Does Facebook Boost or Cost Results?

Some studies say Facebook use reduces workers' productivity (by 1.5%). Others say, on the contrary, a little surfing on social networks can reduce stress and sharpen the mind, and banning them would cost business (up to $8 billion). Who is right? And what is your experience, good or bad?

Thanks for all your feedback to my post on whether social networks are a good or a bad thing. Now, to focus in a bit more: What about Facebook's effects on people's results?

According to a study by Nucleus Research, 77% of company employees have a Facebook account and almost two-thirds use it during business hours, on average for 15 minutes a day, which translates into 1.5% lost productivity.

Presumably.

Another statistic: In a 2008 poll, senior executives at the 1,000 largest U.S. companies said that their lunch break was now 35 minutes, down seven minutes from five years earlier. And many executives work through their lunch "hour" at least three times a week.

Nevertheless, seven out of ten companies have banned access to social networks during work hours.

But PopCap Games found (perhaps not least in its own interest) that far from reducing performance, "electronic breaks" actually boost staff efficiency and morale.

The computer games manufacture warned that by banning access to the Web, companies would contribute to productivity losses of up to $8 billion.

On the other hand, "Allowing workers more freedom at the PC can benefit morale and boost company profits," said the psychologist Dr. Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, a contributor to the study.

"In addition to allowing their minds to switch off from their work worries, employers can foster a more trusting and enjoyable environment."

Well, maybe. Judging from this video, intra-office use of Facebook might suck up huge amounts of time with idle and useless stuff.

My five cents: I have been quite passive in terms of friending people and I go on Facebook only in finely-dosed intervals (I guess it's a matter of discipline), but the social network has allowed me to connect with thousands of people I would not have met otherwise. 

Facebook has been useful for building a community around my life mission to transform the practice of leadership.
Meanwhile, Birmingham City University in England is offering a one-year master degree in social networking, which led one blogger at Computerworld to wonder tongue-in-cheek "if the professors are required to deliver 140-character Twitter-style college lectures?"
 

What do you think? Is Facebook a boost or a bust for performance? What is your experience with social networks and their impact on performance, either your own or your people's? I look forward to reading you on http://thomaszweifel.blogspot.com/.

P.S. For a free copy of my e- book Leading Leaders: The Art and Science of Boosting Return on People (ROP), go to Leading-Leaders.