Workers looking to jump start shopping for holiday gifts will have a harder time browsing for bargains at the office. The majority (60 percent) of chief information officers (CIOs) interviewed by Robert Half Technology said their companies block access to online shopping sites up from 48 percent last year. Another 23 percent said they allow access but monitor activity for excessive use. The CIOs whose firms allow online shopping said they expect employees to spend four hours per week, on average, surfing for deals this holiday season.
The surveys were developed by Robert Half Technology, a provider of information technology (IT) professionals on a project and full-time basis. They were conducted by an independent research firm and are based on telephone interviews with more than 1,400 CIOs from companies across the United States with 100 or more employees.
CIOs were asked, What is your company's policy regarding employees shopping online while at work? Their responses:
2010 2011
Block access to online shopping sites 48% 60%
Allow access but monitor for excessive use 34% 23%
Allow unrestricted access 14% 13%
Other/don't know 4% 4%
Total 100% 100%
With an increasing number of firms blocking access to shopping sites, many employees may turn to mobile devices to shop at the office, said John Reed, executive director of Robert Half Technology. Reed advises exercising caution, however. Spending excessive time on non-business activities while at work raises a red flag for employers.
Robert Half Technology offers four tips to help professionals avoid getting on their company's naughty list this holiday season:
1. Play by the rules. If your employer allows online shopping at work, know your company's policy, including sites or hours to avoid, before searching for deals.
2. Buy rather than browse. A liberal computer use policy is no excuse to spend the day filling your shopping cart. If your company allows occasional online buying, limit your activity to quick transactions.
3. Don't get stuck on your Smartphone. Mobile devices can make it easy to get around a strict online shopping policy, but always put work first.
4. Exercise caution. Any offer that looks too good to be true probably is. Avoid links or sites that could infect your company's network with phishing attacks or viruses.
About the Surveys
The national surveys were developed by Robert Half Technology, a leading provider of IT professionals on a project and full-time basis, and conducted by an independent research firm. The surveys are based on more than 1,400 telephone interviews with CIOs from a random sample of U.S. companies with 100 or more employees. In order for the surveys to be statistically representative, the samples were stratified by geographic region, industry and number of employees. The results were then weighted to reflect the proper proportions of the number of employees within each region.
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