Reducing Internet Misuse

"While technology solutions, such as monitoring and filtering software, and Internet usage policies are great deterrents to Internet misuse, the bottom line is that employees will conform to the established organizational culture."

www.internetmisuse.com is a website that has many articles about the different areas associated with internet misuse, from employee internet addiction to finding an internet policy that works well for your particular company. One article that I found particularly interesting was an article called "Create a Positive Organizational Culture to Reduce Internet Misuse". For those of you who have taken Management and Organizational Behavior you will see that many of the things talked about in that class are mentioned in this article. The article discusses employee morale, reward systems, goal setting, and leadership and how all these things can either increase or decrease employee's misuse of the internet. Take a look!

http://www.fosterinstitute.com/articles/intmisuse/pdf/im06_culture.pdf

Advantages and Disadvantages of Monitoring Internet Misuse

When reading the title of this article you are probably thinking: "There are no disadvantages of monitoring internet misuse at work." However, there are surprisingly a few disadvantages that can come out of monitoring employees internet use and we shall take a look at them now as well as some of the advantages.

Advantages:

• Ensure Proper Internet Use
• With monitoring internet use employers can see what their employees are doing and act accordingly.
• Increased Security
• Monitoring can prevent potential malware and spyware hacks that could potentially interrupt business operations.
• Higher Employee Productivity
• Employees that are aware that they are being monitored are less likely to spend time slacking on the job.

Disadvantages:

• Decreased Morale
• Constantly monitoring a loyal employee can lower self-esteem.
• Employees that are actually using the internet for a legitimate purpose may feel as though their boss does not trust them, etc.
• Lowered Productivity
• Behavior studies have shown a correlation between morale and lowered productivity. An employees morale and confidence can directly impact their performance at work which ultimately will impact the organization as well.
• Privacy Issues
• Obviously with an employer monitoring their employee there isn't 100% privacy.
• Employees complain about being watched, but at the same time they are using equipment owned and supplied by the employer so there is some conflict there.

Source:

http://www.helium.com/items/1820669-pros-and-cons-of-monitoring-employees-internet-use?page=2

Can internet misuse actually increase productivity?

While there are some major problems with internet misuse in the workplace, does it actually decrease productivity? "According to the influential University of Melbourne study with Dr. Brent Coker, not only does internet use at work not result in decreased productivity, but, in fact, employees who accessed Facebook periodically throughout the workday actually showed a 9% increase in productivity." However, the decrease in productivity would start if employees started to only use the internet for personal use. Everything should be done in moderation. I personally use the internet for personal use at work. I will put on Netflix on the background while I do work, and I find that I actually end up getting a lot of work done, and I'm entertained while I'm doing it. I think that a little bit of personal use can keep you motivated, and even keep you on task.
Do you think that you can multitask at work and still be productive? How much misuse is too much?




http://www.andrewjensen.net/cellphones-facebook-and-personal-email-affect-productivity-at-work/

Ethics Behind Employee Monitoring

"Internet monitoring in the workplace may put employers and employees at odds because both sides are trying to protect personal interests. Employees want to maintain privacy while employers want to ensure company resources aren't misused."

With the advancement of technology employers can monitor almost every second of time that their employees spend on their computer, both where they are going on the internet and how much time they are spending there. With this ability, many employees have raised many questions as to whether monitoring is really an ethical way to deal with the ongoing problem of internet misuse. Employees often question if monitoring an employee's every move on the internet is even legal. I mean after all every employee has a right to privacy, correct? Many employees have taken their employers to court over this issue of person privacy claiming that internet monitoring is a violation of their 4th amendment right. They claim that the monitoring could be equivalent to an illegal search and seizure of property. 


While employees are screaming privacy, employers are screaming productivity. The two parties must come together to reach an agreement on the issues of misuse and monitoring. Employees must realize the negative impacts of internet misuse and employers must implement policies that are explained and accepted by all employees. 


Source: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/ethical-issues-employer-monitoring-internet-usage-12617.html

Does Internet Use at Work Increase Employee Productivity?

Internet in the Workplace has a negative connotation attached to it. You automatically think negatively when you hear those words. But the question is, could internet use in the workplace actually be a "good" thing? A study performed by Melbourne University states that internet misuse actually increases productivity. "People who do surf the internet for fun at work - within a reasonable limit of less than 20 per cent of their total time in the office - are more productive by about nine per cent than those who don't," said Dr Coker, from the university's Department of Management and Marketing.


This is very interesting considering the reason many companies have internet policies is to prevent a decrease in productivity. The fact that a study has proven otherwise is something that companies need to research. Maybe after some additional research on this subject, new policies can be put into place in order to increase employee productivity. An interesting idea could be to have designated "surf times" where employees are free to surf the internet for a certain amount of time. Another idea could be to have the internet linked to a timer that only allows surfing for that 20% of the time discussed in the study. Not only could these ideas encourage new employees to become interested in the company, but could help the attitude of current ones and create a more enjoyable work environment. 


Has anyone experienced what seems like an increase in productivity because of permitted internet use? Does anyone work at a company where internet browsing permitted for productivity purposes?

Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/technology/workplace-web-bludging-good-for-productivity-20090402-9ktm.html#ixzz1qnphgNwq

Signs of Employee Internet Addiction

 Everyone does a little online chatting or shopping at work here and there, so it doesn't strike as much of a problem to some. However, as I mentioned before, employee internet misuse costs a great amount of money in lost productivity every year. So how can you predict if an employee may be misusing the internet while on the job? Well, an Internet addicted employee will also be an Internet abusing employee. Here are a few questions to ask that may alert you to Internet addiction among your co-workers, employees, or even yourself:

Do you or your employees lose track of time when online?

Do you log on to the Internet with every intention of doing work-related research, only to find yourself still surfing hours later, but now for personal material? Does the amount of time you spend online worry you? Or, are you concerned that your employees are losing track of time when they’re online? Granted, everyone may lose track of time once in a while when conducting intensive research; however, if it’s a common occurrence and you can’t recall the information you’ve been viewing online, there may be an Internet addiction problem.

Do you routinely have more personal than work-related e-mail in your e-mail box every day?

Everyone likes to socialize, and e-mail offers the perfect way for employees to socialize without leaving their desks. Unfortunately, it’s easy to let the messages get out of hand. One online poll conducted by vault.com revealed that 51% of employees admit to receiving 1-5 non-work related emails per day, and 17% receive 6-10. Additionally, 7% admit to sending over 20 personal e-mails per day. If you monitor your company’s e-mail activity, you may want to occasionally check who sends what and to where. Those employees who send and receive an unusual amount of personal e-mails may have a problem.

Are you or any of your employees preoccupied with the Internet?

Are you constantly thinking about your most recent online adventure, or do you sit at your desk anxious to log on again? Do you notice employees who continually obsess over the Internet, as if they can’t wait to get online again? Or do you have employees whose conversation topics routinely focus around the Internet and something they saw online?

Do you or your employees become irritated when it’s time to log off or when the Internet is down for the day?

Have you tried to stop your Internet surfing, only to become depressed or angry for no reason? Do you become frustrated when you have to dial up for an Internet connection and can’t get through? If your network is down for a few hours or the entire day, do you or any of your employees become hostile? When an Internet addicted employee can’t get his or her “fix,” it’s very common for emotions such as anger and frustration to surface.

Source:
Be Alert to the Signs of Employee Internet Addiction by Mike Foster

Top 10 blacklisted Websites at Work

Employers are blacklisting or blocking websites to prevent employees from getting on them at work. People are finding ways around blocked websites by using their mobile phones, or setting them up as a wifi hotspot thus bypassing any security measures taken by employers. Due to the use of smartphones, employees are able to access all the want, the wasteful websites without having to worry about punishment from superiors.

Below is a list of 2010’s top 10 blocked websites. It is not shocking that Facebook was the number one at 14.2%. 

But with all these restrictions being put on Internet, do you think employees would be more enticed to use websites such as facebook just because they aren’t allowed?   




http://www.michaelhartzell.com/Blog/bid/58842/The-Top-Ten-Blacklisted-Websites-in-Business-Facebook-1