Internet addiction is a workplace disease that could be costing your company a fortune. Rather than attending to their jobs, your employees could be gambling, shopping and playing games online. Meantime the work stacks up, deadlines are missed and your company is out thousands of dollars. Here's a look at the symptoms of the addict and a course of treatment.
Beware of Addictive Signs |
Ever walk around the office unexpectedly and notice employees nervously typing on computer keyboards? Are they engrossed in research or exhibiting the symptoms of a growing workplace problem?
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The Internet "has an addictive potential with harmful consequences that could silently run rampant in our schools, our universities, our offices, our libraries and our homes."
-- Dr. Kimberly Young, Caught in The Net |
Experts warn that some employees spend several hours during the work day visiting chat rooms, trading stocks online, playing games, arranging vacations, sending personal e-mails, shopping and even gambling. Meantime, work piles up and their projects are turned in late or filled with errors.
These employees are Internet addicts and they're costing companies an estimated $1 billion a year in lower productivity, narrowing profit margins, decreased efficiency and potential disability claims. And it's likely to get worse as more businesses and homes get wired.
If your company has staff members who are caught in a web addiction, you need to help them overcome the problem. Guilty-looking employees typing nervously at their computers is just one symptom. Here are some more:
Procrastination. Internet addicts put in increasing overtime yet fail to meet deadlines or do the job properly.Unsociability. Get suspicious when an employee passes on coffee breaks and lunches with colleagues, and opts to stay glued to the computer instead.
Distraction. Late nights on the Web at home and extra hours trying to keep up on the job makes addicts fatigued. Constantly juggling between work and playing on the computer destroys concentration and causes a loss of mental alertness.
Looking busy. Internet addicts often have more personal than work e-mails. One survey showed that some employees get 10 personal e-mails a day and send more than 20.
Hostility. These employees need a regular fix. If your network goes down, for a few hours or a whole day, they may become edgy and anxious to get back online. They also tend to obsess over the subject, starting conversations about what they saw or did on the Internet.
If any employee exhibits the symptoms described above, here are seven steps to take:
1. Educate your staff. Explain to all employees that misuse of the Internet at work can hurt not just the company's bottom line, but their careers because they risk losing their jobs.
2. Have a written policy. Make it clear that the company reserves the right to monitor use of its equipment. Include information about privacy and acceptable uses, as well as punishments. Ask employees to sign the document to indicate they understand.
3. Ask questions. If you notice an addictive pattern, ask how online resources are being used.
4. Rehabilitate offenders. If you find addicted employees, refer them to counselling through an employee-assistance program or another plan. Helping valuable staff members confront the problem saves money by cutting turnover costs.
5. Restrict access. Employees may not need to surf the entire Internet or even need access. Give them only what they require and cut off the rest with software that blocks entry into certain sites.
6. Look over their shoulders. Install monitoring software. Check employees who send numerous e-mails and examine where they're going.
7. Be proactive. When interviewing potential new hires, ask pertinent questions to get some idea of how much time they spend using the Internet and how it has affected their interpersonal skills. Don't expect them to confess to an obsession but you might get some indication of their habits.
People addicted to the Internet are looking for a way to escape the strains of everyday work life and they need help. If you recognize the signs and intervene, you can regain the profits and productivity that have been stolen from your company.
