So I sent out an email to a blitz of contacts from the magazine, pertaining to the very exciting topic of: Should IMs and social networking sites (SNs) be banned in the office? This is a highly nagging management issue and boy, did I press a hot button.
Some of the responses were reticent, so I had to keep poking for more meat from them. But in general, there are extremely vehement opinions on the subject matter. I think the term ‘poke’ would find its way into the Oxford lexicon soon; it’s on everyone’s lips! Some are advocates of social media; and some, surprisingly NOT CEOs, think that IMs and SNs are rousing problems.
Someone even proclaimed a meaningless existence without IMs – come to think of it, I’ve only commuted with him via email and text messages.. But nonetheless, Web 2.0 and its spawn of social media are extremely intriguing. And investors agree – however they see SNs as gold mines. The phenomenal Facebook has 40 million users worldwide, and counting. That is why Microsoft is willing to fork out an eye-popping US$ 300 mil to 500 mil for a 5% stake of the site. Zuckerberg and gang slapped on a US$ 5 billion price tag on their ingenious creation.
The Sunday Times ran an article on how companies deal with IMs and SNs. The debate percolates through First World nations everywhere – US reports loss of millions of dollars and hours to these social media and UK’s trade union are trying to create policies around this issue.
Is there a need for such extreme action? In fact, has any company ever monitored the relation between usage of social media in the office and work productivity? Yes, you can claim millions of dollars loss, but how is that quantified or justified? Or is this just based on the wizardry of mathematic calculations without actual on-site monitoring?
If you want to talk about the detriments of loafing, then shouldn’t employers also ban smoking, tea time breaks, coffee breaks, sms-ing in the office; oh where do I stop?
I feel a tad guilty now for blogging.
Hidayah
P.S. For a business perspective on this matter, look out for our November issue’s coverage on social media.
2 responses so far ↓
Cranium Bash // October 3, 2007 at 6:15 am
I believe a balance should be created, while it is true that companies lost millions of dollar through employees constantly blogging or commenting on how lunch was to their friends via IMs, management can use these IT tools to their advantage. Like creating corporate blogs or providing a platform to engage customers on their comments and opinions of your product and service via forums or Second Life.
The advance development in IT has enabled communication to be so much easier and would allow companies to improve their CRM or plan better marketing strategies. A small team could be created to manage this online PR platform and the possibilities are endless.
While companies are able to leverage on these tools to educate their customers and vice versa, certain restrictions also has to be placed to prevent employees from spending too much time on these platforms during operational hours.
However great these platforms are, they are meant for usage after work, be the one paying the salary and running the company and you would understand why.
As for smoking and tea breaks, its a totally different issue, psychologically, people won’t feel that guilty sitting in front of a desktop even though they are blogging or watching videos at YouTube, being the fact that they are at their desk and to certain extend look as if they are working. The platforms on the web is also alot more addictive in engaging you for long hours as compared to smoke breaks and tea breaks, where your abscence from your desk would prick your guilt and make you worry.
Morover, the convenience of just clicking on your browser and communicating with the world is just so much easier and more intriguing.
Ganga // October 5, 2007 at 3:39 am
We could look at this way. Yes, Social Networking platforms have earned an obscene amount of money and are considered ’successes’. However, but the model works on the premise that many, many users are logged on and are actively using the application and that would translate into time (and money) away from somewhere else.
The mind trip – isn’t it an act of stealing money (albeit in the form of productivity) from the workplace into the SN platform? From that perspective, it would be the businesses revenue loss that is Facebook’s gain.