Few things can hamper your company’s productivity more than recreational Internet browsing. With the rise of social media, video-on-demand websites and Internet gaming, the temptation to bleed the clock can be overwhelming. Your first line of defence in the battle against bandwidth wastage is a comprehensive computer and Internet usage policy that addresses how your organisation’s IT resources are used. Complemented with an Internet monitor, your usage policy will create a culture of awareness and compliance.

This week we’ll look at how an Internet monitor, along with a comprehensive computer and Internet usage policy, will ensure that you get the most out of your bandwidth – and employees. The challenge for IT, however, is finding that middle ground between policing staff and an overly relaxed approach around Internet usage. 

Here is how an Internet monitor will benefit your organisation:

Ensure compliance: Signing a usage policy doesn’t automatically result in compliance. Your Internet monitor will reveal staff browsing trends and allow you to identify employees who spend hours on the web for personal browsing. Making your users aware of company policy and monitoring of activities will ensure they think twice before wasting hours hitting the ‘Like’ button on social sites instead of addressing work-related matters.

Network security: The average computer user is blissfully unaware of the dangers the Internet presents. With harmful software that poses a threat to the security of company information, downloading from unscrupulous websites is a constant concern for IT departments. In addition, the time IT support staff spend removing unwanted software from company computers is a waste of IT resources. An Internet monitor will identify harmful downloads entering your network and put you in a position to take corrective measures before threats become actual crises. 

Ensure ROI: The cost of bandwidth can run into tens of thousands depending on your organisation’s requirements. IT managers need to ensure that their expenditure is justified, and that they can guarantee a return on investment to ExCo. Monitoring gives you a good understanding of where your bandwidth is used and how to curb wastage.

Optimise bandwidth: Once you have identified the cause of bandwidth issues, you are able to take corrective action to ensure that things are running smoothly again. Without a bandwidth monitor, you’ll likely spend hours tracking the cause of bandwidth issues that result in loss of productivity for IT staff. Servers and network applications may also be the cause of poor bandwidth performance. A bandwidth monitor will aid you in tracking and addressing the various root causes of slow network speeds.

Get the big picture with an Internet monitor.

Companies that value productivity should invest in an Internet monitor that provides them with a clear perspective on web traffic. With web-based applications, mobile employees and satellite offices an intrinsic part of large organisations, bandwidth wastage can be a massive obstacle to productivity.

The use of the Internet as a business tool will only increase and diversify over the coming years and beyond. The challenge for IT managers is maximising its benefits to organisations by eliminating causes of bandwidth degradation, whether it be user, application or hardware related. With this in mind, an Internet monitor is an invaluable tool for both IT departments and organisations.

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