I spy

To view this email in a browser, [click here](. INC. THIS MORNING I spy Good morning, It's 2019. Does your boss know where you are? Studies last year estimated that [94]( to [98 percent]( of employers monitor their employees in some way. And the scope and variety of ways some employers say they're tracking their employees is surprising when you see it all listed. On Friday, the Wall Street Journal [laid out how it's done]( including tools from companies most employees have probably never heard of: ActivTrak, Bunch.ai, Ambit Analytics, Teramind, Humanyze, and 8x8. Some employers said they use the data in the aggregate, or to improve company-wide productivity. Others said they hope to identify workers with mental health needs (including suicide prevention efforts). Sometimes, though, individual monitoring is par for the course. At least one company executive is described in the Journal as starting each day "by checking which websites his colleagues have browsed.” Here are 19 different questions employers are asking about their employees in 2019 -- and using monitoring to answer, often without the knowledge of employees: - How quickly does this employee respond to emails? - How quickly do other people respond to this employee's emails? (Assumption: The faster other people respond, the more important they perceive you to be.) - What data and appointments are on the employee's calendars, and how often do they check them? - How often does the employee log into work systems when they’re not at work? - How quickly does this employee normally speak, and loud is their voice? In one case, employees voluntarily wore badges equipped with microphones. - Which clients are most important to the employee? This data apparently helps companies replace employees smoothly, by passing their most important clients to other employees. - What documents did this employee try to open or print? This reportedly helps detect corporate espionage or other unauthorized access. - How long are the employee's lunch breaks? - How fit and healthy is the employee? - How often is the employee sitting at their assigned workspace? - Where does the employee physically go in the office when they’re not at their assigned workspace? - What websites does the employee visit? In some cases, this is monitored both during and outside of work hours. Some monitoring software sends URL information 60 times an hour, with screenshots. - How often does the employee wash his or her hands? (This data was gathered on nurses, in one case.) - How does the employee's productivity ebb or flow during the day? One company said it realized that employees did about three hours of actual work during each eight-hour shift. - How fast does the employee drive? This data is collected by UPS and Uber, reportedly. - What is the sender information, recipient information and timestamp of every email the employee sends or receives? (In this case, the company insisted it wasn't reading the contents of every email.) - Does the employee interact more often with people inside or outside your company? This could predict whether employees are likely to be looking to move on. - How often does the employee talk over colleagues in meetings? - How "chipper" is the employee's team Slack channel? SPONSORED CONTENT [The best customer experiences are built with Zendesk.]( Zendesk was built to make customer service software that’s easy to use and accessible for everyone. Get the flexibility to move quickly, focus on innovation, and scale your orgnaization. [Try it for free.]( HERE'S WHAT ELSE I'M READING TODAY: She was a physical trainer for pro athletes in the LPGA, the NBA, and U.S. women's soccer. Then, she [started a $100 million software business](. --Inc. Why [turning 26 can be a death sentence]( in America. --BuzzFeed News [How Tim Cook is defending Apple]( from antitrust investigations. (These six words are key.) --Inc. A reporter tried delivering food for apps like DoorDash. [It was a lot more hectic]( than he expected. --The New York Times Everything you need to know about parental leave [in just two minutes](. --Inc. A toddler died on a cruise ship after a horrific fall from an 11th-floor window. Her parents are asking [hard and gut-wrenching questions](. --Today [Four business buzzwords]( you definitely shouldn’t use. --Inc. What to do when [your boss falls asleep in meetings](. --Politico --Bill Murphy Jr. Contributing Editor, Inc.com Story ideas and feedback actively solicited. Find me at [billmurphyjr@inc.com](mailto:billmurphyjr@inc.com?subject=), or on [LinkedIn]( [Facebook]( and [Twitter](. [Click here]( to forward to a friend. This email was sent by: Mansueto Ventures 7 World Trade Center, 29th Floor New York, NY, 10007, [Unsubscribe]( • [Update Profile]( • [View in Browser]( • [Forward to a Friend](