We are embarking on a discussion of "e-policy," a newfangled merger of employment and "e" concepts. Call it workplace meets Cyber world - but whatever you call it, you must call it risk city.

Why so much risk? Because the workplace brings with it a host of issues to begin with - from alleged misconduct, to harassment to discrimination. Add to that a medium such as the Internet which allows employees the opportunity to (1) look like they are working while actually ordering fuzzy slippers on LandsEnd.com (productivity issues/lack of employee focus, and thus potential mistakes), (2) send sexually explicit jokes to all of their friends on "company letterhead" (to the extent all company email messages have a "tag line" referencing the fact that the message came from a company-sponsored computer); or (3) otherwise wreak havoc at work.

So, what can you do?

Well, like everything, recognizing the problem and the potential disastrous consequences means you are pretty far along in the process already. The next step is developing an effective "e-policy" that makes sense for your business and its culture.

Now, of course a 6-person operation will be different from a 1000 person pharmaceutical company, so the e-policy should be tailored to your business and its culture.

Three primary areas of concern: (1) legal exposure (from harassment, misuse and inappropriate dissemination of company information, for example); (2) considerable loss of productivity; (3) negative affect on the work product from lack of focus (we seem to be much less careful with our email correspondence than we are with a "real" piece of mail); and (4) security problems (IT issues are beyond these scope of this column but heavily implicated in any "e-policy" discussion).

In developing your e-policy (which should be a written document that outlines required as well as prohibited "cyber conduct), be mindful of your existing policies with respect to human resources, information technology, and the best way to implement these new strategies.

Clarify how Internet may and may not be used; restrictions on message content; requirements for verification prior to dissemination; whether the 

company may monitor messages; and the possible ramifications of failing to adhere to the requirements of the policy. You may want your favorite "e-lawyer" to help you put the policy together, or at least look at the final draft and help devise an appropriate plan for implementation.

As with all office policies, be clear; educate; and ENFORCE the policy in a consistent, evenhanded way. Involve your HR, IT and legal staffs, since e-policy issues are multi-disciplinary.

Once you take these basic steps you will be on your way to assuming some semblance of control over the "wild, wild web," and its effect on your business.

Good luck, and may you never read the text of one of your employee's emails in the newspaper!

"This article is prepared by Miller & Mitchell, P.C. We do not recommend acting on the information contained in this article without obtaining specific professional advice. These articles focus on broadly applicable legal principles. Contact Miller & Mitchell, P.C. for legal counsel."

For more information on e-policy and other workplace issues, contact Miller & Mitchell, P.C. cmiller@millermitchell.com

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