21 Aug 2008 14:00 Africa/Lagos

Survey: More Than Half of Executives Say Web Surfing OK at Work

MENLO PARK, Calif., Aug 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Not all employees browsing the Internet for Olympics results or news updates need feel guilty, a new survey by The Creative Group suggests. More than half (57 percent) of advertising and marketing executives polled said it's OK for employees to visit non-work-related websites during business hours. When asked the maximum amount of time that should be permissible each day, the mean response was 32 minutes.


The national survey was developed by The Creative Group, a specialized staffing service providing creative, advertising, marketing and web professionals on a project and full-time basis, and conducted by an independent research firm. It is based on 250 interviews -- 125 with advertising executives randomly selected from the nation's 2,000 largest advertising agencies and 125 with senior marketing executives randomly selected from the nation's 2,000 largest companies.


Advertising and marketing executives were asked, "In your opinion, is it OK for employees to surf non-work-related websites during business hours?" Their responses:


Yes , 57%
No , 41%
Don't know , 2%
100%



Respondents who said it's OK to surf non-work-related websites on the job also were asked, "What is the maximum number of minutes that should be permissible each day?" The mean response was 32 minutes.


"In the creative field, surfing non-work sites may be considered part of the job because it allows professionals to keep up with trends and seek new sources of inspiration," said Megan Slabinski, executive director of The Creative Group. "Also, many employers recognize that making appointments and attending to personal tasks online might actually improve productivity, since professionals can quickly take care of needs while in the office instead of stepping out."


Slabinski noted, however, that employees should exercise caution when using the Internet at the office. "It's never OK to visit inappropriate sites or browse excessively at work," she said. "Many companies have monitoring programs in place to prevent people from misusing the Web on the job."


About The Creative Group


The Creative Group specializes in placing a range of highly skilled creative, advertising, marketing and web professionals with a variety of firms on a project and full-time basis. The Creative Group's internal account managers typically have prior experience working within the creative industry, which helps them better understand their clients' needs and their freelancers' unique talents. Headquartered in Menlo Park, Calif., the firm has offices in major markets across the United States and in Canada. More information, including online job-hunting services, candidate portfolios and The Creative Group's award-winning career magazine, can be found online at http://www.creativegroup.com/.


Source: The Creative Group

CONTACT: Julie Sims of The Creative Group, +1-650-234-6104,
julie.sims@creativegroup.com


Web site: http://www.creativegroup.com/