Online at work, offline in output!!!

This is must -read.... most of us face similar problem at our workplace

With technology being vouched for as the biggest boon by all organisations, misuse of technology has also become a major problem for most of them. Here are some ways ways to curb this lethal trend.

The usual workplace has undergone immense changes in technology in the past years and these technological advances are nothing short of astonishing. Employees now have access to a world of information at their fingertips.

With all these developments, what comes across, as a problem is the misuse and abuse of technology by employees. It has been observed that employees often spend excessive amounts of work time pursuing personal interests online, all of which distract them from their work. While employees crib in hushed tones about restricted access to the net, employer’s reason that the net is a ‘privilege’ and its unsanctioned use affects productivity.


THE INTERNETO-PHOBIA

“TECHNOLOGY is like a double edged sword,” opines Rammohan Menon, Sr. VP – Applications Delivery, Inatech InfoSolutions Pvt. Ltd, adding, “The situation here is entirely different from countries like Saudi Arabia and China where the free flow of information, ideas and creativity is hindered and impaired by restrictions on Internet access.

However, unrestricted access also opens the possibility to abuse and constant distraction from work, resulting in low productivity.” Khyati Bhinde, Senior Manager – Marketing and Business Strategy, Unisource Group agrees, “There can be major disadvantages to giving employees complete freedom to use technology at the workplace. As in some cases, it could have drastic effects on the performance levels of the employees.” Technology has numerous facets, and this leads to different kinds of abuse by employees.

But the most commonly found abuse across organisations is the access to the Internet. According to Prashant Photnis, GM - IT and Systems, Spykar Lifestyle, “The biggest disadvantage of the recent technological developments at workplace is the Internet. An employee should treat this tool for the access of information for work-related purpose, but unfortunately it does not happen always. He/she is found to be more engaged in accessing Internet for his/her personal requirements, chatting, creating different email accounts, Internet shopping or plain surfing in order to kill time.”

“In most organisations, usage of mobile phones, personal emails and chat sessions using various types of messengers are the most common examples of misuse of technology at workplace,” informs Menon. The Unisource Group too has instances of similar kinds of abuse of technology.

“In the past, the company has witnessed problems related to the misuse of technology, right from surfing unauthorised sites, to employees accessing data that is irrelevant to their job requirements, to downloading software and information that does not add any value to the job at hand. There is also a danger of employees accessing illegal and unauthorised websites that might cause systems to be affected with viruses,” adds Bhinde.

So how does one get rid of this menace at workplace? Different organisations adopt different ways to curb the abuse of technology in their respective organisations. Employers today have access to a wealth of monitoring and tracking technologies to verify whether employees are performing their assigned responsibilities and using technology in an appropriate, lawful manner.

Devices such as video cameras and Internet site visitation records are common means of employee monitoring. These have been supplemented in recent years by more sophisticated technology such as keystroke software, which allows employers to obtain a record of every key entered by an employee and packet-sniffing software that allows employers to track most employee communications.

At Unisource, the company has installed various firewalls and proxies that enable employees to gain access to only work related websites. “The requirement of employees with regards to technology is reviewed and heads of respective departments grant access, depending on the requirement. Pendrives and CD writers are disabled to avoid leakage of information which is another threat to the safety of the organisation,” informs Bhinde.

According to Menon, “We have restricted use of some sites that pose a threat and provide scope for unwanted use of the Internet. We monitor Internet usage and access to chat rooms using network-sniffers and technologies of a similar ilk.”

I’LL BE WATCHING YOU!

BUT restrictions end up making the employee feel pressurised and issues regarding one’s right to privacy might be raised. Is it fair to invade into the lives of employees and keep a watch at all their activities at workplace? How do organisations then monitor their employees’ use of technology?

“No, I don’t think monitoring employees is conducive to their productivity and morale. We, at Inatech, treat individuals as professionals and we like to perceive ourselves as enablers of technology and progress – not the converse. Inatech culture is one of an ‘open book’ and we treat employees with a certain level of maturity and professionalism. Most of them reciprocate in the same fashion,” expresses Menon. On the contrary, Photnis states, “At Spykar, we feel that it is very important to monitor employees’ activities.”

“An employee spends a better part of his/her day at the workplace, and so the work environment should be conducive to being able to garner the best an employee has to offer.

However, if an employee’s performance dips remarkably, without a plausible explanation, reports can be analysed to cross verify their actual levels of productivity,” adds Bhinde, expressing respect towards an employee’s privacy and also assuring that minimal misuse of technology at workplace is taken care of. So while “snooping” on employees might be politically incorrect for most organisations, “keeping checks and balances” is all in a day’s work!