Enterprise social networking underscores growing generation gap

Businesses are still trying to figure out what to make of social networking. The knee-jerk impulse at some companies is to ban its use because it's insecure and seen as unproductive, while at others it's viewed as, in fact, the way a lot of people now get work done.

The debate gets into familiar territory -- balancing business benefits versus risks -- and some that's not so familiar: Is a new generation in the workforce wired differently because of Facebook and Twitter? There's a growing generation gap between those who have grown up immersed in the Internet and those who think using social network sites is no more productive than spending work time surfing e-Bay, Amazon, ESPN.com, or, for that matter, porn and gambling sites. Companies often cite productivity, even more than security, as the prime reason for banning social networking.