Following the fallout from Domino’s employee gross-out video, a renewed buzz was sparked online about employees and social media. Should companies block social sites, have guidelines on social media use, limit employee interaction with customers online? What about ban, limit or mandate the use of still and video cameras, or the cell phones that contain them?

All of these concerns are valid but simply focus on the negative; I’d prefer to discuss the positive. How can companies use social media to engage with employees? Forget about the public for a minute- and let’s focus on your employees – the group who should be your biggest asset, not your biggest liability.

No doubt there are employees engaging with social media, not only for personal use but as a representative of your company. Just do a quick search on Facebook or Ning and you’ll find hundreds of groups dedicated to employees for various companies: airlines, Best Buy, EBay, and my favorite Who Killed the Bear? a network for former Bear Sterns employees providing support for each other’s job searches. They are sharing their stories, news, complaints and questions.

Instead of just monitoring or trying to control (and inevitably stifle) these public conversations, why not build a new private conversation where you can truly engage with your workforce?

As public communication transforms with social media, companies should also transform their internal communications. A social platform on an intranet allows a company to hear grievances, build culture, share news and discuss possible changes without the fear of public fallouts, leaks of sensitive information or damaged reputations.

At TVG we work with clients to build social networks on their intranet and create their own private social network and discussion board where employees can interact with all levels of management.

Your employees will probably still log in to their public network of choice to connect with fellow workers, but don’t leave that as their only option for communication. Instead of waiting and worrying what workers might say about your company online, create an opportunity to join the discussion, engage with your employees, solve problems, answer questions and improve productivity with a valued workforce.