Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter have become a bone of contention in the workplace, with more and more companies blocking access to these sites through their networks.
Software security company Clearswift revealed that the number of businesses that ban access to these sites has jumped to 19 percent from only 9 percent last year. Worldwide, it is estimated that almost 60 percent of managers have blocked at least one social networking site from an employee.
What’s the reason for employers’ communist stance against social networks? Facebook and Twitter are considered major time suckers, hindering employee productivity which is of course what the companies are paying their staff for.
Two years ago, IT company Nucleus Research reported that companies that allowed full access to social networking sites experienced a 1.5 percent drop in employee productivity.
Using social networks also raises concerns regarding company privacy and security breach. According to IT security firm Kaspersky, social networks are now ahead of email as the most widely used tool to spread malware.
Facebook, for one, is notoriously being used by cybercriminals to spread malware which, when installed on a user’s computer can send out information stored in the machine. Some Security experts warn that some Facebook apps, including the highly popular dating apps, can be vector for malware. Just imagine if sensitive corporate information could land in the hands of the bad guys of the Internet?
So maybe we can’t entirely blame employers for thinking that Facebook & Twitter and work don’t mix and should never ever happen simultaneously — at least not while you’re on their payroll.
In Britain, employers take the no-Facebooking-and-Tweeting-while-working policy as a serious business. Nearly half of the firms there forbid their staff from using social networking sites during company time.
In Germany, automobile giant Volkswagen and HeidelbergCement, a construction materials firm, are just two companies that strictly ban their employees from logging on to social networking sites while working. Germany and Australia are the leading countries with the highest rates of blocking social networks in the workplace.
But the threat of malware and corporate data loss aside (which can easily be skirted around by using one’s cell phone instead of the company’s computer when accessing Facebook and Twiter), does the use of social networks in the workplace really reduce personnel productivity or enhance it? Depending on which side you care to listen to, it can actually work both ways and merely depends on the user how he utilizes these sites.
According to a study conducted by the University of Melbourne, employees who are allowed to use social networking sites during office hours are 9 percent more productive than the social networks-deprived ones. According to Brent Coker, Workplace Internet Leisure Browsing (WILB), which can run the gamut from reading online news, to updating one’s Facebook status or online dating profile, to playing online games and anything in between, actually improves workers’ concentration because it allows them to “zone out a bit” from time to time.
These findings, don’t apply to those battling Intenet addiction who will inevitably be less productive at work if allowed to have their way with the computer, cautions Coker.
Coker’s argument is shared by John McTigue, executive vice president and co-owner of marketing firm Kuno Creative. McTigue says allowing employees access to social networking sites at work contributes to “collective workplace happiness” which in turn contributes to increased productivity.
So perhaps the boss who catches his secretary replying to a message on Zoosk, a popular Facebook dating app, shouldn’t be too quick to show her the door. What employers should be doing instead, says Facebook and Twitter advocates, is to empower their workers by allowing them to embrace the Web 2.0 era. There should be a clear policy, however, regarding what employees can and cannot share on social networking sites.
This article was presented by Matt Fuller. Matt writes about a variety of online dating and social networking topics including online dating Australia tips and free dating sites for women reviews and relationships advice for single people.
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As much as I dont like to admit, I have implemented software firewalls to prevent users at work from accessing Facebook and Twitter amongst other social networking platforms. Unfortunately we have a large number of casual employees and this is the only way to deal with the above normal use of these sites.