We are watching you.
It’s no secret that the days of protecting workers’ privacy are long gone. Faced with potential harassment lawsuits and serious security breaches due to identity theft, most companies, large and small, have used spyware for monitoring the Internet.
According to a recent Electronic Monitoring & Surveillance Survey, companies are “increasingly putting the brakes on their technology policies.” Of the companies surveyed, 26% have been fired for inappropriate Internet use and 25% for inappropriate e-mail use.
In 2005, 76% of companies were monitoring employee access to websites and blocking inappropriate URLs. Employers monitor content, keystrokes, and keyboard time. E-mails are examined. 55% of those surveyed record and review messages.
Morality and Big Brother
However, this raises the question of whether a high level of surveillance is really counterproductive. What happens to employee productivity if management decides to strictly control the use of the Internet and computer resources?
The answer seems to be that strict monitoring of the Internet and punitive use of its results can have extremely harmful consequences.
Dr. Frank Heasley, a leading expert on healthcare recruitment, explains, “Excessive online monitoring of employee performance is demoralizing. It shows that employers don’t trust their employees and view activities that aren’t directly ‘work’ as mere facetiousness.”
The path to Internet enlightenment…
Employers today are caught between two extreme and contradictory perspectives. Both are fraught with danger.
The first perspective is to establish strict guidelines for Internet and e-mail use, monitor them closely, and take severe disciplinary action for violations. The second is to allow virtually unlimited use of the Internet and e-mail, a “loose” approach that could encourage dangerous abuse by workers.
If Dr. Heasley is to be believed, the first option damages worker morale and ultimately leads to a considerable loss of resources (as workers leave the company in protest) and decreased productivity due to stagnation at work from lack of motivation and anxiety.
The second option could lead to a “freedom for all” situation, in which corporate privacy is seriously threatened.
In between these two extremes lies an approach that protects corporate assets while leaving enough freedom for employees to not feel “briefly and intellectually crushed.”
Steps must be taken that protect the company and create an atmosphere of intellectual freedom that leads to loyalty, creativity, and high performance.
“I feel like someone is watching me…”.
80% of all employers surveyed said they inform their employees that they are being monitored, but it is unclear to what extent this actually deters private use and abuse of the Internet and email.
This means that employees are ‘smart’ enough to know that the company is monitoring their employees. Yes, but there are so many employees here that they don’t know, and besides, what I do isn’t that important.”
This employee continues to use the Internet privately until he suddenly discovers in his supervisor’s office that his Internet and email use is being monitored, and he is almost kicked out of the building.
In addition, unfair and inconsistent application of policy and discipline can lead to moral problems. One employee is known to be productive and is highly valued for his or her skills, but one employee may shop online and another is punished for it.
If you think that unfair or inconsistent policy enforcement goes unnoticed by employees (and leads to their displeasure), think again.
Such practices can lead to low morale, low productivity, and, in extreme cases, legal action.
Toward an Alternative Internet Policy
So how can you develop alternative Internet policies that improve morale and productivity while protecting your company from wasted time and resources, compromise, and legal disputes?
To develop such a policy, business leaders should consider and implement the following
- Implement a consistent monitoring program using software that can record and log emails, websites and chats visited, time spent on websites, Internet messages, and chat conversations.
- Define what constitutes “reasonable use” and what is and is not acceptable. Is it normal to spend 10-15 minutes checking work or personal email, shopping online, or paying bills? Is this to be distinguished from a five-hour online video game session, during which the customer may consume considerable bandwidth when downloading data?
- Determine whether e-mail conversations between friends or secret lovers are as serious and deserve as much attention as e-mails sent to foment a revolt against a superior, embarrass a colleague, or divulge private company information.
- Develop a written policy on Internet, e-mail, and telephone use. Identify steps and disciplinary actions that do not punish employees, but modify their behavior.
- Inform employees of this policy and let them know that they will be monitored. Make it clear that management is looking for serious abuse, not minor abuse, and define what serious abuse is.
- Be prepared to get hooked on the Internet. The Internet is a seriously addictive environment. For some people, it’s like putting an alcoholic in front of a brewery. Before you fire a productive employee, try to work through this addiction with them. One solution might be to remove the Internet from the computer completely.
- For very small businesses with limited budgets, the solution may be to install a computer with Internet access and monitoring software.
In Result
The computer could also be clearly marked with warning signs indicating that Internet use is being monitored. Unauthorized use of the Internet is less likely in public than in the private area of an employee’s workplace. Some may say that they have already done so. However, I would go further and make the Internet and e-mail use a topic of employee evaluation.
Reviewing Internet Use
Performance reviews typically look at different aspects of an employee’s performance during the year and are based on whether they met or exceeded expectations.
There are certain expectations regarding an employee’s use of time, and this includes Internet and e-mail use. Providing employees with paper reports at regular intervals or assessing time spent on the Internet can be helpful.
Most modern monitoring programs record not only the websites visited, but also the time spent on those sites. This can give a black and white picture of the time employees spend on sites that are not relevant to their work. Sites that employees are not allowed to visit are clearly (and visibly) identified.
To the employee’s surprise, a certain amount of private Internet use may be granted “meets expectations” without the supervisor saying much more. This can be translated into a review to assess actual contribution and productivity.
In this way, employees are reminded that, while management monitors Internet activity, there is some leeway in Internet use. With the right approach, the Internet can be seen as a “privilege” or “gift” from management. This can improve employee morale.
Employees who spend a lot of time on unauthorized bandwidth-intensive activities, visit inappropriate websites, and share company information via instant messaging or e-mail should be eliminated before the end of the year. Such activities should not be allowed to continue until after the debriefing.
A consistent, fair and generous Internet policy promotes employee morale and productivity.
Management that manages company resources fairly, equitably and generously (whenever possible) will outperform its competitors in the long run. This attitude translates into lower employee turnover and higher productivity.
By fairly but carefully enforcing a relatively generous and enlightened Internet and e-mail policy, management can send a message to its employees that they are being watched, but that they are still a caring and, to some extent, tolerant “big brother” or “uncle.”
Clear guidelines, fair enforcement, and generous response in a short period of time can improve morale and productivity. Open and honest monitoring creates expectations among employees. Which in itself prevents abuse and protects the company from litigation and loss of intellectual property.
In the long run, such a policy gives companies a competitive advantage. By reducing turnover, improving employee morale, and increasing productivity.
About Author
Sarah Noah Liam is a 28-year-old Software Management person who enjoys programming, ems software, and User Monitoring Software Free. She has a post-graduate degree in Computer science. She was raised in a happy family home with two loving parents.
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