had a stalker before. There were the points I made about the people I'd worked with before one of whom had a birthmark on their face.

Not one defender of this practice responded to any of those points.

Imagine having to explain to your boss that you shifted a girl when you were 18 and she's had an unhealthy obsession with you since. Or that you're 2nd cousin twice removed was involved in the Kinihan/Hutch feud and that you're worried about getting caught in the middle.

None of it at all related to how you perform in your job.

Any number of discussions you should never be forced into having with your employer.