The development of new technologies gives employers more and more opportunities to monitor workplaces and control employee productivity. Scientists are monitoring these changes, but the results of research are still mixed. Melissa Wheeler, a senior lecturer at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, analysed the research on this topic and formulated the main conclusions.
What Science Says
In 2023, researchers at the University of Turin compiled a list of 57 empirical studies on digital surveillance of employees. The results were mixed.
Some studies have shown that monitoring employees has led gcash database to increased productivity.. Workers who knew they were being watched felt more motivated because their work was being objectively evaluated. They were better able to understand what they needed to do to get a positive evaluation from their manager, which would lead to a bonus or award.
Other studies have found that employees perform worse when they learn about surveillance, and some may have done so in retaliation against their employer.
As Melissa Wheeler notes, such conflicting results speak for themselves, and it is too early to draw a definitive conclusion about the effectiveness of employee monitoring.
What should an employer do?
Close monitoring of employee performance, such as how often an employee presses keys or how much time he or she spends at the water cooler, will only help achieve high results in the short term. Monitoring workplaces will help employers minimize distractions and even identify any safety or health issues.
Butemployees under surveillance will become anxious about the constant monitoring and their trust in their employer will begin to decline. Employees dissatisfied with the lack of trust will start looking for better conditions in other companies. This will lead to staff turnover and will inevitably affect efficiency.
Another problem employers may face is a decline in creativity and innovative ideas. Employees are less likely to express their creative potential if they feel they do not have time to come up with a solution to a problem.Excessive control creates psychological discomfort, preventing risk-taking and experimentation. “The most important component for creativity and innovation,” the author of the review notes.
Melissa Wheeler advises companies looking to implement some form of time management to start with alternative ways to improve efficiency, such as automating some processes or creating a safer environment for workers to help them develop intrinsic motivation.
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