Should Businesses Embrace Employees Internet Monitoring in Workplace?

Employee Internet motoring is not perceived positively in workplace. Managers are often placed in awkward positions as they adapt to innovations in the workplace including internet use.  Internet is one of the most needed technological advancement for businesses however, it's versatility in application is hampered by the behavioral role displayed by the workers.  

As a major socializing tool, the internet is prone to abuse and misuse by the employees in the workplace.  Technological innovations are strategic alignments for business organizations to advance their competitive edge. When introduction of new technology is announced in workplace, the employees develop a quest to have the innovation installed. They wait for the new technology with zeal.

Internet connectivity is one of the digital edge instruments that have assumed another angle in its use in work place. As much as the importance of the Internet highly thrives, its use is looped around ethical loopholes that need to be sealed. In essence, the very innovation that is developed to benefit the company may turn out to be destructive to the employees' work initiative.

One of the importance of Internet is the ability to provide communication with other audiences all over the world. The greatest advantage and which is also the greatest threat to Internet use is the border-less access of information. Once you have logged in the websites, you entirely get into another virtual communication world. 

Internet can easily carry the emotions, mind-sets, feelings and concentrations of the audience in an immense way totally destructing the real people’s presence at the point of use of the Internet. The mental status and thinking abilities are carried away from the person’s position of work.

Internet in work place is essential as first and foremost it enhances the communication system within and outside of the organization. Information flow within the employees’ network is improved and this is reflected by the way problems are solved, tasks are delegated, and essential highlights are quickly distributed to the respective workers. 

Still of great importance is the ability to access research materials and information right from the office desk. The management can easily initiate a product survey, product and corporate research in a more accurate, convenient, and efficient manner. The list is endless as its use in the company expands with the company's need to grow.

Nonetheless, Internet use is often abused where the management does not have sound ethical guidelines to govern the use of this communication tool. The employees are easily ruined to engage in personal Internet use due to its borderless accessibility of information. 

In fact, the Internet is considered a fun and recreating activity. When workers begin to use it for fun and recreation, they fail to understand that they are doing the right thing at the wrong place and in the wrong time. Employees are in work place to undertake tasks and other assignment in form of jobs. Their time is limited. The management expects to get the optimum results of the tasks.

Internet interferes with the concentration of the employees to their jobs. It slows down productivity and affects the efficiency and effectiveness of the workers. It may also affect the quality of products, and this impacts on the buyer’s behavior. If not checked, it can result to total shift of positive performance to a retarded performance.

The management assumes the role to control the use of Internet in order to avert the workers from being swept away by the curiosity to discover fun and recreation in the Internet which affects productivity. When the use of this tool is monitored, this gets the employees alert and they are aware that somebody somewhere is monitoring their activities in the workplace.  

This way they desist from abusing the use of the Internet. They concentrate on their duties and their performance is least affected. This implies that the workers only use the net for the intended purpose and thus it saves time, energy and efforts which would be lost through nonconstructive use of the tool.

In essence, internet monitoring in workplace could help curb the abuse of technological innovations in businesses. Where Internet is used for research, survey, transactions, access to work-oriented programs and of course information flow within and out of the company, there is increased productivity and profitability. There is increase in product knowledge, understanding of the market dimensions and trends as well as an understanding of the customer needs and expectations. And what does this mean to the company?