electronic social gadgets in the workplace

[Norm]

Unfortunately where I work the directors give out the WiFi password to employees for their mobiles.

That's not necessarily a bad thing, depending on the set up you have. You could, for instance, restrict FB access through corporate network in a way which would also stop devices which connect through the WiFi from accessing FB.

Our WiFi is locked down, but I've been asked if I want the password anyway (privilege of power ) but I said no. I only connect through my 3G network because I don't connect much and don't want the corporate IT team to access / restrict my browsing when I do.

 

[Lanzecki]

The MD blocked Facebook because one employee was spending too much time on it, the twist being that the employee was his wife. She also claims to have received a verbal warning, which TBH I wouldn't put past him..

Well they do say most top bosses are a little psycho.

My customers think it's fine to call me out of hours and weekends to get problems fixed. I think It's ok to use their wireless to send and receive stuff that is not related to them.

I guess it depends on the work the company does. Office work lends it's self to using phone more. f you are operating machinery then it's just stupid.

 

[Night Train]

Work is work, personal time is personal.

Anyone at work 'should' keep their social and personal activities to their break and rest times or otherwise outside of their paid work time.
Exclusions should only be where it does not interfere with their productivity or attention to their work, or where it is a recognised part of their paid time.

Any sensible person should be able to work it out for themselves without causing their manager to notice or comment.

 

[Salad Dodger]

We don't have an official policy about mobiles at work. But I am sure that, if anyone was really taking the mick and using their phone too much, then something would be said.

For me personally, I don't use TwitterBook or any of those sites, and there are only a very few people who have my mobile number. So if my phone rings, or a text comes in, it's generally pretty significant. And if it needs answering, I will answer. But for 99% of the time the phone just sits there, and I don't proactively use it to set up social events, or to gossip to friends or family, during work time. And my boss seems quite happy with that arrangement.

I do most of my "social networking" by e-mail from home.

 

[jonny jeez]

Apart from that we have free access, but as a small firm we're all close enough to the cash flow to keep work time distractions to a minimum.

I suspect this is a key point for me. Our little practice is only 15 deep and we are all effectively fee earners in that we all share a responsibility to look after our growth and do the "right thing". This chap is the new to that group, is very young, a little easy to distract and lastly is the son of a very good friend of our founders...there lies the catch.

Having said that, he is a lovely lad, cares about the firm and has a great deal of "built in" loyalty. Its just something that lads of his age (I sound like some old curmudgeon now) seem to accept as normal behaviour. Perhaps he just needs a good talking too.

I shall take him to one side tomorrow.

 

[Black Sheep]

As ever, in these matters....its a little more complicated.

There's "another" reason he is the only intern we took on this year. That said he doesn't answer to me directly so its bad form of me to pull rank. Regardless I think we should encourage some form of general curtailment, so perhaps I can effect his behaviour via a different more general route.

what kind of environment is it?

could the phone meet with some kind of impact related doom?

 

[summerdays]

Mr Summerdays and myself were discussing this only this morning, partially about our eldest who needs her phone to be in her hand most of the time.

I do look at my phone occasionally during work - but mainly because I get some work related calls/texts on it. If I see it's a non-work text I usually leave it to deal with later unless it relates to my children and needs dealing with immediately. But I don't always hear it when I'm concentrating. I don't browse facebook or the internet, and wait till I'm taking a break. I don't think any of my colleagues use their phones too much either - I think it is partially a generation thing.

 

[colly]

I wish I had the time to sod about on here and other sites during the day. I'm to busy trying to fit everything into the working day let alone texting and chatting to friends on Faceplant.
One of the drawbacks of being self employed is that if I steal a sneaky bit of time off it just catches up with me later.
I do get on here daytimes but it's when I am either stopping for a cuppa or having my lunch.

My Mrs works with someone who is forever messing about on her phone texting and chatting on different sites.
It used to be the computer before certain sites were restricted automatically.

It really annoys her because my Mrs always puts in a full days work. The trouble is it's her manager who is the skiver.

 

[marinyork]

Mobile phones are very powerful devices, much more powerful, useable and accessible than the various devices we have access to at work (for doing work).

Mobiles are banned, plenty of people particularly supervisors use them anyway, but the company would be much wiser writing an app for work, allowing phone use and seeing productivity and efficiency go up and saving itself a fortune in technology. Of course this is never going to happen, but I do wonder about how life would be transformed in a less technophobic world and workplace.

 

[BigonaBianchi]

Time and a place for everything..workplace is for working...

 

[ufkacbln]

We have IPhones for work, but they are so locked down that the average £10 PAYG has more functionality. Basically texts, calls and email

However they will not allow me to connect to the work emails via my own IPhone!

 

[jonny jeez]

I wish I had the time to sod about on here and other sites during the day. .

This post has made me feel suddenly very guilty.

Whereas our young intern has a very visual way of illustrating his distraction. It has just occurred to me that I am just as guilty, I can easily spend far too much work time on this very site. I do think there is a difference between interrupting a conversation to text or facebook and discreetly typing into a forum over a cup of coffee.

Time wise however, it appears I am as much a thief as the next man.

 

[Drago]

We have a new intern who seems to spend about a third of the day (that's not an exaggeration) on his mobile Facebooking, tweeting and generally twiddling his thumbs.

There is so much I find annoying about this (not least the constant clicking noise) but by far the worst is the distraction. For the remaining 70% of the day its a constant struggle to keep his attention on any single task.

I'm now noticing more senior people in the firm becoming distracted (mid conversation) by demands from their handsets.

Should we ban personal mobiles from the workplace?

Yup, just can em. I don't even carry my mobile at work, it just stays in my locker, and what a thicko like me can do surely a clever person could do even better/easier?

 

[Rob3rt]

Yup, just can em. I don't even carry my mobile at work, it just stays in my locker, and what a thicko like me can do surely a clever person could do even better/easier?

Not necessarily.

 

[summerdays]

Yup, just can em. I don't even carry my mobile at work, it just stays in my locker, and what a thicko like me can do surely a clever person could do even better/easier?

Depends on whether you need to be contactable on your mobile for work purposes.