I am a sales person in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Not too long ago, I used to take orders on call and deliver
wherever required. Sometimes I take a snap of whatever I had and sends it to a group of customers on
WhatsApp. Customers get to see what I have to offer with effective scheme utilization and range of
products. This is a huge behavior change. And it has come about very fast! More and more people are
getting hooked to their smartphones because of WhatsApp

Apart from communication, WhatsApp is turning out to be a tool that is empowering many small
businesses. Exploring this trend, we tried to figure out how startups are using WhatsApp and how this
messenger app has become an integral part of the business process. WhatsApp is a formal channel for
communication in our operations and not just a casual messenger anymore. Our company has sales
groups, emergency action group, and co-founders’ group, and all these groups are constantly buzzing with
activity.

Emails, Facebook are available but none of them provide the same ease of use that WhatsApp gives.
Mobile phones are like an extension of the human body now and the lightness that WhatsApp brings
ensures that people on business groups notice the messages quicker and the corresponding action also
comes about faster. But In this world of impatient people, everyone is in a hurry in replying fast and just
because of it everyone's reply collides with each other in groups and no one can understand what’s going
on. Even sometimes my manager wants to say something and some other member reply’s something else
which creates difficulty in understanding the context.

And this is not restricted to businesses. In my organization when my manager praises someone then it
creates a jealous kind of feeling in others and when my boss scold someone then everyone comes to know
about our fault which creates a chaotic situation in between subordinates which directly reflects in our
personal life also.

Personal life reminds me that instant messaging system like WhatsApp had made people fast and at the
same time made people impatient in their workplace because managers don't think about time as
someone would be with family and friends and if manages messages scolding words and gives some
urgent work then mood gets swing and we are not able to concentrate on our personal life and at that
moment its difficult to give our time to family or friends.

Even when so many subordinates are in a group and not a single word hides from anyone which creates
politics between subordinates when the manager says that someone is in the top in sales or execution in
this month and some are below in this race. Subordinates start feeling guilty or jealous with each other
which automatically reflects in our subordinate's relationship. And with this politics there is another group
of subordinates’ where the manager is not there and if we say something bad about our manager (which
is obvious in any origination) then that fewer performing subordinates use this chat as proof for making
the manager happy. These are some of the bigger questions to tackle, but looking at things the way they
are, WhatsApp has played a huge role in changing behavior by making organization open in criticizing and
praising but they don’t know that this openness and easiness in communication is leading towards
hampering personal life as well as in interpersonal relationship.

There is a balance to be struck between encouraging staff to communicate openly while behaving
appropriately and make clear what you consider to be inappropriate conduct. Workplace WhatsApp
groups should not be the place for employees to rank their colleagues in order of performance or to
criticize and this should be spelled out to employees regularly.
What do you think?