As technology continues to integrate itself into the day to day activities of human lives, a number of opportunities and challenges have since become part and parcel of society. The communication sector is one of the areas that has dramatically been impacted and influenced by technological advancements. Communication has become more efficient and efficient allowing for communication capabilities that were not previously possible. Social media is an example of some of the platforms that have come about as a result of technological advancements in the communication sector. While it has been lauded as a crucial player in the enhancement of social as well as professional connections, some experts argue that it brings about a negative impact on productivity. However, with the tremendous advantages and opportunities that are linked to the usage of social media within the workplace, its use should be encouraged rather than condemned.
Literature Review
According to Bonnie Currin (2017), the link between social media and productivity is a positive one primarily because of the multitasking capacity enjoyed by the new generation. She argues that while social media might stripe off a significant amount of time during working hours, most of this time is spent communicating with clients, and co-workers. She also asserts that social media platform has been vital in enhancing workplace efficiency with a good example being the ease and speed of interaction through short messages and email instead of using meetings that are highly time-consuming. From her point of view, the decreasing productivity in the workplace due to the use of social media is a performance management issue.
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For Williams (2009), the challenge of social media use in the workplace comes about due to the separation of work interaction from social interaction. In other words, in creating a distinction between work and social communication, social media thus assumes a negative connotation without more in-depth consideration. He goes on to provide several examples of the positive impacts that have been brought about by the integrated social media into the workplace. His argument is based on a sound research data and statistics thus providing a valid and accurate basis for understanding the social media debacle.
According to an article appearing on Business Today, social media greatly contributes to slacking at the place of work (New Delhi, 2016). Another point captured in the article is that while misuse of social media platforms may bring about slacking, proper leveraging can bring about positive impacts within places. This article introduces another crucial element that is linked to increasing social media use within the areas of work; that of an increase in loss of confidential information, misinformation as well as employee solicitation.
Brooks’ paper delves into the influence of social media usage on the efficiency and well-being of the individual rather than an organization (2015). The author discusses how an individual’s life is influenced and affected, and thereby provides an understanding of the impact of individual outcomes on a firm or organization. Stoney's research is an elaborate exposition of the adverse effects that arise from the use of social media at a personal level.
Positive Impacts of Social Media
As the first generation to have fully assimilated technology into their lives, Gen Xs and Ys, have managed to become adept at multitasking through communication platforms (Currin, 2017). In this case, therefore, the assertion that their productivity is minimized accrues from a perspective that limits social media use to interactions that do not enhance work-related activities. However, as Williams points out, "While their older colleagues waste time holding meetings or engaging in long phone conversations, young people can sum things up in one-sentence text messages” (Williams, 2009). He also adds that interactions on social media platforms go a long way in enhancing the network of acquaintances and valued business colleagues.
A few decades ago, interactions at the place of work were limited to the individuals present on site, and a few who could be reached through the telephone. In the contemporary society, however, social media technology has allowed for enhanced communication and interaction capability. This means that a worker in the office can communicate with individual thousands of miles away. This has been essential in building work and non-work relations, both of which positively contribute to the wellbeing of the company. Another workplace advantage that has been noted in relation to social media use is that of mental breaks and reprieve. Access to websites such as YouTube has been found to be highly beneficial to the wellbeing of the employees who get to enjoy mental breaks and refreshment allowing for enhanced concentration on work-related matters. Surfing through various social media sites at places of work has been found to be highly refreshing allowing for a 9% increase in worker productivity (Currin, 2017).
It is also important to highlight the direct positive impact that that social media use has had on business communication and interaction with clients. Previous interactions between business and clients relied on traditional modes which were highly limiting and rigid. This meant that an information gap was often prevalent between actual consumer need and the company services or products. With the advent of social media technology, however, communication occurs in real-time allowing for higher company responsiveness as well as consumer satisfaction. In this case, therefore, employee use of social media can be leveraged in collecting information and as well as responding to customer needs and complaints. Leveraging social media platforms has also been instrumental in helping organizations enhance their marketing approaches and strategy. With billions of people interacting and communicating with various social media, platforms, organizations and business have found an effective way of easily reaching to clients and customers. Social media platforms allow most business to transcend the limitations of conventional and traditional marketing approaches, and in doing so, greater effectiveness and efficiency has been achieved.
While it is evident that social media use can bring about a positive outcome on productivity, a number of experts point out that the opposite is true. Stoney's research is an example of the negativity of social media in the places of work. By focusing on the impact of social media use on techno-stress and happiness, he brings to light how social media can reduce work productivity. While multitasking has been referred to a gift for the tech-savvy generation, Stoney points out the flaw of this gift by linking it to increased levels of techno-stress (Brooks, 2015). The fact that an employee multitasks between accomplishing work-related tasks and interacting over social media platforms, he or she is faced with the challenge of sustaining their concentration levels across various platforms. Such assertions can be addressed through two crucial arguments. First, as a generation that has been wholly integrated technology in all aspects of their lives, Gen X and Gen Y have made multitasking part and parcel of their lives. While it may be viewed as a major strain based on age-old perspectives, the new generation is completely at peace with the multiple attentions shared over various technological platforms. Secondly, issues regarding productivity are primarily performance management issues (Brooks, 2015). In other words, issues like the misuse of smoke breaks and absenteeism posit a flaw within the management team and not necessarily the employees. Management teams should find avenues of enhancing the work environment to inspire and encourage productivity rather than imposing rigid rules against the use of social media within the workplace. Singling out social media as the primary cause of lower productivity is but a sidestepping from the real worker management issues within the company.
Social media has become a critical success factor for businesses and organizations across the world. The newly found communication capability has brought about significant efficiencies that are vital in enhancing productivity. The current generations, more famously referred to as Generation X and Generation Y, form part of the first group of people that are entirely tech savvy having been brought up within a society with a high technological integration. These make this particular group highly technology savvy than any other group. It is, therefore, crucial to consider the emergent aspects such as multitasking abilities that are coming from this particular generation.
While some challenges can be pointed in regards to the use of social media use, most of them can be solved through performance management and such, a direct link between social media and lower work productivity is eliminated. It is also essential to consider abolishing traditional boundaries between work and social interactions. By realizing the thin line between social and work interactions, organizations can begin to integrate social media use into their organizations positively. It is also vital for organizations to be aware of the fact that social media use can only intensify, moving forward, and such, rather than sticking with rigid and outdated, they should consider fully adopting social media use.
References
Brooks, S. (2015). Does personal social media usage affect efficiency and well-being? Computers in Human Behavior, 46 , 26-37.
Currin, B. (2017). The impact of social media on work productivity . Retrieved 0n4 December 2017, from https://www.currentconsulting.co.za/impact-social-media-work-productivity/.
New Delhi. (2016). Social media affecting workplace productivity: Report. Living Media India Limited . Retrieved on 4 December 2017, from http://www.businesstoday.in/current/corporate/social-media-affecting-workplace-productivity-report/story/238716.html.
Williams, R. (2009). Social media: Does it help or hinder productivity? Retrieved on 4 December 2017, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/wired-success/200911/social-media-does-it-help-or-hinder-productivity.
