Beware of Employee Productivity Drain

As margins tighten and businesses try to survive in a lean economy, it is important to operate your business as efficiently as possible. This includes maintaining a high level of productivity from your employees.

Marketers are targeting your employees and are trying to induce them to shop the marketers' websites and catalogs during the time the employees are supposed to be working for you.

Forbes Magazine reports that last year 500 million pieces of consumer direct mail were sent to businesses. It is looking like it may be substantially more than that in 2001. J. Crew, L.L. Bean, Barney's New York and even vacuum maker Oreck have announced they are sending catalogs to customers at work this year.

In some ways, it is hard to fault the marketers. They are just trying to succeed in business like everyone else. With estimates of desk bound workers ordering 75% of goods sold on the Internet during working hours, your employees are where the money is (on your time).

You do not need to let marketers diminish the productivity of your employees.

DO: Do let your employees know that you do not want them shopping on the Internet or through catalogs during working hours.

DO: Do let your employees know that all consumer oriented catalogs and advertisements received in the business mail will be discarded.

DO: Do instruct the people that handle your mail to throw away all consumer oriented catalogs and advertisements.

DO: Do adopt electronic communications policies that set out your expectations for use of your Internet system, your telephones and your fax machines.

WARNING: Failure to have an electronic communications policy can subject you to significant liability if an employee misuses your communications tools, not just loss of productivity.

WE CAN HELP: We can help you draft an electronics communications policy that addresses the issues created by the Internet in today's litigious work place.