Enterprise X has
banned employees across all its group companies from using mobile phones in
office. On July 30, it was extended to offices of all group companies,
including …. The thinking behind the move, according to an employee who did not
want to be identified, is that "people tend to misuse social networking
sites inside office. Popular chat applications, while used for official
purposes can also be used to chat with friends and family. So the management is
trying to curb the unwanted use of these platforms during work hours”.
One step forward, two steps
backward, or did I get it wrong, two steps forward, one step backward ! Either
way it does not matter, reality for the hapless employees of Enterprise X is that
one of their primary sources of collaboration and customer insights is no
longer available to them. Everyone is bewildered; what was the trigger that
caused it ? Did employees protest ? Did they voice their anguish to the
Management ? Did the quality of work improve after the draconian law was passed
? Did output actually go up ?
On the same page of the publication was another report: “No one really doubts the importance of
digital transformation to today's businesses. Our global survey found that few
can deny the mounting internal and external pressure to do more than pay lip
service to digital. Yet, digital adoption is not achieved without changing the
behavior of the business. Management must be convinced of the business case, a
thorough implementation plan must be in place, and enterprises must alter and
revamp internal processes, technology, and staff to make the digital
transformation”.
The founders had held on to
control despite the next generation driving the business; the younger
inheritors were adept at technology and current with the times however unable
to challenge the occasional unilateral and irrational directions the company
took. Were the business interests of Enterprise X immune to Digital disruption
? The answer is a vehement no; in fact they had led digital innovation from the
front. Then something changed and they started lagging behind competition with
the margin increasing with time.
Discussions on clamp down on
social media and mobile enablement are in the past. Digital aspirations of
enterprises changed the dialogue, while benefits from mobile computing driven
by consumerization of smartphone, created new opportunities for information
dissemination and customer engagement. Better telecom networks also enable
geographically dispersed workers to stay logically connected thus improving
collaboration and productivity. In such an environment the concentration camp
mentality raises curiosity to get to root cause.
Reading the report verbatim the
purported trigger was work hours being utilized for personal interest; it
raises an interesting question on the dividing line between what are defined
work and personal hours. For most work hours extend beyond the time spent in
the place of work; laptops changed the paradigm two decades back, the
smartphone redefined it a little later. Globalization of enterprises extended
work hours beyond the conventional 9 X 5; whatever limited time that was
remaining disappeared in the economic troughs.
Is Enterprise X giving a message
that staff needs to clearly demarcate work and life hours ? Are they saying
don’t indulge in any activity that can be construed as personal at workplace
and similarly when they step out of the hallowed premises they shall not be
expected to cast a cursory glance at the official email ? Or for that matter if
the workload increases, the employees will not be expected to spend extra hours
to complete tasks at hand ! An internal circular demanded people to deposit
phones on the way in and take them when leaving the premises. OMG !
Everyone would nod their heads to the fact that attention
span of the new generation has significantly reduced. Messages and notification
craving have people checking their smartphones with increasing frequency;
distractions apart, reality is that everyone is also connected to the
enterprise 24 X 7 with rigor and passion unknown in the past. Weekends and
vacations have laptops, tablets and smartphones as constant companions seeking
wireless networks. With the work and life disconnected it’s anybody’s guess if
withdrawal symptoms will emerge post working hours.
Maybe Enterprise X is path breaking with this new policy;
only time will tell …
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