Employee Monitoring: Why It Shouldn’t Be Top Secret

If employee monitoring conjures up images of micromanaging leaders spying on their team, you’re doing it wrong. 

Tracking your employees’ performance and activity doesn’t have to compromise their privacy or damage their morale. When done correctly, this kind of supervision is a morale booster - giving managers the data they need to reward those who deserve it, encourage underperformers, and enhance the whole team’s productivity. 

The key to unlocking all the benefits of a reputable employee productivity tracker is transparency. Being honest about what you’re tracking, how you’re tracking it, and what that data is used for helps build trust among teams. 

Show your employees they can trust you, and they’ll reward you in turn - becoming more motivated, happier, and ultimately more productive.

Why Transparency is Paramount

Research shows that trust is a workplace essential, improving job satisfaction, reducing turnover, and increasing productivity.

Employees at high-trust companies report 74% less stress, 50% higher productivity, 76% more engagement, 29% more satisfaction, and 40% less burnout than those in low-trust organizations, according to a study from the Harvard Business Review.

It’s worth bearing that in mind when implementing employee monitoring tools. Nothing will kill trust faster than your team finding out you’re secretly keeping tabs on their daily activities. Staff will feel as if they’re constantly under surveillance, causing stress to skyrocket. In that kind of toxic environment, you can expect more employee burnout, resignations, and behaviors such as quiet quitting or overemployment.

That’s why transparency has to be top of mind from the outset rather than an afterthought. This could take the form of strategy sessions where employees are shown a demonstration of the productivity tracker in action and invited to share feedback or voice their concerns. You may also want to host individual information sessions for separate departments so everyone is fully briefed across the board. Include a timeline so employees know what to expect when and be sure to notify everyone if there are any changes to the implementation or operation of the program. 

Whatever approach you take, make sure your employees feel heard and supported with clear, consistent and detailed communication at every step.

Other Employee Monitoring Best Practices

When introducing employee monitoring to your team, it’s important to focus on how exactly it will benefit them. Avoid generalizing with platitudes about improved productivity and focus instead on how it will improve the dynamics of your specific team. 

Point out that this data gives team leaders a heads up about who works hard and perhaps isn’t getting the recognition they deserve. It can also help managers share the workload more equitably and redistribute resources to cover any skills gaps. Tracking their activity can also help employees avoid burnout, especially in the case of those who are overwhelmed but feel unable to speak up. 

Managers should also be quick to dive into the details. There’s a lot of misinformation about employee productivity tracking tools and your employees will fear the worst if they’re not properly informed. Reassure them that you won’t be reading their personal emails or watching what they do on the web. You’re simply gauging their use of company applications in a way that’s respectful of their privacy and won’t disrupt their work.

Keeping Track of Remote Teams

At a time when remote work is more popular than ever, managers need a helping hand to keep their virtual teams connected. Solutions like Prodoscore are that helping hand, offering business insights that take the guesswork out of managing remote and hybrid staff. 

Prodoscore gauges employee productivity within workplace tools already in place like Google Workspace, Microsoft Office 365, CRM solutions like Salesforce and Hubspot, phone systems like RingCentral and Vonage, and many others without crossing the line or invading employee privacy. With this information, employers can improve revenue results by enhancing employee coaching, increasing employee retention, and fostering trust across your entire team. Get in touch today to schedule a consultation and find out more.