Social Media Meltdown of the Week

THIS WEEK’s PERP:

Paula Deen, Restaurant Entrepreneur

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THE FACTS:

Ms. Deen and her younger brother Earl Hiers recently decided to close their restaurant in Savanna, GA  – Uncle Bubba’s Seafood & Oyster House.  The restaurant was apparently profitable, but Deen’s brother Hiers decided that he stood to make much more money by closing shop and then exploiting development options on its prime waterfront location.  Unfortunately, none of the employees were told that they were now out of a job; they had to find out on Facebook.  Those who didn’t sign in to Facebook found out when they got to work and saw movers dismantling the restaurant.

THE INCRIMINATING EVIDENCE:

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THE FALLOUT:

Ms. Deen has enjoyed her fair share of bad publicity of late, and the small gaffe detailed here is quite minor by comparison.  Add this to a long list of employee grievances.

THE LESSON:

This meltdown highlight one of the problems of using social media – more specifically when not to use social media to communicate.  Any good Head of HR anywhere will tell you that hiring and firing employees is a delicate process, better handled face to face.  

Shield your organization against Social Media Risk.  Here’s HOW.