Security at risk as staff combat communication issues at work

Security could be at risk as staff take to unofficial channels to combat communication issues at work, according to new research.

Results of an independent survey, carried out on behalf of team communication platform, Our People, found that more than two thirds (69%) of employees are using sites such as Facebook and WhatsApp to communicate with their team around work matters.

“Whilst management are adamant their companies don’t use Facebook or WhatsApp for staff communication, their employees clearly do, according to our research,” said Ross McCaw, founder and CEO of Our People. “Whilst these group chats are set up with the best intentions, company data could be at risk if employees leave the company with full access to confidential information.”

The findings are totally at odds with the security importance rating respondents gave to communications of 7 out of 10. Yet with more than a third of health, fitness and leisure employees without access to email, the communications challenge is no surprise. More than 4 in 10 respondents said day to day communications with employees is a key challenge for the industry.

“From our research, it appears head offices are unaware of these practices going on at their sites, which leads to the question what other IT or operational procedures and policies are being ignored? Terms and conditions for platforms such as Facebook and WhatsApp say they should not be used for business purposes, meaning companies would be in deep water if an incident were to occur,” continues McCaw. “From a personal point of view, colleagues added to a WhatsApp group have their mobile number shared with everyone in the group, which some staff may not feel comfortable about. With the Our People plaform, all personal data is hidden.”

Our People is a smart-phone driven communication tool revolutionising the way leisure centres can communicate in real-time with team members that don’t work from a desk; from sharing company updates, covering vacant shifts and one-to-one ‘conversations’ to training and compliance. Crucially, all communications are tracked and can be reported on.

“With smartphones now the preferred method to access the internet among UK adults, according to eMarketer’s latest forecast, it’s clearly becoming the smart way to communicate with employees too. Perhaps it’s time operators carry out an internal review to find out exactly how their staff are currently keeping in touch, remind them of company policies, and put measures in place for both safe and effective communication channels going forwards,” concludes McCaw.

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For further information contact:
Abigail Harris at Big Fish PR
Tel: 07738 331019
Email: abigail@bigfishpublicrelations.co.uk