With the extraordinary reach of social media (sites like Facebook or MySpace, blogs, or Twitter) in Generation Y, there is no question that these tools can be used to build connections with Millennial employees. But before you ever sign on to a social networking site for your work purposes, there are three things YOU SHOULD CONSIDER VERY CAREFULLY:

1. Do you really want a look at this person’s private life? As tech-savvy as Gen Y can be, they can be pretty naive in terms of privacy. I know I’ve had more than one regrettable picture show up on Facebook after a wild Friday night. If you don’t want to think about your young employees making stupid decisions, of if you can’t handle finding out what they say about their jobs when they’re not there, don’t even sign up.

2. What will other people think about the actions you take? Ask yourself this: If I were a 16-year-old girl’s parent, how would I feel about her 35-year-old manager adding her as a friend on MySpace? How would your HR manager feel about it?

3. Exactly what are you looking to accomplish? Remember, the purpose of this exercise is to focus on building relationships with your young employees so you can manage them more effectively. If they feel like you’re spying on them, or if you’re spending time but getting no ROI, this isn’t something you should be doing.