Fantasy football at work? Managers must set ground rules

Fidelity's recent decision to fire four employees for playing fantasy football on the job highlights an issue — Internet usage at work — that advisers are paying closer attention to these days. The problem, say industry experts, is that most advisory firms don't have policy guidelines for private internet usage while at work. It's a gray area which can be confusing for employees. As a result, practice management experts recommend that managers set ground rules for computer use at work, making clear whether employees are allowed to use company computers for any kind of personal use, such as e-mail, office pools — even fantasy football. Cameron Pettigrew, a relationship manager at Fidelity, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram he was fired for gambling on the job. "They interrogated me as though I was some sort of international gambling kingpin," he told the paper. “We aren't making any judgments on fantasy leagues,” said Fidelity spokesman Vin Loporchio in an e-mail to InvestmentNews. “If it is permitted legally, people can do this on their own time. Our company policies relate to the professional conduct of our employees. We do not want our company's equipment and resources to be used for these purposes.” Industry experts said a number of issues arise when employees use work computers for personal use. They may accidentally send out client information, or they could introduce a virus to the firm's system while downloading data for personal use. Maureen Wilke, founder of consulting firm Wilke & Associates Inc., encourages advisers to give employees clear and specific rules about Internet usage at work. “When employees are in the office, they're on your time,” she said. “They shouldn't be Facebooking. But if it's during their lunch time, that's great.” James Barnash, a consultant with Stride Consulting Inc. in Chicago, which works with about 35 advisory firms, said he always took a more casual approach when he supervised employees as a manager at Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp. earlier this decade. “There was no way you could tell what people were doing on the computer,” he said. “I don't mind an occasional visit to Facebook or private e-mails, but I always expect a day's work for a day's pay.” Mark Penske, chairman and chief executive of United Advisors Wealth Management, says his firm takes a rigid approach to Internet usage because he's worried what might happen if an employee accidentally sends out client information in a personal e-mail. “We tell everyone we're monitoring and copying everything you do at every moment,” he said. “It's probably a bit overbearing but the potential downside is so huge that you want to be careful.” Employees are not permitted to access personal websites during working hours, but over the lunch hour they can peruse these websites, he said. But he admits he hasn't outlined specific rules for office pools, and said it's possible that workers may have office pools that he's not aware of. “They could have office pools in the offices in Michigan and Ohio and I would never know about it,” he said. “You pick your battles. I'm trying to stick to the stuff that could potentially get the firm in trouble.” But advisory firms should specifically address the issue of gambling and office pools, said consultant Mary Dunlap, whose firm works with about 50 advisers. She said some firms allow employees to participate in office pools, but do not allow employees to use company computers for the office pool information. That means employees send such information from their home computer or to personal cell phones. Shop Talk is a regular column detailing how financial advisers run their businesses. The column focuses on unusual or innovative ways to attract more clients. Suggestions or tips for Shop Talk? Please e-mail lshidler@investmentnews.com or visit the Shop Talk page at www.investmentnews.com/shoptalk