Are you spying on your employees? It’s not worth it

This post is about trust (or lack of it) in the workplace and was inspired by an article titled Not Safe for Work by Jesse Brown, as well as the book Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier. I was struck by the similarities in the perspective of both sources.

Spying is demotivating

Brown suggests that employee spying is a wide-spread tactic based on the outdated assumption that free use of the internet is taking workers away from their tasks and therefore impairs their productivity. He cites an Australian study from 2009 which says that Websurfing for pleasure actually increases productivity (about 9%) if it takes less than 20% of a worker's time.  "(...) if on-line banking saves a worker from taking a 40-minute break, then that time away from work will surely be reclaimed on Facebook. If Facebook is blocked, the employee will instead fraternize at the coffee machine" says Jesse Brown. "And if that worker feels spied on and censored, surveilled and suspected, he will resent it, and his boss, and the company, and life at work will be that much harder for all."

Rework shares the sentiment: "When you treat people like children, you get children's work. (...) What do you gain if you ban employees from, say, visiting a social-networking site or watching YouTube while at work? You gain nothing. That time doesn't magically convert to work. They'll just find some other diversion.  And look, you're not going to get a full eight hours a day out of people anyway. That's a myth. They might be at the office for eight hours, but they're not actually working eight hours. People need diversions. It helps disrupt the monotony of the workday. A little YouTube or Facebook time never hurt anyone.”

Spying is costly

Brent Coker, professor of management and marketing at the University of Melbourne, who conducted the Australian study comments that "Firms spend millions on software to block their employees from watching videos on YouTube, using social networking sites like Facebook or shopping on-line under the pretence that it costs millions in lost productivity. However, that's not always the case." 

Again, Rework agrees: “Then there's all that money and time you spend policing this stuff. How much does it cost to set up surveillance software? How much time do IT employees waste on monitoring other employees instead of working on project that's actually valuable? (...) Look at the costs and you quickly realize that failing to trust your employees is awfully expensive." 

Social media savvy employees might be great resources for new ideas

Jesse Brown makes another excellent point: the employees who are most active on social media might just turn out to be some of your greatest resources for new ideas, as they are savvy technology users, well connected, and tapped into the customer. The way I look at it is that they could probably teach senior executives a thing or two (check out Get More Media Savvy by Mitch Joel). If only someone was willing to listen.

They might be brand ambassadors too

Some companies do understand the trend, however, and are not trying to stick to the old fashioned mentality at all cost. Instead, they are allowing or even encouraging social media activity, and are thinking of ways to use it to their advantage, while making sure that employees understand the boundaries. Another way to look at it: since your customers' first point of contact these days may very well be through your employees, there is untapped power in making them your brand ambassadors. Happy employees will be willing to do that. Unhappy employees on the other hand can severely damage your company's reputation.

Examples have to come from the top

If senior executives start exploring those tools, they will gain an insight and understanding that is still often lacking. James (Jim) Quigley, Global CEO of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited is an example of an executive who embraced social media. He briefly shares his perspective on its use in a recent interview:

“Social media has created a number of opportunities and challenges for the business community, changing the way it communicates with its customers, suppliers, and employees. As CEO, it is incumbent on me to understand and support the new and emerging ways our teams collaborate and communicate with potential talent, each other, thought leaders, business leaders, and all of our stakeholders. It starts with awareness—for example, Deloitte has the second largest corporate presence on LinkedIn—and then moves deeper, into strategy, execution, and measuring results.

Personally, my experience with social media took a step forward this year when I started my Twitter handle (@deloitteceo) to share some thoughts on topics that are important to me and our organization.”

Trust is crucial for employee engagement

In essence, increased transparency should lead to increased trust, not control. Spying is an expression of distrust, and trust is an important ingredient of employee engagement, which in turn is integral to the fabric of employee happiness. Trusted employees reciprocate this sentiment and feel more engaged - which translates into better productivity. And at the end of the day, people who are engaged and at their capacity in terms of workload are more likely to be intrinsically motivated and less likely to abuse the system. And if you play your cards well, they might as well be spending their free time on Facebook talking about this great company they work for – you.

The following quote from Seth Godin’s book Linchpin feels appropriate:

“When people realize that they are not a cog in a machine, an easily replaceable commodity, they take a challenge and grow. They produce more than you pay them, because you are paying them with something worth more than money. They do more then they’re paid to, because they value quality for its own sake, and they will want to do good work. They need to do good work. Anything less feels intellectually dishonest, and like a waste of time. In exchange, you’re giving them freedom, responsibility and respect, which are priceless.”

If you find the subject of trust in the workplace interesting, please check out the sources mentioned above. For further reading I also recommend The Speed of Trust by Stephen Covey.

House & House