March Madness…Productivity Drain?

MGT 207 – Dr. Hal LazarusBryan BergJason Berg

Barry DirraneMatthew Giammarinaro

Ross GreenbergSherwin NinanChris Sweeney

Overview• Our Hypothesis• Survey Methodology• Survey Results• Survey Analysis & Assumptions• Our Conclusion• Questions

What Makes a Good Hypothesis?

• Easily identifiable• Random Sample• Can be thoroughly tested – (survey, questionnaire, etc.)

• SIMPLE– Lower risk of error– Only necessary variables included

Hypothesis

The NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament has a negative

effect on employee work productivity.

Terminology• Hypothesis Testing• The rational framework for applying statistical

tests.

• NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament• A single-elimination tournament held each

spring, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship, in the top tier of college basketball. Held mostly in March, it is known informally as March Madness of “The Big Dance.”

Terminology• NCAA Bracket Pool • A competition amongst friends, co-workers, or

even between strangers online, where participants predict the results of all games in the NCAA Tournament. Typically, the participant who correctly chooses the winners of the most games is crowned the champion of the pool and is awarded any prizes associated with victory. These pools are very popular in office settings and are a main reason as to why the tournament is associated with a lack of productivity.

• Work Productivity• The amount of goods and services that an

employee produces in a standard 8-hour work day.

Background and Purpose

Background & Purpose• Understanding Workplace Habits• Current Event• Common Interest• Curiosity

Background & Purpose

The excitement of “March Madness” results in the second most popular organized office pool next to the

Super Bowl according to a poll by the Society of Human Resource

Management (SRHM) .

Researched Information

• “Boss Button” – CBS

• Legal?• Grey & Christmas – Released annual report estimating the

amount of productivity lost to the NCAA Tournament

SurveyApproach

• Online survey• Convenience for distribution and tabulation• Anonymity and convenience for respondents• Best way to target our desired population• Survey with jumps• Allowed for maximum response accuracy

Survey Distribution• Online-only distribution• E-mail• Facebook• Twitter

• Sent without any mention of the subject matter

• Sent at varying times of the day to gauge which times got the most responses

Survey Goals• To see if people followed the NCAA

Tournament during work hours• How they followed the tournament• How they felt it impacted productivity• What other types of personal business

were being conducted by respondents during work hours• What prompted respondents to engage in

this behavior

SurveyStatistics

Are you participating in a NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament bracket pool?

Responses  Total PercentageYes 53 49%No 56 51%Total 109 100%

YesNo

 

 Are you utilizing company resources (i.e. Internet, TV, e-mail) to participate in this pool?

      Responses    Percentage  Yes 61%  No 39%

 Does your company approve participation in an NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament bracket pool during work hours?

      Responses    Percentage  Yes 40%  No 60%       

Yes

Yes

As a whole, how much do you believe your department's productivity decreases during the Tournament?

Responses  PercentageNo change 51%Less than 10% 27%10% to 20% 15%20% to 50% 5%50% or more 0%Productivity increases 1%

If you are in charge of other employees, how much do you think their productivity decreases during the Tournament?

Responses  PercentageNot a manager 54%No change 19%Less than 10% 11%10% to 20% 10%20% to 50% 5%50% or more 0%Productivity increases 1%

0

10

20

30

40

50

No chan

ge

Less t

han 10

%

10% to

20%

20% to

50%

50% or

more

Produc

tivity

incre

ases

02468

1012141618

Do you partake in any of the following activities while on company time?

Responses  PercentageUsing work e-mail for personal conversations 46%Using work e-mail to send forwards 26%Checking and using personal e-mail 66%Browsing the Internet 76%Online shopping 31%Online banking 48%Personal telephone conversations 49%

Using work e-mail for personal conversations

Using work e-mail to send forwards

Checking and using personal e-mail

Browsing the Internet

Online shopping

Online banking

Personal telephone conversations

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Do you agree with any of the following statements about using company resources for personal activities while on the clock?

Responses  PercentageI'm getting paid to work; I shouldn't be doing anything else. 25%

I feel kind of bad, but everyone else does it. 29%I'm bored with my job and I need a break every now and again. 27%My job is overly stressful and I need a break every now and again. 34%They don't pay me enough to put in a full day of actual work. 9%I spend enough time working here; I'm entitled to a little down time. 37%I'd love to surf the Web during work hours, but that's what lunch is for. 16%

I'm getting paid to work; I shouldn't be doing anything else.

I feel kind of bad, but everyone else does it.

I'm bored with my job and I need a break every now and again.

My job is overly stressful and I need a break every now and again.

They don't pay me enough to put in a full day of actual work.

I spend enough time working here; I'm entitled to a little down time.

I'd love to surf the Web during work hours, but that's what lunch is for.

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

Survey Assumptions and Limitations

• Assumptions• Respondents will: • Be familiar with NCAA Tournament and pools• Work typical 9-5 shifts• Answer questions about work habits truthfully

• Limitations• Convenient Sample vs. Random Sample• Survey self-reported• Small sample size

ConclusionBased on our survey results and analysis, we

came to the following conclusions-

• Survey results suggest the NCAA Tournament does not significantly impact productivity

• Office pools may just be one of many ways for employees to “slack off” at work

• Further testing would have to be done to truly prove or disprove hypothesis

Questions?