Every new generation changes the way companies do business. Young people have always had ideas and ideals that are different to those of the previous generation, and, coupled with the fresh energy of youth, these have caused organisations to evolve. But, until now, I don’t believe these changes have been particularly massive.

Today, though, there is a convergence of several key things that is changing all that – dramatically. Web 2.0 technology means information sharing is much more prevalent than ever before, and Generation Y – or the so-called “Net Generation” – has only known this kind of world. Information sharing is a totally natural thing for them; they’ve already formed those patterns of behaviour, so when they bring those into the workplace there is bound to be an immense impact on organisations.

This is underscored by the fact that most organisations are already making a shift towards heightened levels of openness and collaboration, realising that it’s going to help them get ahead. So, the momentum is already there and Generation Y will accelerate it, and speed the innovation around it.

Of course, it’s right that there should be concern in every organisation about confidentiality. But the situation reminds me of the email policy I encountered when I took my first job at Compaq. Email technology was just emerging and although Compaq was an innovative IT company, it imposed strict rules that banned us from emailing anyone outside of the business. The fear: that all its confidential information would simply flow out of the company. While that may seem risible now, people were deadly serious at the time.

We can draw parallels with corporate attitudes to social media today. But if somebody has the desire to release sensitive information, then they will do it regardless of what security measures or what kind of technology you have in place. If they are intent on acting maliciously, they can simply stuff a document in their pocket, take it home, scan it and post it online.

One of the greater challenges therefore for any IT organisation is to guard against the accidental leaking of information – and doing this boils down to education, which should be a key role for the CIO, together with the HR and marketing departments.

Critically, CIOs should constantly be asking how they can increase productivity, and that involves creating systems that actually enable people to share information in the most appropriate and easiest ways.

At LinkedIn, we believe that increased productivity happens by providing access to information, and the sharing of it through trusted networks. If you use these in the right way, and in the right context, that can be hugely beneficial to the business.

• Kevin Eyres is European managing director of LinkedIn and chairman of online publishing and technology company Spoonfed Media.

Do you agree with Kevin Eyres? Have your say by commenting below. See also this contrasting point of view from Andrew McAfee, author of Enterprise 2.0 and principal research scientist at the MIT Sloan School of Management.