Facebook Showing Signs of Bureaucracy

Facebook is prepping for a slew of announcements. Facebook Innovations is gradually releasing info to the press “about something.” One anticipated announcement is a site redesign. Just recently reported by Alexa Tsotsis on TechCrunch is the ability for users to “Download Your Information.” People will analyze this a number of ways, but my first take is that this move begins to show that Facebook is starting to show signs of bureaucracy.

I’m not going to state that Facebook is acting like an old, stodgy company steeped in a hundred years of tradition and culture; to the contrary, bureaucracy begins when the features of an organization are at odds with its policies.

A simple example of this is the computer darling now consumer product company of Apple. To keep the story short, the tenure of Apple without Steve Jobs at the helm was when the features of the company were at odds with policies. The primary difference between Apple in the 1990’s and Facebook 2010? We have a more public view of Facebook’s policies and features than insight into Apple’s internal politics.

Policies are tangible claims and promises of a firm to its stakeholders (both consumers and staff alike). People can take action against them in the marketplace and court system. Features are evidence in the products and services of a firm. They result from thinking and conditions created by culture and climate inside the company. Now, while climate can be influenced by rivalry, market forces, and external factors, culture is a bit more steadfast.

So what does this have to do with Facebook giving users the ability to download their information? Glad you asked. Take a look at Facebook’s “Terms“, in particular, look at #2: “Sharing Your Content and Information.” While it sounds great that a user can download all of their content and depart from Facebook, they’ve inadvertently created a gap in policy. You see, now users can leave Facebook without deleting content. Removal of content is *not* deletion of content. And users need to know that there is a distinction between the two.

Specifically, if you look at 2.2, it states:

“When you delete IP content, it is deleted in a manner similar to emptying the recycle bin on a computer. However, you understand that removed content may persist in backup copies for a reasonable period of time  (but will not be available to others).” [emphasis added]

Facebook has just created the veil that will guide more users to ‘extract’ their information rather than delete it. It’s a sign that the features of the platform are showing the ability to lean away from policy, a leading indicator of the climate of an organization.

Now, is this the end of all things Facebook? Hardly. Is it a crisis? Not even close. It is the sign of a firm trying to react to protect marketshare ahead of a competitor. The fact that the article’s second paragraph highlights Diaspora is a sign that the industry is watching both rivals closely.

I mention this contradiction only to highlight that what seems to be an advancement has unintended drawbacks that must be dealt with either by changing policies or redressing functionality. Doing either is an inward process that doesn’t focus on stakeholder value. And both of which are signs of growing bureaucracy.