The workplace is often a collaborative environment where ideas and information are openly exchanged. However, there are plenty of circumstances where these exchanges must maintain some level of confidentiality, whether they take place in person or digitally. Workplace privacy is incredibly important to safeguard; having firm and apparent strategies in place to maintain this can boost employee retention, increase your customer base, and protect confidential information from exposure.
The Importance of Workplace Privacy
Privacy in the workplace is absolutely essential – every job collects confidential information about clients, potential customers, and employees. This includes data like social security numbers, addresses, medical records, or bank account information. Beyond the protection of information, workplace privacy is important for employee function and comfort. Team members need spaces in the workplace that are not constantly monitored. It promotes independence and freedom to explore creativity, improving upon current practices while boosting morale and enhancing productivity.
Employees also need places to have confidential conversations with their colleagues, supervisors, and Human Resources professionals. For example, if a team member is looking to express discomfort with another employee’s actions to HR, they may be unwilling to come forward if there is not a reliable, designated office to do so. Every company is responsible for maintaining these confidential third places, whether at the physical workplace or through remote channels.
Methods of Maintaining Workplace Privacy
There are a few simple changes you can make to business practices to ensure confidential conversations are protected, and privacy is enhanced in the workplace.
Soundproofing
A quiet working environment with manageable sound levels keeps team members feeling comfortable and at ease while working. Good office acoustics contribute to high productivity by improving focus and privacy. Though sound can be a huge imposition on optimal job performance, a lack of proper soundproofing can, more importantly, inadvertently expose private information and conversations. Business owners can purchase office partitions that diffuse and block sound to mitigate this exposure. This is especially important for office spaces that have limited enclosed private offices and generally operate in a more open-concept working environment.
For those working at home, soundproofing your office space can be a worthwhile investment, particularly for those who handle sensitive information, such as folks in the healthcare or insurance industries. Soundproof your windows by using soundproofing or acoustic tape, along with blackout curtains to dampen the noise. When building a home office from scratch, be sure to request soundproofing insulation or foam as well.
Limit Surveillance Tools
Cameras in the workplace are often used to monitor employee productivity, ensure proper working practices, and prevent/identify theft. However, cameras can impede employee privacy – team members may feel there are limited spaces to have confidential conversations. Recording employees and monitoring their screens may be illegal, as doing so can violate state and federal laws. Additionally, without the right security measures in place, these forms of electronic surveillance can be susceptible to hacking and interference without the right security measures in place, further exposing confidential conversations and information.
One of the first steps to protect employee privacy is to limit the use of electronic surveillance devices and applications in the workplace. Be transparent about what surveillance methods are being used and when. If you’re concerned about productivity levels, choose other methods of monitoring this, such as keeping track of internal network traffic.
Data Collection Transparency & Protection
Both team members and clients should understand how any data they offer you is being used within your company. This transparency is key to keeping the information safe from unauthorized access while restoring confidence in your company’s practices. First, you should identify your objectives – what do you aim to achieve by collecting this data? Clearly communicate these objectives to team members and clients to ensure the most ethical and safe data collection practices occur.
There should also be data protection, backup, and recovery systems in place for all data collected. Routinely auditing the integrity of data collected and making this known company-wide contributes to trust in your business and makes sure this confidential information isn’t improperly intercepted.
Provide Cybersecurity Training
Cybersecurity training is the first line of defense to ensuring security and privacy in every work environment. Keep employees updated on how to protect confidential conversations and reduce third-party interference. Your employee handbook should clearly outline your company’s cybersecurity measures and what employees must do regularly to keep up with these measures. Routine training keeps this important information fresh in their minds, preventing mishaps from occurring and reducing risk. Inform employees about what to do if and when they encounter a cybersecurity threat, and keep this information easily accessible, either through a document, recorded training module, or both.
The Takeaway
Privacy in the workplace is too delicate and critical to push to the wayside. Taking these tips into account while being fully accessible for any internal employee feedback can help your business minimize risks and keep confidential information and conversations amongst the right designated parties. Every company relies on its employees, who must feel comfortable and safe to do their best work. By making the effort to give them the privacy they deserve, you are creating a better business.
Featured Photo by Alexander Suhorucov
