How Advantageous is Employee Monitoring Software?

More and more workers have switched to remote working, with working from home becoming the default method across industries.

Due to this, businesses have needed to find new ways of supporting their remote staff, especially when it comes to making sure staff can continue to work effectively. Using employee monitoring software has meant that businesses can overcome the logistical challenges of staff remote working while ensuring the quality of the services offered. Of course, monitoring your employees can present several concerns for your staff, so it is beneficial to learn the ins and outs, and whether it is worth it for your company.

The Advantages 

Maintain Productivity

As more employees choose to work remotely, productivity can suffer. It’s no surprise that research has found workers are more efficient and conscious of their work when they knew they were being monitored.

Increased Internal Security

Using employee monitoring software means you can view saved documents, applications and any messages sent on company property. This helps to keep track of business files and account information. User Activity Monitoring Software actively monitors employee behaviour across the company through devices and networks, so suspicious activity and login attempts can be tracked. Therefore, it becomes easier to detect any malicious behaviour. These steps are important as they leave a clear audit of access and one that enhances existing compliance and security measures as you can view historical data, or identify when an account is no longer active.

Improved Proactiveness

Having greater insight into what your team is doing means you can catch mistakes before they get out of control, meaning your team members don’t have to spend time later fixing the issue. It also allows you to prioritise tasks, so employees can work on high-priority projects, with plenty of time allocated to complete the job.

Drawbacks 

Cost In Time & Resources

Something that you need to be aware of before you choose employee monitoring software is the cost of your business, with some requiring a significant investment depending on your requirements. You’ll also need to carry out significant research and create new policies, which can take time away from other projects that require your attention.

Legal And Ethical Implications

You can legally monitor employees in the UK, but you should understand that employees deserve a degree of privacy. According to the Data Protection Act (2018), you also need to ensure your business follows these six principles:

1. Monitoring must be lawful, fair, and transparent.
2. The purpose of the monitoring must be specified, explicit, and legitimate.
3. If employee monitoring involves collecting or using personal information, the data collected must be adequate, relevant, and not excessive.
4. The personal data must be accurate and kept up to date.
5. If personal data is collected, it shouldn’t be kept for any longer than is necessary.
6. Information gathered through monitoring should be kept secure.

Even when you follow these six principles, it can be easy to over-monitor your employees. This can put you at risk of finding out personal medical and financial information, which you are then responsible for protecting. Regardless of whether you monitor your employees, they do have a right to privacy, and if monitoring is intrusive and violates their personal lives, you could harm your business’ reputation.

Overview

Employee monitoring software can have significant advantages for your company, such as maintaining productivity levels while employees are working remotely. However, you need to make sure you follow legal and ethical practices. Otherwise, you could be accessing information your employees don’t want you to know, putting both you and the company at risk.