The Stress of Constant Connectivity “My phone is like a leash.” -Anonymous Leader Charn P. McAllister 27 March 2015 Facts • Smartphones are more common than cable television • Germany has legislation on the table banning organizations from contacting employees after hours. • Phantom Vibration Syndrome is a real thing… 2 Agenda • • • • What is Constant Connectivity? Are your employees affected by it? Why is this important? Conclusions 3 Constant Connectivity Defined • When communications technology enables organizations to remain continually connected to their employees both during and after work hours, resulting in the organization being a pervasive and omnipresent force in the lives of those employees 4 Constant Connectivity (A History) 5 Why the Stress? • At Work – Reduced Planning – Interrupted Workflow – Chained to E-mail • At Home – No time to decompress. – Working ‘off the clock’ – Work-Family Issues 6 A Model of CC Stress Emotional Exhaustion Perceived Control # of Messages Received Constant Connectivity Job Tension • Actual communications relate to Constant Connectivity • Perceived control may be related to your position in the org. Work-Family Conflict Job Satisfaction • Results in job tension and other negative outcomes 7 Why does it matter? • Long-term exhaustion • Added tension in the workplace • Unintentionally creating a harmful culture 8 How is this useful? • Improve employees’ psychological health & well-being • It is possible to implement effective solutions • Long-term benefits to the organization 9 The “Ask” • Additional data needed on this topic and on possible interventions • Measure employees’ well-being and the frequency of receipt of, and response to, organizational communications • Report and Executive Summary of my findings. 10 Comments or Questions? Charn P. McAllister Florida State University cpm12b@my.fsu.edu 11