Before I set about sharing my opinion, the definition of ‘web misuse’ should be somewhat defined.
At my institution, the following types of websites have been defined as ‘web misuse’ at some point or another:
- Adult Websites – Pornography
- Bit Torrent sites – peer-to-peer file sharing
- Music Streaming – Pandora, Spotify,
- Social Network sites-facebook, twitter etc.,
- Video sharing websites – YouTube, DailyMotion, Vimeo etc.,
- Wikis-wikipedia, mediawiki, medpedia, etc;,
What has happened, time and again, is that by trying to control or limit access to websites that the institution didn't want its employees visiting; it also effectively limited access to many of the websites used for one or more of our institutional mission (and client) groups: Academics, Clinical Services and Research.
Employee access to the Internet has become just as much part of a business' day-to-day activities as having a phone on every desk, sometimes even more so. The proliferation of email and the vast amount of information held on the Web has made this tool a vital part of the communication and information gathering process for modern day employees (Grant, 2000).
I personally don’t think that censorship and restriction is effective in any arena and the more content that is censored and restricted; the more people will try to access it. If you make web content freely available, within reason; I think that the majority of employees won’t abuse the access. Also, since employees are working more during their ‘off’ or ‘free’ time in this increasingly networked world, it should be allowed.
If you think about telecommuters, they have all the access to any websites in the world from the privacy of their home and if they have increased productivity and performance, then why is it believed that allowing the same type of access will decrease productivity and performance in a structured, physical workplace?
Dozens of studies analyzed by scholars at Penn State show that telecommuting actually boosts productivity, performance, job satisfaction and overall life satisfaction. It positively affects relationships with supervisors and reduces turnover, stress and work-family conflict. It does so largely by giving people increased control over their work (O’Leary, 2013).
I think that by treating personnel as responsible adults and allowing for some personal web time during work hours will help offset the hours at home that they put in doing work. This is the situation that I have witnessed with my own staff and the level of tension and stress is low, the productivity and morale are high and there is not any rampant misuse of the web.
One of my peers runs a very strict department; rule-laden and full of punitive measures. Her staff are openly miserable and they make no bones about the fact that they do not do one thing more than is required in their job roles. Morale is low and turnover is high.
It is worth noting, however, that there is a downside to restricting employees to purely work related Internet and email activities. A report by the International Labour Organisation predicted that cases of depression and stress in the workplace will increase dramatically over the next few years as technology developments raise the employee's workload. If this is to be the case, then letting workers have a certain amount of time to deal with personal communication and look at sites of personal interest may help to alleviate some of that stress (Grant, 2000).
According to Wiener, for human beings to flourish they must be free to engage in creative and flexible actions and thereby maximize their full potential as intelligent, decision-making beings in charge of their own lives. This is the purpose of a human life (Bynum, 2008).
I think that as effective leaders in an increasingly networked and flattening world; we must not restrict or censor our personnel’s access to the web. We must integrate this access into our work environments and to provide guidelines to maintain balance for our personnel to remain productive and take responsibility as professionals in their job roles.
I truly believe it is much easier to boost morale and job performance in a positive, open environment as opposed to a closed and restrictive one. When your personnel are invested and acknowledged In their roles, there will be little secondary gain for them to misuse the web while they are on the job.
Pat
References:
Bynum, Terrell, “Computer and Information Ethics”, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy(Spring 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = <http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2011/entries/ethics-computer/>.
Grant, P. (2000, November). Solution: Internet misuse at work. ComputerWeekly.com, Retrieved from http://www.computerweekly.com/opinion/Solution-Internet-misuse-at-work
O'Leary, M. B. (2013, March 15). Telecommuting can boost productivity and job performance. US News and World Report, Retrieved from http://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2013/03/15/telecommuting-can-boost-productivity-and-job-performance
Pat,
ReplyDeleteThis is a wonderful post this week, well supported by research & powerfully written. I happen to agree with you, although honestly, I’ve had to be quite introspective about this topic over the years dependent on the individual teams I’ve worked or consulted with. I have evolved & adapted as our access to online technology has evolved & hope to continue to do so in the future.
The one statement your quoted that leapt off the page for me was “According to Wiener, for human beings to flourish they must be free to engage in creative and flexible actions and thereby maximize their full potential as intelligent, decision-making beings in charge of their own lives. This is the purpose of a human life” (Bynum, 2008). This again reinforces some of my recent study about human-centric organizations. Notter & Grant (2011) write in their book Humanize, “In all relationships, you need to know about three things: you, the other, & the context” (p. 208). In the context of the on-site work environment, relationships are key & they remind us that other employees are people first & not machines. Command & control leadership or stringent hierarchical organizations have limitations in they perpetrate a false belief that all humans & their behaviors, & often thoughts, can be regulated & controlled.
I’ve been doing some research on inter-generational issues in the workplace (http://rtc.umn.edu/docs/2_18_Gen_diff_workplace.pdf) that might have some bearing on how workers react to stringent online access. Tolbize (2008) studied a number of ways the 4 generations view the workplace that are different, but the similarities are what I noted & how they might relate to inflexible online restrictions. When queried, the participants expressed that the top 3 indicators of happiness in the workplace for all 4 generations are feeling valued, recognition & appreciation, & supportive environment (p. 12). All 4 generations also noted the office tool that is most in use during their day is the computer.
This returns us to leadership in the workplace & how we choose these leaders & what qualities we are seeking. If our, sometimes disagreeing generations can agree on some significant values for the workplace, shouldn’t our leaders use this evidence to make informed decisions about office protocol & expectations? I do believe the online access debate for workplaces will continue for many more years, but as MacArthur noted in the video (http://www.fastcompany.com/embed/93c901eaa3c7d) this week, adaptation (& leadership) is a benefit & quality that will receive more attention as a positive value for workplaces of the future, including whether or not, informed & responsible employees can have full access to the internet.
Thanks for a good read.
Cheers.
References
MacArthur, A. (13 February, 2013). How to carve your own path when growing
your business. Retrieved from http://www.fastcompany.com/embed
/93c901eaa3c7d
Notter, J.& Grant, M. (2011). Humanize: How people-centric organizations
succeed in a social world. Indianapolis, IN: Que Publishing.
Tolbize, A. (2008). Generational differences in the workplace. Research &
Training Center on Community Living: University of Minnesota. Retrieved
from http://rtc.umn.edu/docs/2_18_Gen_diff_workplace.pdf
Hi Eileen,
DeleteAs you pointed out, the success of this will greatly depend on the individuals involved as well as the institutional culture. I also know of a unit in my institution where it's members flagrantly misuse the web for hours - but their director allows and participates in the behavior so it will be up to his boss to deal with that issue.
For me, the latest recurring buzzword for some time has been BYOD - and with BYOD will be individuals at all levels (admins, staff, student, faculty, etc.,) who will access the internet on their personal devices so the effort to restrict the access is going to been time limited and futile at best if BYOD takes off. Yes, you can restrict the access on a local network or wifi access point, but you can't do much if personnel use their individual data plans to access the web via their smartphones, tablets, etc.
The same situation was similarly resolved with our nieces and nephews. When we used Net Nanny and the like to restrict access; they found ways around it and it fostered hiding and lying.
When we subsequently had an open discussion about open internet access and responsible behavior to include the topics of malware, peer-to-peer networks, piracy, pornography etc., then it actually became better.
Yes, there was a spike in access of inappropriate websites for a couple of weeks but then the novelty wore off and now they are pretty responsible netiziens.
There is no easy, one-size-fits-all answer; but it is a question all institutions will have to address sooner than later as we become more networked and digitally social.
Thanks,
Pat
I am a firm believer in direct, open, information-oriented approaches in many areas of life, internet notwithstanding. So much value is in trust & expectation of adherence to the guidelines & norms of the trusted individual or group creating the norms. Kids are pretty intuitive, so why would adults be less so? Thanks for your response.
DeleteEileen,
DeleteI wholeheartedly agree. (^_^)
Pat
I like how you pointed out that the more content is restricted, the more people will try to access it. I’ve often told my students that if we say NOT to do something, that means you should NOT do it, however, in the realm of reverse psychology, the more rules and regulations you have, the more likely it is for someone to do the exact opposite.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to rules and regulations of web access in the workplace, I have a friend of mine who is a programmer for a government agency and he is active on all of his social media accounts during his work hours and come to find out, he told me that a lot of his coworkers do the same – that is they find themselves doing less work and get easily distracted by the allures of the internet.
What guidelines do you think should be applied to teachers in regards to their misuse of the web during the school day? I know of many teachers who are on social media during classroom instruction time.
Patrick, I enjoyed your post. We share more than a first name. (We share some opinions and biases, as well). Ultimately, what you are addressing is the blurring of lines, resultant of tech-driven ubiquitous access, between public and private, work, and home/family/private...
ReplyDeleteAlso, the idea that accountability trumps censorship, and that freedom of access coupled with responsibility is a reasonable approach, makes sense to me. Of course, when dealing with kids, as do those of us in education, it gets a little more complex to find the right balance.
Hi Patrick,
DeleteIt's pretty much how we run in our family - accountability, responsibility for your actions. You can do whatever you want, BUT you must also bear any consequences for your actions.
I do think that the K-12 world is a very, VERY difficult one and I would not be well-suited to that environment. I much prefer to work with adult learners or in higher education where is isn't as complex as K-12.
Thanks,
Pat
Hi Pat,
DeleteYour posts keep getting more informative and engaging. I think most of us have seen a misuse of the web in our workplaces. Many companies are spending millions of dollars on cyber security to prevent unauthorized access to networks. Unfortunately, sometimes the firewalls and additional security layers placed to deter hackers are obsolete when the next set of technologies evolve. I have been traveling this week and sat down at lunch with a group of women attending a cyber security leadership conference in Nashville. Some of our conversation centered around networks going down because too many employees were downloading You Tube videos. In addition, the programmers also spoke of issues with employees spending a great deal of time on the Internet to surf, shop, and communicate with friends and family. Just as I imagined, the companies filter all electronic communications. So even if you feel like the conversation you are having is personal, there is a strong possibility that employees are being monitored. However in most workplaces that do electronic monitoring, guidelines are posted and employees must sign electronic usage agreements in the workplace. Once again it is the ethics and not the tool that must be held accountable.
JD
Hi JD,
DeleteThanks! You probably noticed that I am somewhat passionate about this topic...I totally 200% believe as you so succinctly stated that it is about "the ethics and not the tool that must be held accountable".
Pat
Hello David,
ReplyDeleteI think it's interesting that there are people who spend the majority of their workday hours engaging on social media.
I say this because in the case of me and my staff; we really don't have time to sit and engage on social media at work most days.
My staff have a LOT of freedom - however, they also have a lot of hard deadlines to meet.
I make it very clear to my staff that I do not like to babysit or micromanage adults and so as long as they keep their end of the bargain by making their deadlines and meeting their responsibilities; I am the most flexible and will be the easiest person to work with and to work for and will do everything to support my staff in every way possible.
However, if my staff are not doing their respective jobs and are spending their work hours getting paid by the state to play online for 5, 6, 7 or 8 hours a day; then I personally feel that it is grossly irresponsible and professionally, I feel that these employees are basically stealing their salary from the institution. For this type of employee - I have zero tolerance. I can truly be the micromanager or babysitter from Hell if I am forced to be in that position.
If government workers - and programmers to boot - and teachers have time to be on social media a lot during the times that they are supposed to be programming or teaching; it leads me to wonder several of things:
• How busy are they really?
• What kind of accountability they have to their respective leadership?
• What sort of personal work ethic or professionalism do they embody?
• Perhaps they are not in the position they really want to be for work.
I love my job – it really is my dream job and I love going to work every day – to work. I also have a lot of fun at work, I engage in casual conversation with many of my peers and co-workers and there are many moments during the day where I am not actually “working” but these moments usually occur between meetings or in brief pockets of time during my day as I go between the building on our campus – or even between campuses.
My guidelines for my staff comes down to a very simple "if-then" statement. IF this, THEN that.
IF they are doing what they are getting paid to do and are meeting their responsibilities - THEN during those times when they have nothing pressing or if they need some leeway; I will provide all the freedom and flexibility that I am able.
I treat my staff like professional adults. They are active participants in their freedom and flexibility.
If I were responsible for providing guidelines to teachers on the personal use of the web, it would be the same. During class where they have responsibilities to teach and monitor - they must fulfill those responsibilities. In between classes or those times where the students are engaged in some type of un-monitored study where a teacher just needs to be present in the classroom; this might be a time that they can utilize the web for their own purposes.
The courses I teach are blended courses and I am responsible for 8 face-to-face, 4 hour long sessions per course per semester. When I teach my class face-to-face, I am present and engaged for the entire four hours and usually an hour before and an hour after for any one-on-one student interactions.
During my synchronous online class sessions, I am fully engaged during those sessions with my students and I am not doing anything during that time but teaching as required.
I just think that there are positions where the use of the web for personal purposes is not always possible during work and there is much truth in the adage that there is a place and time for all things.
Whatever the case or scenario, constant personal use of the web at work is just not ever appropriate in my opinion.
I hope this post was helpful to you in some way.
Thanks,
Pat
Good post...and nice perspective from your managerial side.
DeleteIn your post, you noted: "...If you think about telecommuters, they have all the access to any websites in the world from the privacy of their home and if they have increased productivity and performance, then why is it believed that allowing the same type of access will decrease productivity and performance in a structured, physical workplace?"
I have been suggesting this for years. Like you, I believe if you treat your employees/students as adults (and I can since I am in higher ed), they will rise to the occasion. Layer in open communication as you suggest, and then model the behavior you expect...it begins to suggest a leadership philosophy.
Hello Britt,
DeleteI have had great leaders and I have had bad leaders and I swore that if I ever became a manager; that I would treat people like I would want to be treated by a manager. I have never experienced a situation where I have treated people as adults and with respect where they did not rise to the occasion.
Thank you,
Pat
Pat,
ReplyDeleteAn interesting and informative read as always.
I find your perspective as a manager refreshing. It so not my experience in education. I too see the benefits of being wired at school. There is so much information available at our fingertips these days. Working with students with disabilities instant access to audio and video information is priceless. However, our school system has a massive firewall system that prevents us accessing almost all of it. As an educator there is nothing more frustrating than wanting to share something with a student that you know would help get a concept or lesson across, but you cannot get access to it!
Our culture and lives are wired. There is no way to get around it and all parts of society need to accept and embrace that fact. If not, segments of our society will suffer.
Robert
Hi Robert,
DeleteIt is unfortunate that in your institution where audio and video might be so beneficial that you have such a locked down system. Is there a reason why this is so? We deal with PHI and HIPAA and FERPA and we have access to most of the web - have you asked why there is such a need for this lockdown of resources? Much of it would even be free for your institution like YouTube...
Thanks,
Pat
First of all, wow! Not sure why my post is so choppy. Must be all of the sinus meds I am hyped up on. My apologies...
DeleteIn my opinion, these sites are blocked in order to prevent misuse by students. However, this is much like throwing the baby out with the bathwater. Like you said, a lot of the information on YouTube is free and would be of invaluable use in the classroom. Many of my colleagues and I have pleaded with our technology department for full access to these sites (at least on staff computers), but I believe they fear parental ramifications of student misuse more than our pleas.
Robert