communication been more efficient than through the use of today’s email. However, technology can also bring with it a good deal of trouble, especially when people are so dependent on it that they can lose their sense of reality. The slightest power outage can cripple a company and even cause damage to its IT infrastructure that can be felt for weeks and weeks post-outage. There are times when Web 2.0 technology (such as social networks) can actually stand in the way of productivity, but there are certainly ways that you can get around these roadblocks.
For instance, chat and instant messaging software are used in order to connect people within and between companies. Some software can be used to save employees walking and phone dialing time: all that employees need to do is to check with their colleagues on the tenth floor about finances, or with the mailroom in the basement to check if their mail has already been sent out. The instant messaging systems in many corporations, however, offer more than just opportunities for speedy responses. They give employees leeway to send each other instant messages that are often not work related – when this gets out of hand, productivity can indeed slow down.
Companies can put a cap on these activities by encouraging the use of instant messaging software to work-related topics, and they can even go as far as prying into the instant messages being sent in order to insure that they are truly related only to work. However, as with prying into work emails, employees will often feel that this is a violation of their privacy, and may often not see how their ill-advised use of technology can actually make their lives worse, not better.
As mentioned earlier, some companies have started spying on employee e-mails in order to check if these are truly work related. Emails have made communication efficient: in the past, if people were to write business letters or correspondences, they were advised to put in all the information that they could, since turnaround times for snail mail were indeed so slow, and productivity could come to a halt if there was missing information in the initial letter. However, thanks to technology, email provides people the chance to scuttle off very short, succinct letters to check on progress, and expect a short, quick reply.
The problem with email is that people often take its quickness for granted, and because many people have a lot on their hands to take care of, a lot of emails go unanswered. Many emails, moreover, will not be sent due to IT problems, and when this happens, work can certainly slow down. As a result, many companies closely monitor their IT activities in order to ensure that email really does reach its destination. This can mean being less strict with spam filtering, which may also mean that a lot of unwanted email can get into employee inboxes. There are many technological fixes that can fix these glitches, but then again, the concept of email itself can still lead to a lazy afternoon at work if employees do not use it wisely. Employees can use email to ask about their families, buy things through relatives or friends, or get in touch with long lost friends – activities that are not work related, and that can hamper work.
As technology evolves, so will the ways that it can be used to make companies more productive – and so will the ways that it can be used to make companies less productive. If you are part of a company that is heavily reliant on technology, make sure that you have backup methods to keep your company intact and running. Have set rules for employees on how and when they can use corporate resources and technology, and make sure that these rules are well enforced. If you are able to keep a friendly environment while using technology wisely, you can make technology still work for you.
image credits to sxc.hu
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