A good article on some insights (old and new) on productivity …
… As the use of the Internet and the spread of Wi-Fi hotspots makes the Web even more ubiquitous, it’s likely that companies will need to look at their internal culture, current usage levels, productivity goals, and even employee habits to determine what type of Internet restrictions are necessary.
Many employees spend most of their work day tapping diligently at their computers and looking intently at their screens — but how many are updating their blog or sending funny e-mails instead of typing up that important memo, or responding to customer requests? …
So updating your blog is not productivity in the eyes of an employer, I can see that. However … much of the blogging and reading of RSS feeds I do personally is very much work related. Besides that, the work related work I do outside business hours are also countless and I think I am not the only one in IT (or aother branches for that matter) who combines work and pleasure and vice versa.
… Last year, Internet management software firm Burstek surveyed over 10,000 employees about their business and personal use and found that across all industries, workers spent around 20 percent of their Internet time on personal business or for entertainment. For some employees, all Internet use was purely personal….
So in return to that how much personal time was spend work-related. Within Microsoft, as I think in a lot of other company ‘Work/Life Balance’ is a hot item; therefor I would argue dat spending some time for personal stuff is not necessarily a bad thing. 26% although is on the high side ofcourse.
… Companies now value an array of experience even if it looks like job-hopping, Challenger says, and along those lines, they should remodel their thinking about personal versus professional computing time.
“In the 21st century, the boundary between work and home is blurred, if not erased completely,” he says. “People check their e-mail or do work when they’re commuting, or on weekends, or even on vacation. Work has permeated home time, so it only seems fair that companies ought to be much more open to people blending personal tasks into their so-called work time.” …
Good to see the article also addresses work/life balance and more or less the management by objectives instead of the ’thow shall work from 9 to 5′ approach.
Read on : Newsfactor.com
