Technology

Question 1
Could you please list the company name, its address, your name and also the area that you work in and your position within the company.

AE Farms Inc., Des Moines IA  Mr. Joseph Kent  General Manager

Question 2
In your company, is everyone equipped with a personal laptop or computer And is there any way you can ensure that they only use the facility for work purpose

Ours is a small company in the business of making and serving ice cream and ice milk.  We do not supply computers to all our employees, and not everybody has the time to use the computer all day long.  We have customers to greet and serve.

As for your second question, as we are a small company and everybody is considered a friend in my workplace, we do not mind if you use computers to check your personal emails, etc.  If you are an employee at AE Farms Inc., and you check your personal email at my workplace or chat with your friends online, I expect you to invite your friends as customers to taste our ice creams  So, I believe, it is not harmful to use the computer for personal reasons, at least in our business.  

Question 3
Are you aware of the existence of social networking websites such as Facebook, MySpace, Hi5 etc and the fact that employees might be using them at work Is this happening in your company

Of course, my teenage kids use Facebook, and they tell me all of their friends are using it too.  But my kids are not addicted to such technologies.  They have better things to do, for example, homework.

As I mentioned before, I would be delighted if people in my workplace use such websites to invite their friends as customers.  But I would be furious if our employees are addicted to such networking websites so much so that they are neglecting their work.  As I am aware that none of them is neglecting work to use Facebook, it is not an issue we have to be concerned about.    

Question 4
What measurements have you taken to stop employees from logging in social networking websites during work hours

None at all

Question 5
Does your company fully ban access to social networking websites If yes, what methodssoftware do you use

Next question, please But before we move on, thank you for bringing this up as I might consider starting a Facebook site for our company soon.  Or, would it be MySpace  I would have to ask.

Question 6
Besides blocking access to social networking websites, do you permit the use of real-time chatting MSN, Yahoo Messenger etc

As I mentioned earlier, I permit the use of both social networking websites and real-time chatting and I say this not because I have officially granted this permission to our employees rather, they have never neglected their work to use such technologies.  If we ever have an employee who is addicted to such technologies so much so that he or she neglects work, I would advise him or her not to.  If he or she continues to neglect work, I would fire the employee.

Question 7
What were your reasons for introducing restriction to certain websites

First of all, allow me to read your questions differently, as we have never had issues with employees misusing office computers.  In our business, community goodwill is virtually everything.  So if you have a friend you would like to chat with on MSN Messenger for an hour, and you are not neglecting your work as you do so  I would say, Go ahead, but tell your friend he has got to taste our ice creams  Invite him over

Question 8
Who was consulted when this decision was taken

The CEO of this company consults me when he has choices on his mind and decisions to make.  I consult him when there are choices on my mind and decisions to make.  As an example, I would talk to him about starting a MySpace or Facebook site to expand our customer base.

Question 9
How have these policies been received by your employees What are their reactions towards this policy

As all of your questions concern those who have issues with their employees, and I promised to answer them all, let me answer this question as though I have read it differently.

If you are working at AE Farms Inc., we want you not only to consider us your friends but also to make our customers feel that they are family to us.  We want to be perceived as a friendly enterprise serving ice cream and ice milk.

Of a certainty, however, if an employee neglects his or her work to use Facebook or MSN Messenger for personal reasons, and he or she is advised not to before he or she is fired for noncompliance, we expect everybody in our business to be unhappy with the outcome.  As we have never had such problems to deal with, I do not intend to create policies making our employees feel that they are school children under a strict school principal.

Question 10
What positive aspects have you received since the introduction of the policies

Still understanding your questions differently, I can only tell you ours is a happy, friendly organization thriving on ice cream, and our employees do not feel like they are being robbed of their essential human freedom.  Again, we have no policy to stop them from communicating with their friends online.  But we would take action if they neglect their jobs to do so.

Question 11
Have you encountered any problems so far with the banning of access to social networking websites

No.

Question 12
What do you think about the idea of using social networking websites as a helpful tool to do business For example, to improve communication with your long-distanced customers, update them with news, marketing them with your products etc.

I think it is an excellent idea, though we have yet to see how well it can work for us.  I would call an IT expert to look into it and advise us.

Once again, thanks for bringing this up

Question 13
Overall, do you think the introduction of website restriction is a positive measure taken by your company

No, I dont think such policies are positive for any company.  Then again, I dont know how other organizations can treat their employees like noncompliant school children and increase their productivity at the same time.

Question 14
To what extent do you think websites restriction is a necessary policy to be introduced within business And would you actually recommend this to others businesses as well

As suggested previously, I do not believe in such rules and would only deal with a problem as it happens.

Thank you for giving me this interview and also giving up your time, and your information has been very helpful for my project, so thank you very much.

Criterion N. Discussion and Analysis of Interview.

There are two key insights gleaned from the interviews with representatives of Anh and AE Farms Inc. (1) Businesses do not have the same level of computer or IT awareness at the moment and (2) Representatives of both companies believe that employee use of social networking websites is good for business.  The representative of Anh states that employees return to work in a better mood and increase their productivity after personal communication with their friends or family.  Likewise, the representative of AE Farms Inc. believes that employees can make customers of their personal contacts on Facebook, etc.  But, clearly, Kent does not share Truongs level of computer awareness.  Whereas the latter can describe various uses of social networking websites, for example, it can be a very effective marketing station, Kent only states that it is an excellent idea.
   
After all, Anh has its own IT department that has educated Truong in various uses of social networking sites.  Truong even knows about the average time employees at Anh spend on work-unrelated sites on the Internet.  Kents company does not have an IT department, which is why he states that he would have to call an IT expert to learn more about social networking sites for his business.  Moreover, Truongs business monitors employee use of the Internet, whereas Kent believes that this is not positive for any company.  Anh employees are prohibited from visiting certain file-sharing websites and pornography sites.  At AE Farms Inc., there is no restriction whatsoever.
   
Neither Truong nor Kent mentions having fired an employee for misuse of the Internet in the workplace.  Truong does not use the word firing at all.  He only states that HR will intervene if an employee is found to be neglecting his or her job responsibilities.  Of course, the two businesses have different cultures, just as their levels of computer awareness differ.

Criterion O. Reflection on the interview, with respect to the portfolio research.
According to the article, Bosses should embrace Facebook, a company that stops its employees from using social networking sites such as Facebook may actually damage itself in the long run.  Truong and Kent do not name this reason when they state that they do not entirely stop their employees from using such sites, although Kent clearly mentions that restricting use of the Internet is not positive for a business.  The article further states that the use of social networking websites must be tied to a business goal.  Hence, both Truong and Kent name reasons why their employees should be allowed to use such sites in the workplace.  Truong even mentions the importance of social networking sites to customer relationship management.  The article, on the contrary, discusses customers communicating with the organization to resolve issues through such sites.
   
Also according to the article, granting employees the freedom to use social networking sites in the workplace  as these sites increase in popularity  is tied to the stability of a business.  Kent expresses this idea in the following words Ours is a happy, friendly organization and our employees do not feel like they are being robbed of their essential human freedom.  The interviews and the article also stress the importance of control of use of non-work related websites.  The article advises companies to deploy practical guidelines to protect the positive impact of networks.  But Kents company has never experienced the need for such guidelines, although he states that an employee who neglects his or her work after being warned would be fired.  Anh, on the other hand, has HR guidelines in place.
   
As the articles main ideas are included in the two interviews, this comparison validates the articles thesis, that is, social networking sites are good for business.  However, it is not mentioned anywhere that extensive use of the Internet tends to isolate people.  After all, it is healthier to interact with people face-to-face.  Perhaps, therefore, organizations should also consider creating more social opportunities for their employees  using some of their time spent on Internet use  so as to promote wellness.