Business execs snub Facebook

Just one of the 12 IT executives in silicon.com's weekly CIO Jury IT user poll said they use Facebook for networking or business-related activities, with most favoring rival social networking tools from either LinkedIn or Plaxo--and good old-fashioned face-to-face contact.

Nicholas Bellenberg, IT director at publisher Hachette Filipacchi UK, said he is on Facebook but only to see how it works.

He said: "It doesn't strike me as being a business tool. I am signed up to LinkedIn and Plaxo. LinkedIn seems to be used most by the people I know, and does seem to generate useful connections or re-connections. Plaxo doesn't seem to do much for me, apart from provide the promise that my contacts are backed up somewhere."

Richard Steel, CIO at the London Borough of Newham, is also on Facebook but again purely for social rather than business-related contacts or networking.

He said: "I actually don't use it all that much as I get irritated at the constant stream of silly applications. I also have concerns about its default privacy settings. I am also on LinkedIn and Plaxo, but haven't actively developed my network. I'm not sure whether that's laziness, lack of time, or failure to prioritize my own future opportunities."

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