It’s safe to say that people like shopping online. After all, who among us could resist the lure of Amazon Prime Day this week on July 11 — even if we were at work?
Evidently, not many of us.
According to CNBC, the third annual self-created shopping holiday was Amazon’s biggest yet, with sales this year surpassing the online retailer’s 2016 Black Friday and Cyber Monday results.
Prime Day sales grew by more than 60% compared to last year, and Amazon said a “record number” of Prime members shopped across 13 countries.
Okay, sure, but not that many people pay for Amazon’s Prime service, right? Again, from CNBC: “Amazon said more new members joined Prime on July 11 than on any single day in the company’s history.”
“If this growth trajectory continues, Amazon Prime should be used in more than 50% percent of all U.S. households before the year is over,” Cowen & Co. analyst John Blackledge wrote in a note to clients.
In order to take advantage of those timely Prime Day deals, shoppers needed to track and watch items to get them before they were gone. With just a 30-hour window to shop, that meant a lot of people were making their purchases discretely while on the clock at work.
How do employers feel about that? In a survey of CIOs, staffing firm Robert Half found that 65% of companies actually allow online shopping. Yet, more than half (55%) of employees aren’t aware of these policies and will quickly minimize their screens when the boss comes in.
“While some companies look the other way when employees browse retail sites in moderation, online shopping is sometimes against company policy,” notes Kimberly Bean, metro market manager for Robert Half Technology in the Madison and Milwaukee area. “Many businesses acknowledge the need for flexibility during the work week and now are allowing more online shopping at work, within reason.
“Allowing employees to do occasional personal errands at their desk, like personal shopping, may keep them more productive at work. Instead of leaving the office during lunch breaks to do shopping errands, employees can take care of these tasks quickly online.”
Bean says within reason, online shopping at work could actually be less hindering than taking two-hour lunch breaks to go to the mall. However, shopping online or taking care of personal tasks while at work can hinder productivity when done in excess, or when work projects aren’t prioritized. Online shopping should never cause work deadlines to slip or projects get off track.
So during a prominent shopping day like Prime Day, when are employees finding the time to snag those deals? According to Robert Half Technology data:
- 64% said they have used their lunch break to track down deals.
- 43% say they have surfed for bargains while bored on the job.
- 35% say they were lured to shop while searching online for something else.
- 17% of respondents say they have shopped with co-workers.
- 8% confess to shopping while on conference calls and 3% during in-person meetings.
Shopper stopper
Still, for every company that is willing to relax the rules and allow the freedom to shop online, there are others with strict policies against it.
According to another Robert Half survey of more than 1,400 CIOs across North America, one-third (33%) of leadership reported that their companies block employee access to online shopping, while 43% percent allow access but monitor for excessive use, explains Bean.
However, as stated earlier, 55% of employees are unaware of their firm’s stance, reporting they have not been provided with company information or training around IT security or online shopping policies.
“We recommend that technology leaders make sure they are regularly making employees company-wide aware of IT security and work device usage policies,” says Bean. “When new employees start at an organization, make sure they are updated on these policies, as well. Use times like holiday shopping time, when there may be a spike in online browsing and activity, to remind people of your organization’s policies. This way employees can have it top of mind as they try to get things done.”
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According to Bean, overall workplaces are becoming more flexible and less concerned about lapses in productivity. She says the number of companies that restrict access online has come down significantly over the last few years — in 2011, 60% of CIOs surveyed said they were blocking access to all online shopping entirely that year.
“Our findings show that employees may use lunchtime or downtime to get a bit of multitasking done, but it doesn’t seem to be a hindrance on productivity or ability to get work done. However, a small percentage of employees may abuse the privilege, at times.”
A few quick tips for employees:
- Learn the rules. Before you shop, make sure you’re familiar with your company’s web policy. Most employers have rules about sites or hours to avoid. If the policy is unclear, play it safe and save your shopping for before or after work.
- Limit surfing. Unrestricted access to the internet doesn’t mean you should spend the whole day searching for deals at your desk. If you plan to do the majority of your holiday shopping online and want to snag deals that day, take a personal day off or conduct your browsing away from the office and limit your shopping activity to quick transactions when at work.
- Log out of accounts. After you’ve completed your online purchases at work, remember to log out of your merchant accounts on your computer to protect your personal information.
“Employees should avoid spending excessive time at work on non-business activities, even if their firm has a liberal online shopping policy,” advises Bean. “It’s in no one’s best interest to be flagged as someone who spends a lot of work time on shopping sites.”
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