Selfies, March Madness, and Your Employees

Rebecca Mazin
Tue, 25 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

I did not watch the Oscars but I loved the concept and execution of the Ellen DeGeneres selfie. It was genuine, fun and captured a moment so well that it gained the attention of the legions who retweeted enough to crash Twitter. Thinking about the coverage I also realized that Ellen was working, and doing a good job. And in this Parade article about the best selfies the list is dominated by people at work. OK, they are politicians, actors and TV personalities, but they are still working.

When do the rules apply?

Are your employees taking selfies at work? Probably not, but they may be. It could be a business trip, table at a trade show or birthday celebration when one person takes out their phone to share the fun. It all sounds perfectly innocent, and it usually is. But do you have policies or rules about photos in the workplace? If you do and employees are snapping away at seemingly personal moments you put a big dent in their applicability and effectiveness.

Basketball Brackets

This week the top talk has turned from entertainment stars to basketball; specifically March Madness. News stories about brackets are all over the media. Another seemingly innocent past time going on over coffee in the break area. But do you have rules about gambling in the workplace? Is there a special exception written in for March Madness, or the Super Bowl?

Opinions differ about whether attention paid to college basketball affects workplace productivity. Outplacement experts Challenger, Gray & Christmas predict more than $1.2 billion in lost productivity due to distractions, betting and online streaming. Meanwhile the Staffing Service OfficeTeam found in their own survey that the same March Madness activity actually provides a boost for office morale. The excitement brings people together for fun and friendly rivalries.

Policies Do Not Have to be All or Nothing

I advise that employers put policies in place that say internet use will be monitored and personal activity should be kept to a minimum. Then employers can talk to individuals to make certain that watching video or checking stats does not become disruptive during March Madness or the World Cup. Some employers choose to maintain a policy that prohibits all personal use. I counsel them that this is fine as long as they are willing to be consistent about enforcement.

I would draw a distinct line in the sand about money changing hands at work to bet on sporting events, or anything else. Football and basketball pools sound innocent but are really not any different from other sports betting. You don't want an employee running a second business as a bookie in their cube.

Whatever you decide, think about your policy, make sure it is sensible and can be enforced and communicate it clearly to employees.