Surveillance Software On Employees - Now Bursting a RockStar's Bubble At An Office Park Near You...

Hmmmm, I am thinking that it might be time for a little attitude right about now. I have made no secret that in my day job, I am very candidate centric. Heck I LOVE candidates, they make me happy, they make me money, sometimes they make me laugh. But here's a little secret to all you "rockstar candidates" out there.

It's not all about you. I know we make you feel like it's all about you, but that's kind of our job. In reality, the delicate dance between employer and future employee. . . well, let's just say that the employer is still kind of Fred Astaire. Yes, Ginger Rogers was a swell dancer but she knew when to let Fred lead.

The same holds true in the workplace. Ask for what you want, ensure you are being treated fairly, get the information up front (all great practices), but don't be a jerk about it. Unless you are this guy, you need to get to steppin and DO YOUR JOB, for heaven's sake!

I had a client who installed some surveillance software for his company. When he called me in to speak about his employees' activities, he was livid. About what?

- the employee who just begged for a raise had been IMing an avg of every 3.5 minutes...

- the new rainmaker who was too busy for more clients was MySpacing a married woman...

- the office slacker was checking out BMW's an avg of two times more right before performance reviews...

I felt bad for the guy but it proves two points.

1) These were heretofore "superstar" employees. Looks can be deceiving.

2) You are not irreplaceable. But you sure are entertaining when you think no one is watching....

I gotta run. I have three new positions to fill. Just kidding, but if you don't heed my advice, I'll have tons more than that!

Comments

[BA]

Speaking as someone who has done more than his share of spying on behalf of the boss, the average employee would be absolutely shocked at how much of their activity can be recorded. Internet history, IM conversations, email, how often and how long you ran a certain program, if you use a P2P or bittorrent client, you name it.

We warn all new employees that they can be monitored at any time without warning and, while they seem concerned at the time, they don't really believe it. If I want to see what movies are playing tonight or check my GMail, I only use my BlackBerry. However, your BB call history and text messages can be recorded very easily (for free) if you use BES and you'll never know it.

[BryanB]

This is one of my pet peeves. Simply because someone is spending time "goofing off" on the Internet or their cell phone doesn't make them a bad employee. In fact in my experience some of the people who "waste" the most time are the high performers. Why? They're bored. Or they need a mental break.

Employers should not be quick to judge.