In the digital age, the line between personal and professional life has become increasingly blurred. Tools such as WhatsApp, initially designed for informal communication, have migrated to the workplace, generating a debate about the limits that exist between the two. A recent survey by the people management platform, Rankmi, shows that 67% of workers, 7 out of 10, perceive that the use of this application for work-related matters invades their privacy.
While it has become a key tool for daily communication, due to its simple interface and wide adoption worldwide, its use in the workplace poses significant challenges. One of them is the guarantee of the right to digital disconnection for 12 continuous hours, promulgated by the Labor Directorate. This 2022 measure seeks to protect employees’ personal time and avoid the feeling of constant availability.
Rankmi Co-founder and Chief Customer Experience Officer Felipe Cuadra stresses that “organisations must prioritise the use of communication tools that do not represent a threat or invasion of the private lives of their employees. In other words, corporate communication platforms or other alternatives must be used that allow work life to be separated from private life.”
While using WhatsApp is effective for some tasks, tools have been developed to facilitate internal collaboration, optimize and simplify communications in companies. They also protect employees’ personal data and allow for establishing boundaries between personal and work life.
Along these lines, Cuadra emphasizes the need for “organizations to have their own internal communication tools, which allow them to streamline everything from direct messaging between collaborators to live broadcasts. For example, with our Social Hub we offer an alternative with which organizations will not need to hire 3-4 different tools, but will be able to concentrate all their internal communication on a single platform.”
The call is for companies to integrate this type of tool for their internal communication, “this ensures a balance between the private and professional lives of employees. In addition, thanks to Artificial Intelligence, not only are recurring questions from employees answered on issues related to human resources, but it also relieves the burden on human resources management teams,” Cuadra concludes.
