How is WhatsApp Impacting Productivity

More than a billion people worldwide are using WhatsApp, it has now become the king of the messaging world. SMS and BBM stand no-where near WhatsApp now.

WhatsApp came with a big bang and its popularity since then has been increasing rapidly with no signs of relenting. WhatsApp has now become a part and parcel of our daily lives. The popularity of WhatsApp remains matchless since it is cheap, easy to use faster, and very convenient. 

WhatsApp and productivity

It is being used fully to maximize productivity. It is an effective platform for fast and seamless communication between superiors and their subordinates. The superiors and subordinates can now collaborate better and ensure fast action and a much faster response through WhatsApp.

Knowledge sharing and decision making seem much easier and speedy now since there is a way to instantly share the data on which an early decision needs to be taken. If one wants to save time or invest that time in some other crucial task they can even drop a voice message instead of typing a long message that needs a lot of detailing and simplification. If one plans to share an image related to work they have that option available too. All this not only contributes to effective communication but it also helps in saving a lot of time. 

WhatsApp no doubt has made things uncomplicated and much faster than before but it has a darker side too and it would not be just to keep that hidden. 

This might be helpful: Tips for managing your employees in a better way.

The Dark Side of WhatsApp – Negative impact on Working

The continuous notifications and the compulsion to respond to them is leaving people tired and worn- out. They may be leaving their workplace when it’s time up but remain attached to work through WhatsApp workgroups. These groups require them to respond to the messages on time. They cannot give an excuse since the two blue ticks say that the message has been read. This keeps the employees not only under increased work pressure but the terror of losing their job is constantly lingering around them.

Moreover, it does not just work chat on the workgroups; there are so many undesirable messages and jokes that are being cracked. One likes it or not is a different story; there remains a compulsion to check the phone once the notification pings, for it may be an important one. Some superiors decide on numerous WhatsApp groups where they assign a person to head the group leaving the employee working 24/7.

 Employees are sleeping deprived, not only that they are under so much work pressure that it is causing anxiety. Constant attention to work without a break is adversely affecting health resulting in depression.

So to conclude where on one hand WhatsApp can be used to attain maximum productivity keeping certain things in mind like not messaging post-work hours, not pooling in business and personal purposes, maintaining the work-life balance, etc. It is leading to strained eyes, excessive workload, anxiety, depression, fatigued and worn-out employees, resulting in reduced efficiency and productivity.