Nace la corrupción en el sindicalismo Mexicano; Luis Napoleón Morones.

Nace la corrupción en el sindicalismo Mexicano; Luis Napoleón Morones.

Tomado del libro: México acribillado (Francisco Martín Moreno) pag: 241-245

"...Ese era Obregón, el pícaro insaciable que restableció la Secretaría de Educación y construyó centenares de escuelas públicas; reparó y construyó miles de kilómetros de líneas férreas y telegráficas; redujo los efectivos del ejército; renegoció la deuda exterior y, no sin esfuerzos, consiguió el reconocimiento internacional, salvo el de Gran Bretaña. Se trataba de un jefe de Estado dotado de una gran capacidad de trabajo; sin embargo, no pudo controlar las huelgas que paralizaban al país y amenazaban la estabilidad de su gobierno. Si a Carranza le estallaron ciento setenta, al Manco de detonarán casi el doble, trescientas diez, durante su mandato. Años más tarde, ya en 1928, a finales del gobierno de Calles, cuando Morones llegó a ser secretario de Industria y líder indiscutible de la CROM, confederación que vivía se apogeo, tan sólo se darán siete huelgas.
Obregón sabe a ciencia cierta que Luis Napoleón no sólo no controla a los obreros, sino que los incita en su contra. Se acerca en secreto a otros líderes cronistas como Celestino Gasca y posteriormente al propio Samuel Yúdico, hermano político e incondicional de Morones. El sonorense intriga. Piensa en crear una central campesina opuesta a la CROM, opuesta a Morones, quien detenta el poder político de la clase trabajadora del país. Las rivalidades todavía son mudas, sordas, absolutamente silenciosas. Son bombas de tiempo. Se accionarán en cualquier momento. Los resentimientos y la desconfianza recíproca son mechas prendidas, cortas, muy cortas, extraordinariamente cortas. Es entonces, en 1924, que Obregón decide mandar matar a balazos a Luis Napoleón Morones. Un mal bicho, ratero, venal, podrido, desleal, truculento y asesino...
   Obregón sabía de sobra del estilo y la capacidad negociadora de Morones para concluir definitivamente con las huelgas; sin embargo a su gobierno, curiosamente, le estallaban una tras otra como si la CROM quisiera desquiciar su administración. Cuando un líder sindical de cualquier empresa presentaba un pliego petitorio, con su debido emplazamiento, sin haberlo acordado antes de Morones, el representante de los trabajadores recibía una sospechosa llamada para ir a comer... A la hora de los aperitivos, antes de leer siquiera las cartas, Luis Napoleón hacía su primer extrañamiento: -¿Por qué te quieres morir tan pronto...?
-¿Yo...?
-Sí, tú...
-Yo no me quiero morir, ¿quién dice esa pendejada?
-Yo...
-¿Por qué...?
-Por que estallar una huelga sin mi consentimiento implica declarar la guerra a la CROM...
-Los patrones nos explotan, nos matan de hambre con sueldos de miseria...
-Ese punto ni lo discuto...
-¿Entonces...?
-Es imposible cualquier emplazamiento fuera de nuestra órbita...
-¿Por qué, por qué tenemos que afiliarnos contra nuestra voluntad a la CROM?
-Por dos razones políticas y jurídicas: por mis güeros...
¿Es suficiente el argumento?
-Pues por los míos no aceptaremos presiones...
-Bien...
-¿Bien qué...?
-Voltea y revisa tu entorno. Todos estos hombres que ves comiendo pacíficamente son asesinos a sueldo que quién sabe de dónde salieron ni cómo llegaron aquí. Con que yo truene los dedos o dé una voz aumentarás de inmediato de peso, por que te llenarán el pecho y la panza de plomo. Cualquier movimiento extraño que hagas y te irás para el otro lado... y es claro que no me refiero a Estados Unidos...
   Acuérdate de que la huelga de tranviarios acabó en un día luctuoso por que fueron muertos o heridos muchos obreros de ese ramo que se opusieron a acatar mis sugerencias... No pierdas de vista que las oficinas de la CGT fueron tomadas por soldados de acuerdo con mis instrucciones, y todo por que esos malvados se me estaban alebrestando. Una huelga no autorizada por mí acaba, por lo general, a balazos. El propio Obregón anunció que si estalla el conflicto ferrocarrilero lo resolverá por medio de las armas: imposible que permitamos la paralización del país. Ocuparemos militarmente las sedes de los sindicatos opuestos a la CROM, sea el de panaderos o el de tortilleras...
-Esas son chingaderas...
-Más lo son tus intenciones de promover una huelga sin mi beneplácito.
-¿Beneplácito...? ¿Pero quién carajos te sientes...?
-La máxima autoridad obrera del país.
-¿Quién te nombró?
-Yo...
-Pues no estoy de acuerdo...
-¿Quieres que truene los dedos para que empiece la fiesta de las balas...?
-Silencio.
-¿Y que tal que mejor nos afiliamos al obrerismo católico que encabeza el padre Toral desde Guadalajara?
   No lo intentes, mejor no lo intentes, no te conviene; pero además te pregunto: ¿crees que Toral o el arzobispo Jiménez le van a conseguir empleo a tu gente y le van a incrementar los salarios o le van a conseguir tierras, casas, escuelas y alimentación? La Iglesia sirve para los rezos, la primera comunión, los bautizos, las bodas de plata y esas pendejadas, pero cuando ya se habla de otorgar prestaciones a la gente, cuando se trata de pagar o de dar dinero te dirán que le pidas a Dios comprensión y ayuda... Reza, hijo mío, Él sabrá obsequiarte con su Santa Gracia de acuerdo a tus merecimientos...
-Es que yo...
-Es que nada: acércate a mí y te hará senador de la República o diputado del Partido Laborista y además te llenaré los bolsillos de dinero, no de bilimbiques, sino de pesos de plata de los buenos; ahora bien, desafía mi poder, rétame y el choque conmigo equivaldrá a un encontronazo de frente con una locomotora de bajada y a toda velocidad...
-¿Ser senador...?
-Sí, tú y los tuyos...
-¿Cuánto dinero...?
-Lo veremos en su oportunidad. Te garantizo que te hará sonreír...
-Salud, brindo por la CROM y por la larga existencia de Luis Napoleón Morones...
-Bien, hermano, yo brindo por tu amor a la vida, es contagioso...
-¡México empezaba a pudrirse!

The Secret To Creating Loyalty Programs That Actually Work

MARIE-CLAUDE NIDEAU AND MARC SINGER, MCKINSEY & COMPANY MARKETING & SALES PRACTICE

MAR. 21, 2014 12:50 P.M.||

Stephanie Mahe/Reuters

In recent years, loyalty programs that reward buyers for sticking with the brand have steadily grown in popularity. 

Between 2008 and 2012, U.S. loyalty memberships increased by 10 percent per year – reaching over 23 memberships per household. 

But for all their growth and popularity, do loyalty programs really pay off for the companies that offer them? A recent McKinsey study suggests that on average, they do not – and may in fact destroy value for program owners. The study, involving 55 publicly traded North American and European companies, showed that those that spend more on loyalty, or have more visible loyalty programs, grow at about the same rate – or slightly slower – than those that do not (4.4 vs  5.5 percent per year since 2002).

Notably, this trend appears to vary by sector, with loyalty focus having a positive impact on hotel growth, but negative impact on airlines, car rentals, and food retail, for example. However, as a whole, companies surveyed that had higher loyalty spend also had EBITDA margins that were about 10 percent lower than companies in the same sectors that spent less on loyalty. 

Despite relative underperformance in terms of revenue growth and profitability, over the past five years, market capitalization for companies that greatly emphasize loyalty programs has outpaced that of companies that don’t. This may reflect the hope that meaningful loyalty programs can drive long-term value – and perhaps that data amassed through loyalty programs will pay dividends in due time. Still, why do many loyalty programs fail to deliver this long-term value? And how do the winners manage to buck the trend?

Hallmarks of success, the ones that buck the trend

Companies that have developed loyalty programs that succeed in driving revenue growth share some common characteristics:

Integrate loyalty into the full experience:  Starbucks, the brand that created loyalty by differentiating the ordinary experience of drinking coffee, has also managed to create a strongly differentiated loyalty program. To do this, the company integrated payments and mobile technology with the Starbucks shop experience to make the transaction more enjoyable. 

Use the data: The Target REDcard combines loyalty and a valuable discount program – 5 percent at the point of sale. They have moved past the flat “discount-only” model by building out industry- leading data capabilities, using the data to target highest-value consumers (e.g., future moms). 

Build partnerships: Despite Tesco’s massive success at using data to drive loyalty, Sainsbury slightly outpaced the giant’s sales growth in the UK for the last three to four years; in part this could be due to a new form of loyalty program. Sainsbury is the anchor retailer of the Nectar coalition, which allows consumers to collect rewards across a large number of non-competing retailers in the UK. Through Nectar, Sainsbury offers a broader value proposition to its customers, and captures external data from coalition partners. 

Solve customer and industry pain points: Amazon’s largest success in loyalty is built around solving one of online shoppers’ primary pain points: delivery. For $79 a year, members of the online retailer’s “Prime” program get free two-day shipping, plus free digital content. Prime not only integrates tightly with Amazon’s customer and convenience-focused brand, it also creates a loyalty program for suppliers, who rely on Fulfillment By Amazon for access to Prime customers. While Prime’s stand-alone profitability is a closely guarded secret, it is estimated that members spend over four times more with Amazon than non-members. 

Maximize difference between perceived value and real cost: Like most hotel loyalty programs, the major focus of the Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) program is to attract high-value travelers by offering rewards t for personal leisure travel. Redemptions generally occur on weekends, when these hotels have relatively low occupancy and incur limited incremental cost. Starwood has also developed a series of offerings (e.g., upgrades, flexible check-in, Internet) that are highly valuable to their top customers, but bear little marginal cost. Overall, Starwood’s loyalty program has improved its brand appeal and helped the chain achieve above market growth, despite relatively low overall guest satisfaction scores. 

Allocate loyalty reinvestment to the most profitable customers: Southwest Airlines’ loyalty program has been a hallmark of its brand, and the 2010 revamping of the program appears to have maintained its customer appeal, while better correlating its spend to profitability. While most airlines attach rewards to miles flown, Southwest offers rewards based on ticket price. Their loyalty rewards spend remains similar to that of other loyalty-focused airlines (i.e., 8 to 9 percent of revenue passenger miles), but the program is better positioned to drive profitability. 

Loyalty programs are not only growing, but they are also becoming more tightly integrated with the supporting brand and shopping experience, offering consumers a seamless experience across point of sale, the Internet, phone and mobile channels. Consumer-facing businesses must think beyond the concept of a me-too, points-based loyalty program. To reap the full benefits of customer loyalty, they must create a differentiated experience, consistent with their brand, to provide a step change in brand preference. 

How To Wow Everyone In A Meeting And Leave Them Wanting More

JACQUELYN SMITH

Most organizations have risk-averse cultures, and selling ideas to your boss or coworkers can be difficult, since no one wants to get blamed if it fails.

In fact, meetings, with their committee mentality and tendency to perpetually defer decisions, were invented in large part to thwart new ideas, says Al Pittampalli, author of "Read This Before Our Next Meeting." "That doesn't mean it's impossible to sell your ideas. But you will need some courage and the right strategy."

Here are 12 tips for wowing everyone in a meeting with your ideas:

1. Warm them up before the meeting.

Most people need a little time to embrace a new idea, Pittampalli says. "Consider sending a thoughtful memo, or better yet, meeting with key people one-on-one the week before the meeting. They'll appreciate the personal attention and will allow you to tailor your pitch to their specific needs." By the time the meeting rolls around they may be ready to move in your direction. Even better, they may act as your advocate at the meeting helping you convince others. 

2. Be passionate.

Nothing sells an idea like passion and enthusiasm. "It's infectious," says Amy Hoover, president ofTalentZoo. "If you're not buying into an idea, then it's likely that neither will those around you."

3. Offer a strong case.

What evidence do you have that your idea is a good one? Point to facts or data that support the validity of your idea. "Imagine you're a lawyer making a case to the jury. What is exhibit A, and what is exhibit B?" Pittampalli says.

4. Appeal to their emotions.

Pittampalli suggests that you find ways to engage participants' emotions. "Paint a vivid picture of the probable future if your idea is accepted. Now paint a dismal scene of the future if the idea doesn't happen. Use stories. Nothing moves people emotionally more than a good story."

5. Be flexible.

If you hear something that makes sense, be ready to adjust your pitch or presentation, Hoover says.

6. Sell the test.

Many ideas are too big and scary to sell up front. "Is there a way you can test your idea on a smaller scale first? A pilot? An experiment? Sell that," Pittampalli says. The team will be more likely to go for it if there’s a way to test drive the idea without putting too much on the line. 

7. Listen.

Asking questions and listening to the answers is a great way to interact with your audience and show that they're important to the presentation, Hoover says. "They'll be more receptive to being 'sold.’"

8. Be confident, but not overconfident.

A confident delivery will demonstrate how strongly you believe in your idea. But don't make the mistake of being cocky. "No idea has a 100% chance of success and pretending like yours does might damage your credibility. Honesty and humility are your friends," Pittampalli says.

9. Accept responsibility for your idea.

Make it clear to your boss and coworkers that if the idea fails, you're prepared to accept the blame, Pittampalli says. (But remember: You should always be confident in your ideas before presenting them to your audience.)

10. Don't give up too soon. 

The rejection of a great idea at a meeting is not the exception; it's the norm. Hoover says most people give up too easily. "Don't take no for an answer — but don’t be too pushy, either. You have to know your audience and when to back off. It's a fine line to walk."

11. Choose an idea that doesn't require permission.

"Some people subconsciously choose big, bombastic ideas they know will never get approved, so that they never have to act on them," Pittampalli explains. Instead, try to think of ideas you can pursue without an OK from your boss. If it's good and you're successful, it will help you build the reputation of someone that has good ideas. That'll make it easier to sell your next big idea.

12. Follow up after the presentation with emails.

Continue the conversation by reminding those in the meeting that you’re happy to answer any questions and that you’re open to any suggestions related to the ideas you just presented.

Why Good Managers Are So Rare

by RANDALL BECK AND JAMES HARTER

Comments (37) |  March 13, 2014

Gallup has found that one of the most important decisions companies make is simply whom they name manager. Yet our analysis suggests that they usually get it wrong. In fact, Gallup finds that companies fail to choose the candidate with the right talent for the job 82% of the time.

Bad managers cost businesses billions of dollars each year, and having too many of them can bring down a company. The only defense against this massive problem is a good offense, because when companies get these decisions wrong, nothing fixes it. Businesses that get it right, however, and hire managers based on talent will thrive and gain a significant competitive advantage.

Managers account for at least 70% of variance in employee engagement scores across business units, Gallup estimates. This variation is in turn responsible for severely low worldwide employee engagement. Gallup reported in two large-scale studies in 2012 that only 30% of U.S. employees are engaged at work, and a staggeringly low 13% worldwide are engaged. Worse, over the past 12 years these low numbers have barely budged, meaning that the vast majority of employees worldwide are failing to develop and contribute at work.

Gallup has studied performance at hundreds of organizations and measured the engagement of 27 million employees and more than 2.5 million work units over the past two decades. No matter the industry, size, or location, we find executives struggling to unlock the mystery of why performance varies so immensely from one workgroup to the next. Performance metrics fluctuate widely and unnecessarily within most companies, in no small part from the lack of consistency in how people are managed. This “noise” frustrates leaders because unpredictability causes great inefficiencies in execution.

Executives can cut through this noise by measuring what matters most. Gallup hasdiscovered links between employee engagement at the business-unit level and vital performance indicators, including customer metrics; higher profitability, productivity, and quality (fewer defects); lower turnover; less absenteeism and shrinkage (i.e., theft); and fewer safety incidents. When a company raises employee engagement levels consistently across every business unit, everything gets better.

To make this happen, companies should systematically demand that every team within their workforce have a great manager. After all, the root of performance variability lies within human nature itself. Teams are composed of individuals with diverging needs related to morale, motivation, and clarity — all of which lead to varying degrees of performance. Nothing less than great managers can maximize them.

But first, companies have to find those great managers.

If great managers seem scarce, it’s because the talent required to be one is rare. Gallup finds that great managers have the following talents:

• They motivate every single employee to take action and engage them with a compelling mission and vision.
• They have the assertiveness to drive outcomes and the ability to overcome adversity and resistance.
• They create a culture of clearaccountability.
• They build relationships that create trust, open dialogue, and full transparency.
• They make decisions that are based on productivity, not politics.

Gallup’s research reveals that about one in ten people possess all these necessary traits. While many people are endowed with some of them, few have the unique combination of talent needed to help a team achieve excellence in a way that significantly improves a company’s performance. These 10%, when put in manager roles, naturally engage team members and customers, retain top performers, and sustain a culture of high productivity. Combined, they contribute about 48% higher profit to their companies than average managers.

It’s important to note that another two in 10 exhibit some characteristics of basic managerial talent and can function at a high level if their company invests in coaching and developmental plans for them.

In studying managerial talent in supervisory roles compared with the general population, we find that organizations have learned ways to slightly improve the odds of finding talented managers. Nearly one in five (18%) of those currently in management roles demonstrate a high level of talent for managing others, while another two in 10 show a basic talent for it. Still, this means that companies miss the mark on high managerial talent in 82% of their hiring decisions, which is an alarming problem for employee engagement and the development of high-performing cultures in the U.S. and worldwide.

Sure, every manager can learn to engage a team somewhat. But without the raw, natural talent to individualize; focus on each person’s needs and strengths; boldly review their team members; rally people around a cause; and execute efficient processes, the day-to-day experience will burn out both the manager and his or her team. As noted earlier, this basic inefficiency in identifying talent costs companies hundreds of billions of dollars annually.

Conventional selection processes are a big contributor to inefficiency in management practices; little science or research is applied to find the right person for the managerial role. When Gallup asked U.S. managers why they believed they were hired for their current role, they commonly cited their success in a previous non-managerial role or their tenure in their company or field.

These reasons don’t take into account whether the candidate has the right talent to thrive in the role. Being a very successful programmer, salesperson, or engineer, for example, is no guarantee that someone will be even remotely adept at managing others.

Most companies promote workers into managerial positions because they seemingly deserve it, rather than because they have the talent for it. This practice doesn’t work. Experience and skills are important, but people’s talents — the naturally recurring patterns in the ways they think, feel, and behave — predict where they’ll perform at their best. Talents are innate and are the building blocks of great performance. Knowledge, experience, and skills develop our talents, but unless we possess the right innate talents for our job, no amount of training or experience will matter.

Very few people are able to pull off all five of the requirements of good management. Most managers end up with team members who are at best indifferent toward their work — or are at worst hell-bent on spreading their negativity to colleagues and customers. However, when companies can increase their number of talented managers and double the rate of engaged employees, they achieve, on average, 147% higher earnings per share than their competition.

It’s important to note — especially in the current economic climate — that finding great managers doesn’t depend on market conditions or the current labor force. Large companies have approximately one manager for every 10 employees, and Gallup finds that one in 10 people possess the inherent talent to manage. When you do the math, it’s likely that someone on each team has the talent to lead. But given our findings, chances are that it’s not the manager. More likely, it’s an employee with high managerial potential waiting to be discovered.

The good news is that sufficient management talent exists in every company – it’s often hiding in plain sight. Leaders should maximize this potential by choosing the right person for the next management role using predictive analytics to guide their identification of talent.

For too long, companies have wasted time, energy, and resources hiring the wrong managers and then attempting to train them to be who they’re not. Nothing fixes the wrong pick

Posting Guidelines

We hope the conversations that take place on HBR.org will be energetic, constructive, and thought-provoking. To ensure the quality of the discussion, our moderating team will review all comments and may edit them for clarity, length, and relevance. Comments that are overly promotional, mean-spirited, or off-topic may be deleted per the moderators' judgment.

All postings become the property of Harvard Business School Publishin

8 to be great

1- Passion

2- Work

3- Focus

4- Push

5- Ideas

6- Improve

7- Serve

8- Persist

The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail

The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail

BY CLAYTON M. CHRISTENSEN

Source: Harvard Business Press Books

288 pages. Publication Date: nov 19, 2013. Prod. #: 1196XE-KND-ENG

The bestselling classic on disruptive innovation, by renowned author Clayton M. Christensen. His work is cited by the world's best-known thought leaders, from Steve Jobs to Malcolm Gladwell. In this classic bestseller--one of the most influential business books of all time--innovation expert Clayton Christensen shows how even the most outstanding companies can do everything right--yet still lose market leadership. Christensen explains why most companies miss out on new waves of innovation. No matter the industry, he says, a successful company with established products will get pushed aside unless managers know how and when to abandon traditional business practices. Offering both successes and failures from leading companies as a guide, "The Innovator's Dilemma" gives you a set of rules for capitalizing on the phenomenon of disruptive innovation. Sharp, cogent, and provocative--and consistently noted as one of the most valuable business ideas of all time--"The Innovator's Dilemma" is the book no manager, leader, or entrepreneur should be without.

Guide to Giving Effective Feedback

Guide to Giving Effective Feedback

BY CYNTHIA MORRISON PHOEL, SHARON GRADY, AMY GALLO, CHRISTINA BIELASZKA-DUVERNAY, JEAN-FRANCOIS MANZONI, TIMOTHY BUTLER, JEAN-LOUIS BARSOUX, TAMMY ERICKSON, PETER BREGMAN, TOM KRATTENMAKER

Source: Harvard Business Review

134 pages. Publication Date: feb 09, 2011. Prod. #: 10667-SBC-ENG

Are you struggling with a problem employee? Worried about losing your star performer to competitors? Do you dread annual performance appraisals? Praying for a reorg to relieve you of that slacker isn't the answer-frequent feedback is. Brimming with actionable advice on everything from delivering detailed on-the-spot feedback to determining if your employee is ready for a promotion, this guide will give you the tools and confidence you need to master giving effective feedback. Whether your employees are on track or off base, learn how to: incorporate ongoing feedback into your daily interactions with employees; highlight the impact of your employee's behavior on his team and the larger organization; coach your star performer to the next level; reinforce organizational values and goals with recognition of individuals' performance; deliver constructive criticism without generating anger or defensiveness; transform performance appraisals from dreaded meetings into catalysts for growth; and motivate your people even when financial times are tough.

This collection includes: Giving Effective Feedback: Why and How; Feedback That Works; Giving a High Performer Productive Feedback; Are You Using Recognition Effectively?; A Better Way to Deliver Bad News; The Set-Up-to-Fail Syndrome; The Double Meaning of "Feedback"; Stop Worrying About Your Employees' Weaknesses; Formal Performance Appraisals; Appraising Employee Performance in a Downsized Organization; Making Sure Your People Succeed: How to Set and Support Employee Goals; When to Reward Employees with More Responsibility and Money; How to Navigate Bonus Season; and Tips for Record Keeping.

Arm yourself with the advice you need to succeed on the job, from a source you trust. Packed with how-to essentials from leading experts, the HBR Guides provide smart answers to your most pressing work challenges.

Zuckerberg 'frustrated' by US spying

OZuckerberg 'frustrated' by US spying

Last updated 13/03/2014 19:23 GMT-6

Mr Zuckerberg said that the internet needed to be made more secure for users

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has said he has called President Barack Obama to "express frustration" over US digital surveillance.

The 29-year-old said in a blog post the US government "should be the champion for the internet, not a threat".

His comments come a day after a report the US National Security Agency (NSA) imitated a Facebook server to infect surveillance targets' computers.

The NSA said the report was "inaccurate".

Mr Zuckerberg said in September that the US "blew it" on internet spying.

The tech founder wrote on Thursday "it seems like it will take a very long time for true full reform".

Broken trust?

"When our engineers work tirelessly to improve security, we imagine we're protecting you against criminals, not our own government," he said in his blog post.

"The US government should be the champion for the internet, not a threat.

"They need to be much more transparent about what they're doing, or otherwise people will believe the worst."

The NSA's activities were leaked by a former contractor for the agency, Edward Snowden, last year.

His leaks have pointed to the NSA collecting phone records, tapping fibre-optic cables that carry global communications and hacking networks.

According to the documents, the agencies had "backdoor" access to the servers of nine major technology companies including Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook, PalTalk, AOL, Skype, YouTube and Apple.

All the companies named have denied their involvement.

The NSA called the latest claims, that it expanded surveillance by using malware, "inaccurate".

The agency said in a statement: "The NSA uses its technical capabilities only to support lawful and appropriate foreign intelligence operations, all of which must be carried out in strict accordance with its authorities."

White House spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden confirmed that the president spoke with Mr Zuckerberg on Wednesday evening regarding "recent reports in the press about alleged activities by the US intelligence community.'' She gave no further comment.

'Setting fire'

Since claims emerged that the security services were using social media and technology companies to monitor people, Facebook has teamed up with Google, Apple, Microsoft, Twitter, AOL, LinkedIn and Yahoo to form an alliance called Reform Government Surveillance.

The group has called for "wide-scale changes" to US government snooping.

In his latest blog post, Mr Zuckerberg said that to keep the internet strong, "we need to keep it secure".

Earlier this week, Mr Snowden told a conference that mass surveillance conducted by the US and other governments was "setting fire to the future of the internet".

Earlier this month, European Commission Vice-President Neelie Kroes said billions of people around the world do not trust the internet.